Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (2024)

Home » Recipes » Day of the Dead biscuits

by Sew White

JUMP TO RECIPE

Day of the Dead biscuits are so fun to make and look spectacular. My easy Day of the Dead biscuits are made with my basic vanilla biscuit recipe.

Any excuse to try and play with cookie cutters and stamps and I am there! I bought the fabulous Fred Sweet Spirits set and I love the biscuits they produce. Next time I want to try them with sugar paste on a cake. I think they would look lovely.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (1)

Lots of happy skulls on the tray ready for the oven.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (2)

The finished cookies ready to enjoy with a cup of tea. You can see they are rather pale but they taste brilliant. This recipe is also brilliant for making biscuits to ice.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (3)

I love the look of the stamp in the dough.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (4)

I used the decorate stamp on the dough first and then use the cutter side to make the shape.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (5)

Follow me on Instagram to see what I’ve been making recently. www.instagram.com/sewwhite

View my other recipes

Bourbon Biscuits

Bourbon Biscuits are a classic biscuit and taste incredible. They are so delicious and always remind me of childhood. I loved getting to create them at home

Lavender and Lady Grey Biscuits

Lavender and Lady Grey Biscuits are gorgeously delicate and perfect for afternoon tea. They also smell incredible as they bake.

Gingerbread Recipe

I love gingerbread so much and I have tried so many recipes. My Christmas Gingerbread Recipe is a fine tuning of a mix of them. I hope you enjoy.

Embossed Cookie Recipe – Embossed Rolling Pin Recipe

This easy to follow and lightly spiced Embossed Cookie recipe produces a dough which holds the pattern of an embossed rolling pin whilst tasting great! I've got all the tips and tricks you'll need to make perfect rolling pin cookies plus a troubleshooting guide so you'll be able to make the most out of your patterned rolling pin. These spiced sugar cookies are simply perfect and you can use the same recipe to make simple cookie cutter biscuits too.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (10)

Basic Vanilla Biscuits

Sisley White

This recipe is the simple vanilla biscuit recipe I use for all my biscuits. It also works really well with embossed rolling pins.

5 from 7 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Chill time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr

Course Bakes, Biscuits, Sweet Treats

Cuisine British, English

Servings 40 small to medium biscuits

Calories 93 kcal

Ingredients

  • 200 g unsalted butter
  • 200 g caster sugar
  • 1 medium egg
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 400 g plain flour / all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger

Instructions

  • Cream the butter and sugar together.

  • Mix in the egg and vanilla (with the optional and ginger).

  • Sieve in the flour and combine into a a dough. Once the dough has pulled together wrap it in cling film and pop it in for 30 minutes.

  • Roll out the dough to just shy of a 1cm thickness.

  • Cut out the shapes you want and pop the pieces on a greaseproof paper lined baking tray.

  • Pop the dough back into the fridge for 30 minutes.

  • Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/160 degrees fan oven.

  • Pop the biscuits in the oven for 8-10 minutes until the dough is firm to the touch and just starting to go light brown.

  • You don’t want them going golden brown or they will dry too hard. You can see how pale the finished biscuits are above.

  • Leave to cool on a cooling rack and once cold store in an air tight container.

Notes

Add ginger to give them a bit more of a fiery warmth. Use 1 teaspoon if you really like ginger. You can adapt to your taste.

Store for up to 3-5 days in an air tight container.

Nutrition

Calories: 93kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 1gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 2mgPotassium: 14mgFiber: 1gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 131IUCalcium: 3mgIron: 1mg

Please note that the nutrition information provided above is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

Keyword Basic Vanilla Easter Biscuit, Easter biscuit making

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

14 thoughts on “Day of the Dead biscuits”

  1. Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (11)
    I love Sugar Skulls so these really appeal to me! I’m trying to get into baking so I’ll definitely add this to my recipe list. xo

    Reply

    • I hope you make it and enjoy them x

      Reply

  2. Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (12)
    These look and sound amazing. I really want one of those stamps! x

    Reply

    • thank you! x

      Reply

  3. I have the stamps and am looking forward to trying this recipe at Hallowe’en. How much ginger goes in? and is it powdered ginger or other? thanks.

    Reply

    • Hi Alison,
      I add in 1 teaspoon of ground ginger which gives a lovely fiery warmth. I hope you enjoy making them x

      Reply

  4. Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (13)
    I used the dough for my star wars biscuits yesterday for May 4th and while the dough is very soft they came out brilliant. Will be using this recipe again with other stamped cutters!

    Top tip: Cut the shapes out on your baking paper and pull the dough away around them. Otherwise you’ll have to do what I did and get a spatula to carry them on the tray. This ruined some of the shape and stamped design as they moved

    Reply

    • That is a great top tip thank you! I’m so glad you liked them

      Reply

  5. Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (14)
    Brilliant recipe Thankyou! I’ve got so many cookies, can I freeze the dough I have left? How is best to defrost if I can please?
    My little girl loves making Christmas versions of these and they don’t change shape during baking!

    Reply

    • That is so lovely to hear. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment.
      You can definitely freeze the leftover dough. It is better to freeze before cooking. If you cut them into shapes and then freeze you can cook straight from frozen but add 2-3 minutes to the cook time.

      Reply

  6. No baking powder?

    Reply

    • No baking powder as you don’t want the design or shape from the cookie cutter to spread and grow when baked.

      Reply

  7. Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (15)
    Use this regularly not just for sugar skulls at Hallowe’en but also other shapes at other times of year, sometimes add different spices etc. for variety but it’s a good basic dough and very easy. Nice one!

