Biscuits - what is it? To the question you will receive an exhaustive answer in the article. In addition, we will talk about how you can independently prepare a delicious dessert that neither a child nor an adult will ever refuse.
General information
Biscuits - what is it? This word was formed from the old French “gal”, which literally means “boulder” or “naked”. Thus, biscuits are crispy light puff dry biscuits, which are in great demand among modern consumers. The popularity of this dessert is due primarily to the fact that it is very convenient to store and transport.
Composition and types of cookies
Biscuits - what is it? Having answered the question left, it should be said that such a dessert is prepared only from high-grade wheat flour with the addition of ordinary water, salt, baking powder, sugar and yeast (sometimes). Today you can buy two main types of biscuits. They differ in composition. So, confectionery factories produce simple dry biscuits (i.e. crackers) and fatty ones, in which margarine or butter is added.
Shelf life
Biscuits - what is it? This is a dry cookie that retains its nutritional qualities for up to 24 months. That is why they are quite widely popular in the Navy, in the army, expeditions, as well as among tourists, climbers and speleologists.
It should be noted that dry salted biscuits (or crackers) are very often served with beer. By the way, cookies with cheese are ideal for this . As for fat biscuits, their properties last for about 6 months. According to the chefs, any kind of dessert should have only a layered structure, easily crack and quickly get wet in the water.
Army biscuits: recipe for cooking
To prepare dry products, we need the following ingredients:
- high-grade flour - 4 glasses;
- baking soda - a pinch;
- drinking water at room temperature - 1-2 glasses;
- small table salt - 1 large spoon;
- any filler (for example, ground cumin seeds) to taste.
Kneading dough
Before baking dry biscuits, mix the base thoroughly. To do this, combine high-grade flour, baking soda, small table salt and a small amount of filler in one bowl. Next, you need to gradually pour water and knead a tight dough that does not stick to your hands.
The process of forming and baking
After the base is kneaded, roll it into a thin layer (3 mm) and cut into small squares. It is recommended to pierce each product several times with a fork, and then put it on a dry baking sheet, which must be lined with parchment paper in advance .
Bake army biscuits in the oven should be about half an hour. After that, the cookies need to be turned over and withstood the same amount of time. Ready-made salted crackers should have a brownish tint. If they are well dried, they will retain their nutritional qualities for a long time.
Cooking Fat Biscuits
To prepare high-calorie cookies, you need to purchase the following products:
- large eggs - 2 pcs.;
- granulated sugar - ½ cup;
- baking margarine - 160 g;
- table soda - a small pinch;
- high-grade wheat flour - about 3 glasses.
Cooking dough
To make a base for fat biscuits, beat the eggs strongly, then add sugar to them and mix thoroughly. Next, you need to melt the cooking oil, cool it slightly and pour in the egg mass. There it is necessary to add table soda and gradually pour high-grade flour. As a result of such actions, you should get an elastic and rather thick dough that sticks very well from your fingers. To make it convenient to roll, it is recommended to place it in a bag and leave it in the freezer for 25 minutes.
Formation and heat treatment
After the specified time, the kneaded base should be removed from the freezer and rolled thinly into a sheet, after sprinkling the dough with flour. The resulting layer must be cut into circles using a glass, and then put on baking paper and sent to a preheated oven. Such products should be baked for about 50 minutes.
Proper serving
Dry biscuits, cooked at home, it is recommended to serve to the table in a cooled state. But fat biscuits can be presented immediately after baking. By the way, margarine dessert turns out to be a bit softer and tastier than regular crackers. But you won’t be able to take such cookies on a long trip, as it does not retain its nutritional qualities for long.
Useful tips for housewives
If you want to cook biscuits yourself, then it is not necessary to adhere to the above recipes. After all, today such cookies are made in different ways. Someone adds nuts and candied fruits to it, and someone uses sunflower kernels and ground cinnamon.