Arnhemse Meisjes

In 1829 bakte de Arnhemse bakker Hagdorn voor het eerst dit koekje om de geboorte van zijn dochter te vieren. Het recept bleef een goed bewaard geheim tot de kinderboekenschrijver Roald Dahl het in 1990 ontfutselde en het deelde met de wereld in zijn kookboek Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes.

Voor de snelle versie kan je kant-en-klaar bladerdeeg gebruiken, maar voor de ultieme luchtige crunch maak je het fijn gerezen gistdeeg from scratch.

DESSERT

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Arnhem Biscuits

In 1829, the baker Hagdorn from Arnhem first baked this cookie to celebrate the birth of his daughter. The recipe remained a closely guarded secret until the children’s author Roald Dahl obtained it in 1990 and shared it with the world in his cookbook "Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes".

For a quicker version, you can use ready-made puff pastry, but for the ultimate light and crunchy result, make a well-risen yeast dough from scratch.

1 lemon, zest and juice
1/2 cup (100 ml )semi-skimmed milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
3.7 oz (105 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (190 g) all-purpose flour
0.07 oz (about 2 g) active dry yeast
1 cup (200 g) raw cane sugar

1. Start the night before. Place the flour, milk, yeast, 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest, and 1 teaspoon lemon juice in a bowl. Cut the butter into 1 cm cubes.

2. Beat the flour mixture for 2 minutes with a mixer on high speed, adding the butter cubes one at a time. Add the salt and mix for another minute. Flatten the dough on a plate to a thickness of about 1 inch (3 cm). Cover with clingfilm and let it rest overnight in the refrigerator.

3. Preheat the oven to 285°F (140°C). Roll out the dough on a floured work surface into a sheet about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. Cut out oval or round shapes. Re-roll the scraps and cut out more cookies.

4. Generously sprinkle the work surface with 3/4 of the sugar. Place the cookies on top of the sugar. Sprinkle the remaining sugar evenly over them. Roll over the cookies with a rolling pin so the sugar presses in and they become about 1/16 inch (2 mm) thick. Place them on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

5. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 40 minutes, switching the trays halfway through. Remove when they are golden brown and let cool on a wire rack.