Auntie Mary Biscuits

The problem with recipes that are handed down from generation to generation can often be the name. Auntie Mary Biscuits are a case in point.  Auntie Mary wasn’t really an auntie to any immediate member of the family. She was in fact the sister of the children’s paternal great grandma. So she was grandma’s auntie, but the recipe was found in great grandma’s handwritten recipe book. There they were referred to as Mary’s chocolate slice, but hey we always referred to her as Auntie Mary, so a little latitude when creating a name that has meaning for future generations is absolutely fine. The other problem with this recipe is it really should be referred to as a slice. After all, biscuits are baked individually rather than in a pan and then sliced! But let’s not be pedantic.

These biscuits are great for a couple of reasons. One, the children can get in and bake them on their own. A little supervision may be required when melting the butter, but apart from that they are simple and only require the use of their hands  and a spoon. Secondly, they use very basic ingredients: flour, brown sugar, butter, vanilla essence…and the main one – vitabrits (or weetbix or weetabix, or whatever rectangular 99% whole grain wheat breakfast cereal, with no added sugar, is available to you). Like the chocolate self-saucing pudding we make, this seems to be another post war recipe – minimal ingredients and no eggs required (the pudding recipe came from great grandma’s book too).

We have been making these biscuits since the recipe journal was found, and although they haven’t been made in a while, everyone was excited when they made a return to the kitchen this week. Enjoy!