Brandy snaps are thin, crispy, very sweet cylindrical cookies filled with cognac-flavored whipped cream. It is a very popular pastry in the UK, Australia and New Zealand.
What is a brandy snap?
The consistency of brandy snaps is very similar to lace tiles or wafers. These are crispy cookies that come in the form of rolls topped with whipped cream.
They are about 4 inches (10 cm) long and 1 inch (3 cm) in diameter. The traditional recipe for brandy snaps usually contains butter, sugar syrup, ginger, flour and whipped cream.
These British cookies are baked in the form of a flat disc that is rolled out while still soft and warm. The whipped cream that tops the brandy snaps is traditionally flavored with cognac.
Contrary to popular belief, the name brandy snap was not given to this dessert because of the presence of brandy in its recipe. Indeed, the name would come rather from the term branded which means “burned”. John Trotter Brockett suggested the name for this cream dessert.
What is the origin of brandy snaps?
Brandy snaps have existed since the 14th century but in a different form. They are wafers that would have arrived in England at that time and would have been introduced on the British territory by the Flemings, more particularly by a certain Christopher Von Thomas.
The ancestor of brandy snap would be a Dutch wafer, known as wafel or frankish wafla, which means “honeycomb”.
Waffles and wafers were very popular throughout medieval Europe. However, the term waffle was a long time coming in the United Kingdom, as the term only appeared in the English language in 1725. Indeed, Robert Smith’s Court Cookery published in 1725, first used this word, derived from the Dutch word wafel.
Some tips for successful brandy snaps
Brandy snaps are easy to make but require a few tricks of the trade. The most difficult step to succeed is the baking.
For technical reasons, no more than three or four can be baked at the same time. It is imperative to space them well because the discs of dough will spread out during baking.
You should also not be tempted to put more dough than the amount indicated in the recipe. Otherwise, you will get a disk that is much too big and difficult to handle. If two discs touch during baking, they can be separated immediately after removal from the oven with the tip of a knife.
You also have to keep a close eye on the baking time. The baking time indicated in the recipe is only an indication, as it will depend on the temperature of the oven used. In order not to burn the dough of the brandy snaps, the oven must be monitored regularly by leaving the oven light on.
The dough of the brandy snaps spreads into a thin paste that browns rapidly due to its high sugar content. It takes between five and seven minutes to get a nice golden color.
Brandy snaps should be rolled immediately upon removal from the oven. Indeed, to form rolls, it is necessary to make sure that they are still hot. You can use the handle of a wooden spoon or Italian cannoli rollers if you want to obtain larger rolls
What to do if the dough has cooled down too quickly?
It can happen that the last disk of cooked dough of the brandy snaps cools down too quickly. Do not try to shape the roll. If you try to form rolls when the dough has cooled, the brandy snap will inevitably break. To remedy this, simply put the disc of dough back in the oven for a few seconds until the dough softens a bit.
Similar desserts
Stroopwafel is a wafer-like cookie from the Netherlands. Etymologically, stroopwafel means “waffle with syrup” in Dutch. The famous Dutch waffle consists of two pieces of cookie with a caramel syrup made from molasses in between.
The pizzelle or ferratelle of Abruzzo is a crispy waffle whose particularity lies in its honeycomb shape and its aniseed aroma.
Brandy Snaps
Ingredients
For the dough
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons golden syrup , raw sugar syrup
- ¼ cup caster sugar
- ½ cup flour , sifted
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon brandy , or rum
- 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
For the filling
- 2 cups whipping cream , very cold
- 4 tablespoons Cognac (or more to taste)
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Cooling rack
- Wooden spoon with thick handle (or stainless steel tube)
Instructions
Dough
- Melt butter and golden syrup in a non-stick saucepan over low heat.
- Remove from the heat and add the sugar, flour, ginger, brandy (or rum) and lemon zest. Mix everything together with a wooden spoon.
- Preheat the oven to 375 F (190°C).
- On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, place teaspoons of dough, spacing them at least 2 inches (5 cm) apart.
- Spread the piles with the fingertips to form circles.
- Bake for 7 to 10 minutes, watching them very closely throughout as they burn very quickly due to their high sugar content.
- When they come out of the oven, they should have a golden color.
- Right out of the oven, wrap the circles around a stainless steel tube or the thick handle of a wooden spoon, to shape them into a cylinder. Do not wait as they can harden quickly and can no longer be rolled.
- When rolled, gently place each brandy snap on a cooling rack, seam side down.
- Then carefully remove each cooled and molded cylinder from the stainless steel tube or wooden spoon handle and roll more until the tiles are exhausted.
- If the brandy snaps get too hard, simply place the baking sheet on low heat, or in a hot but turned off oven, to soften them a bit.
Filling and assembly
- Whip the cream and flavor it with Cognac.
- Fill the brandy snaps just before serving.
Video
Sources
Wikipedia (FR) – Brandy Snap
Biscuit People
Wikipedia (FR) – Gaufre
As the founder of pastry food blog Les Trois Madeleines, Sarah-Eden reinvents glamorous desserts with original pastries. She enjoys discovering new blogs, interacting with food bloggers, and of course, she loves madeleines!
CAROL says
How many TEASPOONS?
Hands Doing Things says
Hello Carol! Thanks for your comment. Would you please let us know which ingredient are you talking about?
Jennifer M says
This looks amazing. I just want to ask for a clarification…For step 4, it says to “PLACE TEASPOONS OF DOUGH, 4 INCHES APART”. Is that one teaspoon or teaspoons(plural) and if more than 1 how many? I know this spreads and don’t want to use too much. Thanks so much for any clarification you can give me and thank you for sharing such an awesome recipe!