Sedgemoor Easter biscuits

Sedgemoor Easter biscuits, traditional English biscuits from Somerset in West Country, are like delicious shortbreads speckled with currants and glazed with vanilla icing.

My Easter baking repertoire recently gained a valuable new addition: Sedgemoor biscuits.

Where is Sedgemoor?

Sometimes called Somerset biscuits, they come from the West Country and appear for Easter, to be nibbled alongside chocolate eggs on Easter Sunday. That is of course if anyone is able to just ‘nibble’ at chocolate eggs.

Sedgemoor is the western part of Somerset, England, the bit of the country southwest of Bath which I don’t usually think of as Somerset but it’s probably just my geography being unusually shoddy.

It's one of my favourite parts of the world, none the less because they have lovely food and drink there. Famous for Cheddar and cider already, it now turns out they do a good biscuit as well, and for Easter!

Wholemeal twist

This particular recipe uses a mix of wholemeal and plain white flours. I was initially slightly dubious about its authenticity as it comes from NY Times Cooking of all places.

But I compared with some West Country recipes and the only modification discernible in the New York version was the small addition of wholemeal flour. Which I accepted and rightly so: it is a winner mix as the biscuits taste more interestingly crunchy and earthy, and less like something you might find next to your tea cup in an old-fashioned musty tea room.

As is the case with chocolate eggs at Easter, Sedgemoor biscuits too are often gifted. They should be presented in stacks of three, tied with a ribbon which makes them look rather lovely.

Easy to make

Sedgemoor biscuits are very easy to make and start their pastry life like shortbread: with butter rubbed into the flour mix. Spices and vanilla follow, and just one egg makes the dough come beautifully together.

Traditionally the Easter biscuits are studded with currants. If you prefer seedless fruit, swap them for raisins. I actually like the crunch of the pips in these cookies though generally I am the raisin/sultana kind of baker.

The dough is nice to work with and rolls out well without the otherwise statutory chill in the fridge. Cutting round or scalloped biscuits is the tradition but if you fancy Easter bunnies, butterflies or little lamb shapes, go all out.

The same goes for icing: I do restrained, Somerset-style plain vanilla icing on my biscuits but there is no reason why a drop of pink or yellow food colouring should not find its way to the glaze. Happy Easter!