Home-made Monte Carlos

I was not raised on Arnott’s biscuits but soon came to respect and admire the mighty range of cookies they produce. I have bought a million packets of Marie biscuits, too many packets of Tim Tams to count and am currently keeping my husband constantly supplied in Ginger Nuts (he weirdly believes that they are a ‘diet’ food). So when I came across a Donna Hay recipe for home-made Monte Carlos I knew I had to make them. There is something irresistible about re-creating food that is mass-produced and loved by millions and calling it your own. Whether it’s a copy-cat recipe for KFC zinger burgers, or a secret Shake Shack Sauce I want to have a crack at it. There’s a certain kind of pride in presenting a tray of fresh out of the oven, “no-preservatives” added treats that were considered perfection until you made them just that little, bit better.

Adapted from Donna Hay’s recipe

Ingredients

125g unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 tbsp golden syrup
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/4 cup raspberry jam

Buttercream Icing
80 unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Pre-heat oven to 180C/160C fan-forced/350F. Line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper.

Beat butter, brown sugar and golden syrup together until light and fluffy, add egg and vanilla and beat to combine. Mix in the flour and coconut and then roll mixture into 20 balls (I weighed the mixture in an empty bowl and it came to 730g so then I weighed each ball to 36.5g so I knew they’d all be the same size but you don’t have to be that fussy!).

Place on the baking trays, allowing room to spread and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden, swapping trays around halfway through. Leave to rest on the trays for 5 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Buttercream: Beat the butter, icing sugar and vanilla together until light and fluffy.

Spread half the cookies with a thick layer of buttercream and top with a few teaspoons of jam and then sandwich together. Refrigerate for 10 minutes or until firm.

Carolyn started her blog Pinkpostitnote.com just over a year ago as a way to deal with her obsession of trying new recipes from the copious collection of cookbooks that she owns (and continues to buy). She is particularly fond of “man” food, both cooking it and eating it. She will happily elbow people out of the road at the sight, sound and smell of a pulled pork burger. When she’s not lying awake at 5am wondering if she should buy chooks and a cow to deal with the constant need for eggs and butter, she’s dealing with all the paperwork associated with owning a bunch of tip trucks and her favorite time of the day is wine five o-clock.