Biscuits are a popular snack food and dessert item around the world, with many different varieties and local names. In countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, the term “biscuit” commonly refers to a small, flat, baked, flour-based product that is usually unsweetened or mildly sweetened. However, in other places the term can mean something quite different.
Different Names for Sweet Biscuits
Here are some of the common names used for sweet biscuits in different parts of the world:
- Cookies – This is the most common term for sweet biscuits in the United States. Cookies can come in all shapes and sizes, and cover a wide range of sweetness levels.
- Biscuits – In the UK and many Commonwealth countries, the term “biscuit” does apply to sweet cookie-like treats. These biscuits encompass everything from chocolate chip cookies to digestive biscuits to Jammie Dodgers.
- Crackers – In some places, like New Zealand and Australia, the term “crackers” may be used to refer to cookies or sweet sandwich-type biscuits.
- Biskut – This is a common term for sweet biscuits or cookies in Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia. It comes from the Dutch word “beschuit.”
- Beschuit – In the Netherlands, these sweet, round, crispy biscuits are known as “beschuit.” Similar versions are found in Indonesia.
- Drożdżówka – In Poland, these are sweet biscuits made with yeast, sometimes topped with icing or chocolate.
- Kue Kering – This Indonesian term refers to a wide assortment of cookies, crackers and sweet biscuits.
- Galletas – In Spanish and Mexican cuisine, “galletas” are cookies and sweet crackers.
Common Types of Sweet Biscuits
Here are some classic examples of sweet biscuit or cookie varieties from around the world:
- Shortbread – A classic butter cookie from Scotland made with flour, sugar, and lots of butter for a crumbly texture.
- Ginger snaps – Chewy ginger-flavored cookies popular in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, sometimes coated in sugar.
- Digestive biscuits – Whole wheat biscuits from the U.K. containing baking soda, traditionally served with tea.
- Pizzelles – Traditional Italian waffle cookies made in a special iron, often served at Christmas.
- Speculaas – Spiced shortcrust biscuits popular in the Netherlands and Belgium, traditionally enjoyed on St. Nicholas’ feast day.
- Alfajores – Sandwich cookies popular in Latin America, made with two cake-like cookies and dulce de leche filling.
- Krumkake – Thin, crispy Norwegian cookie typically rolled into a cone shape while warm.
- Lemon drops – Round lemon-flavored iced biscuits from Australia and New Zealand.
- Beschuit – Twice-baked crisp, round biscuits from the Netherlands commonly eaten for breakfast.
- Fattigman – Traditional Norwegian biscuits fried to a light crisp and dusted with powdered sugar.
Ingredients in Sweet Biscuits
While savory biscuits tend to be simple, with ingredients like flour, baking powder, and butter, sweet biscuits open up a whole world of ingredients to give them enticing flavor and texture.
Common ingredients in sweet biscuit recipes include:
- Flour – Usually wheat flour, sometimes a mix of white and whole wheat. Provides structure.
- Butter and oil – For richness and moist texture.
- Sugar – Granulated white sugar most common, but also brown sugar, powdered sugar, molasses.
- Eggs – Help bind and add moisture, protein, and structure.
- Leavening agents – Baking soda, baking powder, yeast in some cases.
- Salt – Enhances sweet flavors.
- Vanilla and extracts – Almond, lemon, orange, mint, etc.
- Chocolate – Chips, melted, cocoa powder.
- Nuts – Walnuts, pecans, almonds, peanut butter.
- Dried fruit – Raisins, cranberries, apricots.
- Spices – Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves.
The possibilities are endless when making sweet biscuits! Texture can range from soft and cakey to crisp and crumbly depending on ingredients and baking technique. Flavor profiles are equally variable.
The Baking Process
Methods for baking sweet biscuits include:
- Creaming – Beating butter and sugar first to incorporate air.
- Melting – Melting butter before mixing into batter.
- Cutting in – Blending cold butter into dry ingredients.
- Using an electric mixer – For quick blending and aerating.
- Hand mixing – Especially for shortbread-type biscuits.
- Rolling and cutting – Rolling dough and using cookie cutters.
- Molding – Pressing dough into shapes.
- Sandwiching – Filling rolled or baked biscuits with jam, icing, etc.
Key factors in baking include:
- Ingredient temperature – Melting butter vs. cold butter produces different effects.
- Portion size – Smaller cookies spread less than large.
- Pan material – Dark pans absorb more heat than reflective pans.
- Oven temperature – Higher temperature = crisper biscuit.
- Bake time – Typically 8-12 minutes for most biscuits.
- Resting dough – Chilling dough makes for better shaped cookies.
Popular Sweet Biscuit Types
Here is more detail on some of the most popular types of sweet biscuits from around the world:
Chocolate Chip Cookies
The classic drop-style chocolate chip cookie originated in the U.S. in the 1930s and has spread in popularity globally. The basic recipe calls for a creamed butter and sugar batter with eggs, flour, chocolate chips, and baking soda/powder. Variations include add-ins like nuts and dried fruit.
Oatmeal Cookies
Chewy oatmeal cookies have a high proportion of oats to flour, lending texture. They often include raisins and are flavored with cinnamon. Oatmeal cookies can also have chocolate chips or other mix-ins.
Sandwich Cremes
These biscuits like Oreos and Jammie Dodgers involve sweet biscuits sandwiches with a cream filling. The biscuit elements tends to be crisp or crunchy to contrast with the soft filling, which is often cream, icing, or jam.
Gingerbread
Gingerbread biscuits have the flavor of ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and molasses. They can range from soft baked cookies to crisp baked gingerbread men and houses. Decorative icing is also common.
Shortbread
Buttery shortbread biscuits are popular in Scotland, England, and other parts of Europe. The dough contains a large proportion of butter, flour, and sugar for a crumbly, tender, rich cookie that can be pressed into decorative shapes.
Digestive Biscuits
Digestive biscuits from Britain contain whole wheat flour and have a coarse, crunchy texture. They often include baking soda for added browning and are enjoyed with tea or coffee.
Madeleines
Madeleines are elegant French butter cookies with a distinctive shell-shaped appearance. Their batter contains eggs and they are baked in special madeleine pans to achieve their shape.
Biscotti
Crunchy, twice-baked Italian biscuits that are often flavored with nuts and dried fruit. Biscotti dough is shaped into logs, baked, cooled, then sliced and baked again until crisp.
Speculaas
A holiday tradition in Belgium and the Netherlands, speculaas are crunchy, spiced biscuits made with lots of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and brown sugar. They are traditionally enjoyed on the feast day of St. Nicholas (December 6).
Popular Sweet Biscuit Brands
Some of the most popular mass-produced sweet biscuit brands around the world include:
- Oreo (U.S.)
- Cadbury (UK)
- Tim Tam (Australia)
- Danish Butter Cookies (Denmark)
- Verkade (Netherlands)
- Tía Maruca (Mexico)
- Mille-feuille (France)
- Parle-G (India)
Many countries also have beloved local and regional sweet biscuit bakeries. Biscuits from small bakeries allow people to experience fresh, homemade flavor and recipes unique to each culture.
Conclusion
Sweet biscuits come in infinite shapes, textures, and flavors all around the world. Some popular examples include chocolate chip, oatmeal, and gingersnaps in the U.S.; shortbread in Scotland; digestive and Hobnobs in the UK; speculaas in the Netherlands; alfajores in Latin America; and many more. The basic concept of flour, fat, and sugar combined in different ways and enhanced with extras like chocolate, fruit, and spices produces biscuits with widespread global appeal.