Make Your Own Festive Biscuit Box
Quince Bakery’s Anna Higham puts her own spin on the US tradition of cookie gift boxes, with a selection of three quick and easy recipes to bring joy this Christmas
Welcome to a special Christmas edition of Vittles Recipes! This week Anna Higham of Quince Bakery is bringing some festive cheer with a selection of easy and delicious biscuits to make for friends and family.
Also a reminder that our selection of six art prints made in collaboration with illustrator Sing Yun Lee and photographer Michaël Protin are now available to buy via our website. We hope that you find something that you love.
Make Your Own Festive Biscuit Box
Quince Bakery’s Anna Higham puts her own spin on the US tradition of cookie gift boxes, with a selection of three quick and easy biscuit recipes to bring joy this Christmas
While in the UK, we love to give chocolates at Christmas, gifting a box of beautifully wrapped cookies is an American tradition. For me, it brings to mind a vision of Martha Stewart-esque hospitality – always poised for a flurry of guests to drop by, each of whom would leave with a handmade gift in their arms. A box of Christmas cookies – or biscuits – should cater to a multitude of desires and tastes: chocolate enthusiasts, those looking for something plain and earnest, unexpected guests in need of a sweet treat to warm their hearts, and solo dives for sustenance while wrapping presents late at night. But you don’t have to be a Martha Stewart to give homemade presents – baking your own festive biscuits is a lot quicker and easier than you might think.
These three recipes are my proposal for your own festive biscuit box. Each recipe can each be prepped in around ten minutes and baked straight away, with no resting time. Baking need not always be complicated (I would argue it never needs to be – especially at Christmas).
First, chocolate-dipped oat cookies – pure expressions of the buttery quality of oats. Using a combination of porridge oats and pinhead oats is important: whereas the former will almost melt into the butter as they bake, the latter will keep their texture and provide nutty bursts of oat flavour.
Next, ginger thins. I used to receive a box of ginger thins (specifically the type known as ‘Anna biscuits’ that you can get in Ikea) in my stocking every Christmas, so they feel especially festive to me. Warming and crisp, they’re the perfect excuse to get out any festive cookie cutters you may have at the back of the cupboard. I have heavily spiced these biscuits to provide a pronounced warmth, but the type and quantity of spice can be adjusted to your taste.
Lastly, a saffron shortbread, a calming, steadying treat, a balm for the hectic festive season. A biscuit tin should always contain a shortbread in my (highly biased, Scottish) opinion. Saffron’s celebratory colour and flavour are perfectly carried through the buttery shortbread.
All three of these recipes are scalable and adaptable. Tune them to your palate or to the palate of the person you’re baking for. I spend my days taking immense pleasure from the joy that people get from the bakes that I create. I urge you to bake for your friends, family, and community this Christmas – it’s a simple, honest way to bring joy to the world.
Chocolate-Dipped Oat Cookies
Makes 12
Time 25 mins plus cooling and setting