I had a really productive crafty day today, and if you’ve seen my previous post then you might have guessed that there was a bit of a leafy theme going on! I found this recipe for these biscuits in the November 2013 issue of Country Living magazine, and bought a set of leaf cutters to make them (which will no doubt come in handy again). The biscuits are yummy on their own but the maple buttercream is divine and makes them extra special, so well worth making that too. If you’ve got a sweet tooth like me then you’ll love them!

Ingredients

50g pecan nuts
200g plain flour, plus more to dust
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
60g light muscovado sugar
125g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and softened

For the maple buttercream

100g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and softened
150g icing sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon golden syrup
1 tablespoon maple syrup

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180C (160C for fan oven)/Gas mark 4. Line two baking trays with baking parchment. Tip the nuts onto one of the trays and place in the oven for five minutes, or until lightly roasted. Let them cool slightly, then chop very, very finely (I did this in a food processor just to be sure!)

2. Sift together the flour and cinnamon, add the muscovado sugar and rub in the butter with your fingertips until it resembles crumbs. Add the chopped nuts and continue to work the mixture – it will come together as a dough.

3. On a very lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 3-4mm thick. Cut out the biscuits using 3-5cm long leaf cutters. Remember to make an even number of each design if you are sandwiching them together!

4. Lay the biscuits on baking trays and bake for 15-20 minutes until a pale golden colour. Cool on the trays for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

5. To make the buttercream, place the butter, icing sugar, vanilla extract and golden syrup in a bowl and mix together – you can do this by hand or with an electric whisk, but the mixture should be pale and creamy. Drizzle in the maple syrup and beat thoroughly.

6. The unfilled biscuits will keep for a few days in an airtight tin, but once filled, the biscuits will need to be served on the day. When ready to serve, sandwich the leaves together with the buttercream. You could dust them with some icing sugar (I forgot this bit – oops!). Enjoy!

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I substituted some of the ingredients from the original recipe (using freshly chopped basil instead of mint and parsley) and because I couldn’t find filo pastry in the supermarket this afternoon, I used a sheet of puff pastry instead. I didn’t use the sesame seeds on top either because Tom hates them! I’ll try and include the method for both types of pastry here – hopefully it won’t be too confusing!

Ingredients

5 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
400g red onions, finely chopped (I used 2 large red onions)
500g leeks, finely chopped (I used 3 leeks)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
600g courgettes, finely chopped (I used 3 courgettes)
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped (optional)
60g fresh mint leaves, removed from storks and roughly chopped
60g fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
250g pack filo sheets (12 sheet pack, or 1 sheet of ready to roll puff pastry)
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
25 Kalamata olives (or good quality mixed olives, stoned)
1 heaped teaspoon dried mint
200g feta, crumbled
2 medium eggs, beaten
2-3 teaspoons sesame seeds

Method

1. Heat the oven to 170C or gas mark 3 (I went up to gas 4 with my puff pastry). Grease the base and sides of a 23cm x 7cm deep cake tin, or a similar sized oven proof dish.

2. Put 3 tablespoons of oil in a large pan on a medium heat. Add the onions, leeks and garlic and stir well. Turn the heat down to low and cook gently for 10 minutes until softened. Add the remaining olive oil, courgettes, chilli and herbs, and continue to cook over a low heat for a further 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with black pepper (I didn’t add salt because the feta is salty, and this will be added later).

3. If using filo pastry, lay a sheet of filo over the base of the prepared tin and mould it gently into its shape, allowing the ends to fall over the edge of the tin. Brush with oil and don’t worry if it breaks up a little. Repeat this with 5 more sheets of pastry, brushing each one with oil as you go.

4. Add the lemon zest, pine nuts, olives and dried mint to the courgette mixture, stirring well to combine. Spoon the mixture into the filo lined tin (if using puff pastry, just spoon straight into the greased tin). Crumble the feta over the top and then pour in the beaten eggs (save a little if using puff pastry for brushing).

5. For the top of the pie, either layer 3 sheets of filo pastry (brushing each one with oil) and then fold the hanging edges over the top of the pie, pressing down gently. Brush the filo pastry top with oil and scatter with sesame seeds. If using puff pastry, cover the courgette mixture with the sheet, crimping the excess on the top, and brush with the remaining egg.

6. Bake in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes until golden. Serve hot or cold with some salad. Enjoy!

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