Spiced Hot Chocolate Biscuits (inspired by 1741 hot chocolate)

Spiced Hot Chocolate Biscuits Inspired by a 1741 English Hot Chocolate Recipe

Some recipes come from a craving. Others come from a memory.

These Spiced Hot Chocolate Biscuits were inspired by one of my favourite memories and, quite honestly, the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted.

When I was younger, my sisters and I spent countless summer holidays at my nan and grandad's caravan. At the time I don't think I appreciated just how precious those long school holidays were. Looking back now, they're some of my favourite childhood memories—simple days that somehow felt endless.

One summer, my parents managed to take a couple of weeks off work and we "borrowed" the caravan for ourselves. During those two weeks we visited Herstmonceux Castle for one of their medieval and living history weekends. If you've never been (it's pronounced Hurst-mon-zoo, by the way!), it's well worth a visit.

Fast forward a few years—or what feels like a few years until you realise it was actually the summer of 2019 (how has that become seven years ago already?!).

I was at university and my then-fiancé, my university best friend Roe (who happened to study history), and I decided to head back for another medieval weekend. We booked one of the land pods at the YHA near Lewes, and honestly, I can't recommend it enough. There was a fire pit outside, proper bathrooms, a café for breakfast, access to the communal kitchen and the most beautiful surroundings.

(Roe, if you're reading this... do you remember us two fully-grown adults pretending to be mermaids in the crystal-clear water at Seaford while Nick looked on in utter embarrassment of us? Its one of my favourite memories with you and Nick.)

One of the stalls at the festival belonged to a wonderful company called The Copper Pot, who recreate historic food and drink recipes from different periods in history. After discovering the previous evening just how unbelievably cold an August night can be, I decided to treat us to their 1741 English Hot Chocolate mix.

Armed with a carton of UHT milk and access to the YHA kitchen, I made a huge saucepan of hot chocolate.

I can still remember that first sip.

It wasn't your average hot chocolate. It was rich, dark and comforting, infused with cinnamon, cardamom and long pepper. It tasted like autumn before autumn had even arrived. Like crunchy leaves beneath your boots. Like wrapping yourself in a blanket after coming in from the cold. Like the warmest hug imaginable.

Nearly 31 years into my life, it is still my favourite hot chocolate I've ever tasted.

I genuinely dream about it.

If you ever get the opportunity to buy it, please do. I promise you'll understand exactly what I mean.

And these biscuits?

They're my love letter to that unforgettable mug of hot chocolate.

Rich with cocoa, gently spiced with warming autumn flavours and finished with dark chocolate, they're somewhere between a cookie, a biscuit and the perfect companion to a steaming mug of tea, milk, or hot chocolate.

Makes: 20–24 biscuits

Ingredients

• 125g salted butter, softened

• 150g granulated sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 85g black treacle

• 250g plain flour

• 25g unsweetened cocoa powder

• ½ tsp ground ginger

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg (freshly grated if possible)

• ¼ tsp ground cardamom

• 1½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

• Extra granulated or icing sugar, for rolling

• 200g dark chocolate chips (I use the vegan-friendly Costco chocolate chips, around 51% cocoa it is about £1 per 100g so well worth it for a good quality chocolate)

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180°C and line two baking trays with baking paper.

2. Beat together the softened butter, sugar, black treacle, egg and vanilla until smooth.

3. Add the cocoa powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and bicarbonate of soda, mixing until evenly combined.

4. Fold in the flour until no dry patches remain.

5. Using a tablespoon or cookie scoop, divide the dough into equal portions and roll into balls.

6. Roll each dough ball generously in granulated or icing sugar.

7. Arrange them on the prepared trays, leaving approximately 2 inches (5cm) between each biscuit.

8. Bake for 10–12 minutes, or until beautifully crackled on top.

9. As soon as they come out of the oven, gently flatten each biscuit with the bottom of a flat glass. This needs to be done while they're still hot.

10. Leave them on the tray for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

11. Melt the dark chocolate. Either drizzle it over the tops or, my favourite method, spread chocolate over the bottoms of the biscuits before placing them onto baking paper to set. If you have any chocolate left over, drizzle it across the tops for an extra indulgent finish.

Storage

Store your biscuits in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

The dough freezes brilliantly too. Roll into balls but don't coat them in sugar yet. Freeze on a lined baking tray until firm before transferring to a zip-lock freezer bag keeping them for up to 3 months.

When you're ready for freshly baked biscuits, simply remove as many as you'd like, roll them in sugar and bake straight from frozen.

For the air fryer, bake at 160°C to prevent the outside browning too quickly. They'll take a little longer because they're frozen, but once those signature cracks appear, they're ready.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I freeze the biscuit dough?

Absolutely. These are perfect for batch baking. Freeze the rolled dough balls for up to three months and bake straight from frozen whenever you fancy a homemade biscuit.

Why use black treacle?

Black treacle adds a deep caramel richness that pairs beautifully with the cocoa and warming spices while helping keep the biscuits wonderfully chewy.

Can I use milk chocolate instead?

You can, but dark chocolate balances the sweetness of the biscuit and really enhances the spiced hot chocolate flavour.

What do these biscuits taste like?

Imagine your favourite mug of rich hot chocolate on a crisp autumn afternoon, infused with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and nutmeg, transformed into a crisp slightly chewy (unless you overbake them)biscuit. They're cosy, comforting and incredibly moreish.