    Reply

    • Thank you that is so kind. I really appreciate you saying it.

      Reply

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Day of the Dead biscuits - Basic vanilla biscuit recipe (2024)

FAQs

What are the three basic types of biscuits? ›

Types of Biscuits
  • Rolled Biscuits. Rolled biscuits are one of the most popular baking-powder leavened quick breads. ...
  • Drop Biscuits. Drop biscuits have more milk or other liquid added to the dough than rolled biscuits. ...
  • Scones. ...
  • Shortcakes.

How did they make biscuits in the old days? ›

“… beaten biscuits are what people made in the days before baking soda and baking powder was around. In order to get the biscuits to rise, cooks would beat the dough with a mallet, rolling pin, or even an ax for over half an hour util it blistered.”

What is the secret to biscuits? ›

Use Cold Butter for Biscuits

When the biscuit bakes, the butter will melt, releasing steam and creating pockets of air. This makes the biscuits airy and flaky on the inside.

What makes biscuits not fluffy? ›

Overworking the dough will not only create a tough biscuit instead of a tender biscuit, but can also result in a flatter biscuit. The more you play with the dough, the warmer the dough becomes. If the fat becomes too warm it will melt into the flour and they won't rise as tall.

What is the oldest biscuit in the world? ›

The earliest surviving example of a biscuit is from 1784, and it is a ship's biscuit. They were renowned for their inedibility, and were so indestructible that some sailors used them as postcards.

What is the oldest biscuits? ›

Pizzelle, also known as Italian wafer cookies, in The Complete Collection of Biscuit Types are the oldest known biscuits. Pizzelles are the oldest known cookie and originated in the mid-section of Italy.

What happens if you use baking soda instead of baking powder in biscuits? ›

That is why you will notice that recipes usually call for a small amount of baking soda, typically ¼ teaspoon per 1 cup of flour. Do not make the mistake of trying to substitute equal parts baking soda for baking powder in recipes. Your baked goods will have no leavening, be quite flat, and have an altered taste.

What are the 4 types of biscuits? ›

Soft Dough Biscuits

They contain more calories, slightly more time to bake and come in an extensive range of shapes & textures like butter biscuits, glucose biscuits, choco enrobed biscuits, cream sandwich biscuits, shortbread biscuits and many more.

What is the history of good day biscuits? ›

Ans : Launched in 1987, Britannia Good Day created the 'Cookie' category in India- and made dry fruits and nuts accessible to Indian households for the first time. The brand that has always propagated happiness, today said the rich and varied smiles of India has inspired its makeover.

Which flour is best for biscuits? ›

There is some actual science behind why White Lily flour is lighter than others and, thus, better suited for items like biscuits and cakes.

Why put an egg in biscuits? ›

Biscuit recipes tend to be egg-free, this makes them drier and the lack of protein to bind the mix helps achieve that crumbly texture. For super light, crumbly biscuits try grating or pushing the yolks of hard-boiled eggs through a sieve into the biscuit dough.

What kind of flour do Southerners use for biscuits? ›

White Lily brand flour, especially the self-rising flour, is the gold standard among Southern cooks who make biscuits on a regular basis. White lily, self rising. I use it for everything except those thing I make using either cake flour or yeast. If I'm using yeast I use King Arthur flours.

Are biscuits better with butter or shortening? ›

The butter version rises the highest — look at those flaky layers! The shortening biscuit is slightly shorter and a bit drier, too. Butter contains a bit of water, which helps create steam and gives baked goods a boost.

Why do my homemade biscuits taste like flour? ›

While over-handling your biscuit dough can make your baked goods turn out like hockey pucks, under-mixing it while you're still adding all of your ingredients can result in floury or grainy biscuits.

Should you let biscuit dough rest? ›

Cover the dough loosely with a kitchen towel and allow it to rest for 30 minutes. Gently pat out the dough some more, so that the rectangle is roughly 10 inches by 6 inches. Cut dough into biscuits using a floured biscuit cutter (or even a glass, though its duller edge may result in slightly less tall biscuits).

What are the main types of biscuits? ›

Types of Biscuits
  • Ginger Biscuits. ...
  • Shortbread "Parliament" Cookies That Bring Luck to Brides. ...
  • Custard Creams: Traditional, 'Sandwich', Guinness-Certified Biscuits. ...
  • Pizzelle: Traditional Biscuit With a Long History. ...
  • Oatmeal Cookies: Tasty and full of health benefits. ...
  • Rich Tea: The Most Dunkable Biscuit.

What are the different types of biscuits? ›

Types of biscuit include sandwich biscuits, digestive biscuits, ginger biscuits, shortbread biscuits, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate-coated marshmallow treats, Anzac biscuits, biscotti, and speculaas.

What are the 3 steps for the biscuit method? ›

Procedure: Biscuit Method
  1. Scale and measure all ingredients.
  2. Sift the dry ingredients together into a large mixing bowl.
  3. Cut the shorting or butter into the dry ingredient mixture using the paddle attachment. ...
  4. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients, mixing only until combined.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Virgilio Hermann JD

Last Updated:

Views: 5461

Rating: 4 / 5 (61 voted)

Reviews: 84% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Virgilio Hermann JD

Birthday: 1997-12-21

Address: 6946 Schoen Cove, Sipesshire, MO 55944

Phone: +3763365785260

Job: Accounting Engineer

Hobby: Web surfing, Rafting, Dowsing, Stand-up comedy, Ghost hunting, Swimming, Amateur radio

Introduction: My name is Virgilio Hermann JD, I am a fine, gifted, beautiful, encouraging, kind, talented, zealous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.