These are very easy to make. The recipe makes quite a large quantity, about 40-60 depending on how big you make them! When I make these, I bake 1/3 of the mixture, and freeze 2/3 (divided into 2 packages).. If you don’t want many biscuits at a time, then bake 1/4 and freeze the rest divided  into 3 separate packages. You could just make half the quantity!

Ingredients

2 cups plain flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup oil (vegetable or sunflower)

1 cup soft brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 cups porridge oats

1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

How to make them

Preheat the oven to 350F/ 175 C/ 165 C Fan Oven/ Gas Mark 3

1. Put margarine, oil, brown sugar and white sugar in a bowl and beat until smooth.
2. Beat in eggs one at a time.
3. Gradually stir in the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt and mix until well blended.
4. Now mix in the porridge oats. The mixture will be fairly stiff by now.
5. Pull off small balls of dough and roll quickly between hands or scoop a large teaspoonful and scrape off onto baking tray with another spoon.
6. Place the balls of dough onto the lined baking tray. They will spread out flat as they bake, so don’t place too close together. You can gently flatten then a little with a fork if you like. Do not grease the tray if you haven’t got any lining paper or silicone sheet as there is enough fat in the biscuits already.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes in the oven until the edges are golden.
8. Allow to cool a little, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Tags: baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, chocolate chips, cookies, Cowboy, eggs, granulated sugar, margarine, oil, plain flour, porridge oats, salt, soft brown sugar
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Ingredients

4 oz SR flour

Pinch of salt

2 oz margarine

2 oz lard

Approx 1 tablespoon cold water

jam or lemon curd

How to make them

1.Grease the bun tins well. You will need 12.

2. Put the flour into a bowl with the salt.

3. Cut the fat into small pieces, add to the flour. Rub it in until it resembles breadcrumbs.

4. Add enough cold water to bind the flour and fat together until it forms a lump. Try not to let it get too   sticky, it’s best to just add a little water at a time. If you find it’s sticky, add a dusting of flour until it is easy to handle.

5. At this stage you have made the pastry. You can wrap it in a polythene bag or cling film and keep in the fridge for a few days if you wish.

6. Set the oven to 200C or 190C fan oven

7. Roll out the pastry as thin as possible and cut out 12 circles to line the bun tins.

8. Into each pastry case put one small teaspoonful of jam or lemon curd. Don’t be tempted to add more – the jam will become liquid in the oven and spread out to fill the case – too much will overflow and you will have a sticky mess! (Soak in the sink to clean up!)

9. Bake in the middle or top of the oven for about 15 minutes until the pastry is light brown.

10. Remove from oven and allow to set in tin before removing to cooling rack.

Tags: jam, lard, lemon curd, margarine, salt, self raising flour
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These are delicious, very crisp, and they keep very well in an airtight container (if you can leave them long enough!). Worth making a double quantity – then you won’t have half an egg left over! You could freeze half the dough for another batch later. (Make as far as step 3 and freeze the dough in a ball. Or you could go as far as rolling the biscuits in oats and then freeze them spread out on a tray. When they are frozen, put them in a bag and keep in the freezer. When you want to use them, just spread them out on a greased baking tray, allow to thaw for about 15 mins and bake. They will probably bake from frozen, but I haven’t tried it!

Ingredients

3 oz (75g) soft margarine

3 oz (75g) caster sugar

half a beaten egg

few drops of vanilla essence

1 oz (25g) porridge oats

4oz (100g) self raising flour

1/2  teaspoon baking powder

about 5 glace cherries, quartered

about 1/2 cup of porridge oats to roll the biscuits in  on a plate or flat dish

How to Make Them

Set the oven to 325F, 160C, gas mark 3, fan oven 150C.

1. Put margarine and sugar in a bowl and beat together until soft and creamy.

2. Add the egg and vanilla essence and beat together to combine.

3. Add the oats, flour and baking powder. Mix until it sticks together like dough.

4  Pull off small lumps of dough about the size of a table tennis ball (about 1″ diameter). Roll into a ball between palms of hands, then roll in oats to coat.

5. Place on a greased baking tray and flatten gently with a fork.

6. Place a quarter cherry on top of each biscuit and press in slightly to secure.

7. Bake for about 15 – 20 miutes until pale golden brown.

8. Cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight tin.

Tags: caster sugar, egg, glace cherries, margarine, porridge oats, self raising flour, vanilla essence
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Use fruit such as apples or rhubarb. It can be pre-stewed or put in raw.

Ingredients

2 or 3 cooking apples, peeled and sliced or chunks of rhubarb

sugar to sweeten fruit to taste

6 oz plain flour

3 oz margarine

3 oz granulated sugar

How to make it

Lightly grease a pyrex dish.

Put in the fruit and sprinkle sugar over the top and stir in. If using raw fruit, add a little water for it to cook in – just enough to cover the base of the dish’

Put the flour in a bowl.

Rub in the margarine with fingertips until like breadcrumbs

Stir in the sugar and mix well.

Pour the flour mixture over the fruit and cover entirely, pressing down gentl to firm the top.

Bake at 200c, 400F for 20 minutes or a little longer. It should be golden brown.

Serve with cream or custard.

N.B. Soak the dirty dish overnight and it will be very easy to clean.

Tags: cooking apples, granulated sugar, margarine, plain flour, rhubarb, sugar
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Ingredients

1/3 small box of Rice Krispies

3 Mars Bars (not giant ones!)

4 oz margarine

1 tablespoon golden syrup

Milk chocolate.

How to Make it

1. Line a tin with black silicon sheet.
2. In a large pan, melt the Mars bars, margarine and golden syrup.
3. Stir in the rice krispies a little at a time until they are all coated with Mars bar mixture and there is no ‘liquid’ left.
4. Press mixture into the tin and smooth.
5. Melt about half a bar of cooking chocolate in the microwave, or in a basin over a pan of boiling water.
6. Spread the melted chocolate over the Rice Krispie mixture. Leave to set (in fridge if necessary).
7. When set, turn out of tin and cut into squares.

Tags: golden syrup, margarine, Mars bar, milk chocolate, Rice Krispies
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