Notes from my Kitchen - Crispy Coconut Biscuits

A new year as busy as the last, and I am baking for a weekend trip to the lake. My husband chose rusks (a South African muesli biscuit made the same way as biscotti), my older son chose choc chip cookies, and my younger son his favourite coconut biscuits. This recipe can be made into a fancier biscuit similar to Monte Carlos by sandwiching two biscuits with the icing recipe below.

185g butter

½ cup light brown sugar

1 egg

1t vanilla extract

1 ¼ cups self-raising flour

¾ cup cake flour

½ cup coconut

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Cream the butter and sugar until pale. Beat the egg with the vanilla. Sift the flours and add the coconut. Add the egg mixture to the batter, together with a tablespoon of the flour mixture and combine. Add the remaining flour mixture. Roll into balls and flatten with a fork both horizontally and vertically. Refrigerate for 10 minutes. Bake at 180c for 15 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Icing

2T melted butter

¾ cup icing sugar sifted

½ t vanilla extract

Boiling water

Mix the butter, icing sugar and vanilla. Add enough water to make a spreadable consistency. Sandwich two biscuits together with icing once cooled. To make Monte Carlos, spread some jam on one biscuit and icing on the other, then sandwich together for a lovely treat for morning tea.