These rye cookies sit somewhere between a digestive biscuit and a graham cracker: crisp, lightly spiced and sweetened with honey. They are especially useful for s'mores and teacakes because the rye gives them enough flavour to stand up to marshmallow and chocolate.
Rye Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 190g rye flour
- 190g plain flour
- 175g soft brown sugar
- 5g bicarbonate of soda
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- 100g unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
- 115g honey
- 75ml whole milk
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 20g granulated sugar, for finishing
- Pinch of ground cinnamon
Method
- Put the rye flour, plain flour, brown sugar, bicarbonate of soda and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle. Mix briefly on low.
- Add the cold butter and mix until the mixture looks sandy with no large lumps of butter remaining.
- Mix the milk, honey and vanilla together. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix on low only until a cohesive dough forms.
- Divide the dough into two pieces. Flatten each into a rectangle about 2cm thick, wrap well and chill for at least 30 minutes. The dough can also be frozen at this point for later use.
- Heat the oven to 175°C and line baking trays with parchment.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll one piece of chilled dough to about 3mm thick. Cut into 5cm rounds or another shape of your choice.
- Transfer the biscuits to the lined trays. Mix the granulated sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle lightly over the tops.
- Chill the cut biscuits for about 20 minutes so they are firm before baking. Prick them with a cocktail stick or fork if you want the classic biscuit look.
- Bake for about 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the tray if your oven colours unevenly. They should be dry at the edges and evenly golden rather than pale and soft.
- Cool on the tray for a few minutes, then transfer to a rack. They become crisper as they cool.
Make ahead and storage
Wrapped dough freezes well. Defrost it in the refrigerator until firm but rollable before continuing with the recipe.
Once baked and completely cool, store the cookies in an airtight container at cool room temperature. If they soften in humid weather, a short return to a low oven can help drive off moisture; cool them fully again before sealing the container.
How to use them
Use the biscuits for s'mores, sandwich them with marshmallow, crumble them into cheesecake bases or serve them simply with coffee. Their rye-and-honey flavour is deliberately restrained so they work as part of a larger dessert rather than fighting it.
For more tested baking recipes, browse our Recipes & Baking Guides.
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