Brandy snaps
Brandy snaps are lacy, wafer-thin British cookies with a warm ginger-caramel flavor, rolled into tubes while still hot and then piped full of whipped cream. The shattering-crisp shell melting into cool cream makes an elegant dessert from the simplest of ingredients.
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Rising or chilling
- 15 min
- Total time
- 1 hr 15 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
Crisp snaps
Cream filling
Instructions
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180°C, line two baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly oil the handles of a few wooden spoons to use for rolling. The snaps harden very quickly, so have your rolling handles ready before you bake. Everything is ready when the oven is hot and the spoon handles are lined up beside you.
Step 2
Put 50 g unsalted butter, 50 g superfine sugar and 50 g golden syrup in a small saucepan and heat gently, stirring, until the sugar has completely dissolved, without letting it boil. The sugar must dissolve fully for the snaps to be smooth and form an even lace. The mixture is ready when it's clear and glossy and you can't feel any sugar grains when you rub a drop between two fingers.
Step 3
Take the pan off the heat, sift in 50 g all-purpose flour with 2 g ground ginger, then stir in 5 g lemon juice and 5 g brandy. The lemon balances the rich sweetness of the syrup. The mixture is ready when it's smooth, glossy and amber, thickening slightly as it cools.
Step 4
Drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture onto the sheets, just four per sheet, spaced at least 10 cm apart. The batter spreads very wide in the oven, and if they're too close the snaps will merge into one sheet. Each sheet is ready when the mounds are small and even with plenty of space around them.
Step 5
Bake at 180°C for 8 to 10 minutes, one sheet at a time. The snaps need enough time to bubble and turn into a holey lace before they'll be crisp. They're ready when they've spread thin, the surface is full of tiny lacy holes and the color is a deep golden brown.
Step 6
Let the snaps cool for about a minute, then lift each one with a spatula and wrap it around an oiled spoon handle with the lacy side facing out, hold for a few seconds and slide the handle out. The snaps stay pliable for only a brief moment after leaving the oven. They're done when they form even round tubes that keep their shape once the handle is removed.
Step 7
Whip 200 g cold whipping cream with 15 g powdered sugar and 10 g brandy, if using, on medium speed for about three minutes. The cream needs to be thick enough to stay put inside the tubes without oozing out. The cream is ready when it forms soft peaks and clear ridges on the surface.
Step 8
Spoon the cream into a piping bag fitted with a star tip and pipe it into both ends of each snap just before serving. Filling them at the last minute keeps the shells crisp. They're finished when the tubes are full and a pretty little rosette of cream peeks out of each end.
Equipment
- Oven
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Small saucepan
- Spatula
- Hand mixer
- Piping bag
- Kitchen scale
Tips
- If the snaps harden before you've finished rolling, return the sheet to the oven for about twenty seconds to soften them.
- You can drape the hot snaps over the bottom of a cup to make little baskets for ice cream.
- If you can't find golden syrup, use corn syrup with a little molasses mixed in.
Storage
Unfilled snaps stay crisp in an airtight container for about a week. Once filled, eat them within an hour, since the cream gradually softens the shells.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The snaps are still soft and bendy after cooling.
- They didn't bake long enough for the sugar to caramelize. Wait until they're a deep golden brown and the vigorous bubbling has stopped before taking them out.
- The snaps crack as you roll them.
- They cooled too long and lost their flexibility. Bake just a few at a time and roll them as soon as they're firm enough to lift.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
