Looking out of my office window and gazing over that white carpet of snow makes me wonder how much I would enjoy being snowed in for a few days.
It is minus 8 degrees outside but the sun is shining like she’s declaring her will to fill the world with golden beams of light.
I close my eyes, daydreaming of waking up in my small chocolate box cottage in rural England, my whole body warmly tucked under a mountain of gingham and flowery blankets. The sun shining through my frost flower stained windows, the glaring light showing off the fact that I haven’t cleaned the windows in weeks – months – Who has time to clean the outside of windows?
With the blankets still wrapped around me I make my way to that window to look outside and see the snow halfway up the door of the cottage on the other side of the road.
Could we be snowed in?
I quickly change into my downstairs pijamas -yes there is such a thing- and try to find out what the situation is. The old red door of the cottage is jammed by the snow, it will need some pushing. I’ve managed to get it open just far enough to leap outside in my red hunter boots and my big red cape. I realize I must look quite silly wearing my downstairs pijamas with the wellies and the cape but the village folk know me by now… it’s Regula, she walks her favorite ginger pig on a lead …
I make my way back to the cottage, open my red door and head back inside. The cats – however a bit suspicious of the snow – try and run out in the garden – No no no, we are snowed in! Lets put a hearty stew in the oven and snug up on the armchair by the inglenook fireplace. I grab the book I’ve been meaning to read for ages, a woolen blanket, a large mug Earl Grey tea and biscuits … treasuring the silence in my imaginary cottage.
These biscuits are wonderfully crumbly, they are not overly sweet and the oats and spelt make them slightly healthier than your average shortbread or a chocolate chip cookie.
Oats have a higher concentration of well-balanced protein than other cereals, they are a great source of carbohydrate, which
is an important source of energy for the body. All carbohydrates
are converted to, and absorbed into the blood in the
form of glucose, which is the brain’s preferred source of fuel.
110 g raw cane sugar
170 g rolled oats
170 g spelt flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
4 tablespoons of milkMethod
- Preheat your oven to 250° Celsius
- Line two baking trays with baking paper
- Cream the butter and the sugar in a bowl
- Mix in the oats thoroughly
- Add the flour (sifted) and the bicarbonate in batches while you work the dough with your hands
- Start adding the milk until you get a stiff dough, you might need more or a little less of milk.
- Turn the dough out on a floured surface and roll out the dough until it’s about 0,5 cm thick
- Use a +- 7 cm ring to cut out round shapes
- Transfer the cookies to the baking trays and place in the oven for 10 -15 minutes.
- Cool on the trays before eating them.
Cranberry & apple spelt crumble >
Regula Ysewijn is a food writer, stylist and photographer, with a particular interest in historical recipes. he is a Great Taste Awards judge and a member of The Guild of Food Writers, as well as one of the two judges on 'Bake Off Vlaanderen', the Belgian version of 'The Great British Bake-Off'. A self-confessed Anglophile, she collects old British cookbooks and culinary equipment in order to help with her research. She is the author of 5 books: Pride and Pudding the history of British puddings savoury and sweet, Belgian Café Culture, the National Trust Book of Puddings, Brits Bakboek and Oats in the North, Wheat from the South. 
They sound delicious – like an oatcake-shortbread hybrid! Yum
Beautiful!! You make the country sooo appealing even to the city bumpkin me!! LOL
And, darling, I can't thank you enough for this recipe. These are my favorite biscuits and I have been meaning to look up an authentic recipe to make at home! Muah
Aww thank you Asha! You will love these cookies x
Gorgeous winter pictures! I particularly like the one of the gorgeous English landscape at sunset. So romantic…
Great biscuits. Perfect with a good cuppa.
Cheers,
Rosa
Oh Rosa, that sunset was so beautiful! It was in the Cotswolds.
Your photos are always so beautiful. I live in a little house in Devon and yes, life here is almost perfect! Your biscuits are perfect for the country, they are refined and a little rustic, just like we country folk!
Thanks for another lovely post! : )
You lucky, lucky lady!
These biscuits look gorgeously moreish. I don't drink tea but I imagine they are good dunkers too!
You don't drink tea? Now I didn't think you wouldn't drink tea! ;)) And yes, they are good dunkers!
You know this is my dream, we share the same village probably!
I also li,e the idea of these biscuits, not too sweet, perfect with a cup of Early Grey! xx
We would be neighbours I'm sure! We would have cups of tea in the street and have walks to the pub!
Girls, what's wrong with us? While people dream of having a brilliant career in a busy city, we dream of living in the countryside, baking biscuits, walking ginger pigs around and having litres of tea. This is so odd!
Well, if you and Juls plan on being neighbours… can I "book" the house around the corner, already?
xoxo
jasmine
Deal!
Jasmine, you are right, we are an odd bunch 😉 You can book the house around the corner, we'll see you for dinner in the local pub tonight 😉
I just love this post, Regula, you took me far far away, right into your dream – so much so that even though it's 33 degrees here (at 8pm!), I'm now craving a cup of hot tea and thinking about turning the oven on to bake some cookies!
Dear Emiko, thank you so much. I'm glad my post had this effect on you, mind you – you might enjoy the refreshing temperatures for a few minutes x