Wattleseed Gingernuts
Wattleseed is an Indigenous Australian food that is used here to add a twist to a traditional Australian gingernut recipe. Roast wattleseed has a flavour that has been described as midway between coffee and chocolate. It can be added to coffee or baked goods for extra flavour or used in desserts. So as to not overpower the wattleseed flavour, this recipe uses only a small amount of ginger. As a result, you may find you enjoy these biscuits even if you are not usually a fan of gingernuts. The recipe also uses panela (unrefined cane sugar) for a slightly grainy texture and a richer flavour.
If you are keen and have access to trees in non-protected areas, you could collect wattleseed yourself, then roast and grind it. Otherwise you can buy it here.
Ingredients
60 g softened butter
200 g panela or raw sugar
100 g golden syrup
1 large egg
½ tsp salt
2 tsp roast ground wattleseed
2 tsp ground ginger
300 g plain flour
2 tsp baking soda
½ tsp cream of tartar
Method
Pre-heat oven to 180 ºC (fan-forced). Lightly cream together butter, panela and golden syrup using an electric mixer. Add egg, salt and spices and beat on low speed until incorporated. Weigh out remaining dry ingredients in a bowl and mix together. Gradually add to butter-sugar mix until well combined. The dough will be quite soft. Roll into balls and place on a baking tray, then press down lightly with a fork to shape. You may find it helpful to lightly grease both your hands and the fork to prevent the dough sticking to them. Bake 12 min at 180 ºC and allow to cool on the tray before transferring to a wire rack. Makes about 30. The biscuits will soften over a few days on storage.