Coffee Creams - mk1

After making custard creams last year it has always been my intention to adapt the recipe to make the long-gone biscuit Coffee Cream.

Coffee Creams were the biscuits that could only ever be found in the festive Foxs (or was it Jacobs) biscuit tins given to you by Grandma for Christmas. As I love anything coffee flavoured I always snaffled them up, but not before I had sampled all the other biscuits (especially the posh Jammy Dodgers) first. As any coffee lover will tell you, coffee flavoured sweets/biscuits/cakes are not loved by everyone and are more often than not left till last. This is when us coffee lovers swoop and have our last coffee hit.

Now after a bit of experimentation I admit I've sorted the icing, but haven't got the biscuit dough quite right and no I know they don't look like the originals. The biscuits are delicious in their own right, but don't taste exactly like the hallowed Coffee Creams. Although I put coffee in the biscuit dough you can't taste it. I'm going to work on the recipe and try and get it closer to the flavour I remember. I also need to work on extracting a stronger coffee extract. Any tips?

Coffee Creams
Makes 8 coffee cream sandwiches

For the biscuits
175g/6oz plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
100g unsalted butter, cubed
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 egg
1 tbsp strong coffee

For the coffee cream
100g icing sugar
50g unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp strong coffee

1) Preheat oven to 180oc (160oc fan). For the biscuits mix flour and baking powder. Add butter and rub until you get a crumble like texture. Beat coffee into egg in separate cup. Add sugar then gradually beat in egg/coffee mix (you may not need all the egg) until you have a soft dough. Wrap dough in clingfilm and rest in fridge for 20 min.

2) Roll dough to around 4mm and use cutter to cut out round. Place on lined baking tray and bake for 15 min. Cool on rack before sandwiching them.

3) To make coffee cream, beat together icing sugar and butter until you have a cream. Add coffee and beat again until you have a smooth coffee cream.

4) Sandwich each biscuit with about 1 tsp of coffee cream.

Baileys Coffee Cream Pots

My love of Baileys, is well known. Not just for drinking it, but also cooking with it. My Baileys Cheesecake is one of my most requested desserts and highest google hits. Hubby's late great-Aunt was a woman very much after my own heart as they only thing she would put in her coffee was Baileys, no matter what time of day it was. A coffee called Baileys Blitz also fueled my university days.

Last week Baileys contacted me asking if I would like to try some of their new Baileys with a Hint of Coffee plus have a go at some of their recipes created by James Martin. Me being one to rarely pass on the opportunity to try a new alcohol or dessert recipe I jumped at the chance. It came at the perfect time as I had just finished my most recently bottle of Baileys and was trying to work out which Supermarket had the best deal for a bottle of it.

Hubby doesn't like coffee so rarely do I cook with it, even if it is one of my favourite ingredients. As I'm now on my Christmas break I took the opportunity to get up early (in reality far too early) and set about making some Baileys Coffee Cream Pots for myself as I knew it would take 6 hours to set.

After a lot of impatient waiting (and watching some quite frankly dire daytime TV) the 6 hours eventually passed, just in time to get a photo before the sunset. I have to say it was the perfect dessert for me. Creamy with a generous coffee hit. To often am I disappointed in restaurants with their coffee flavoured desserts as the coffee hit is never enough for me but this was spot on. If I could have 2 puddings on Christmas Day this would be my coffee course...now that's an idea 2 puddings...sorry I digress.

The only very slight alteration I had to make was the fact I didn't have any instant coffee in the house so instead used Lyons Coffee Bags that are usually reserved for our camping trips. If you would like to see the lovely James Martin make this dessert along with the accompanying shortbread click here

Baileys Coffee Cream Pots
Makes 6 ramekins

5 egg yolks
80g caster sugar
260ml milk
260ml double cream
5 tsp instant coffee granules
100ml Baileys with of hint of Coffee (or normal Baileys)

1) Preheat the oven to 150oc. Whisk together the egg yolks and 40g of the sugar.

2) Put the cream, milk, coffee and remaining sugar in a heavy based saucepan. Gently bring to the boil. When it has reached a boil take of the heat and stir in the Baileys, then add the whisked sugar & egg. Quickly stir then strain into the ramekins.

3) Place the ramekins into a deep roasting tin and pour boiling water until it is half the way up the ramekins. Bake for 25-30 until they have a slight wobble.

4) Chill for at least 6 hours before eating. Serve straight from the fridge.