An Empire biscuit is a sweet biscuit popular in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, particularly Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, and other Commonwealth

Commonwealth

Commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has sometimes been synonymous with "republic."More recently it has been used for fraternal associations of some sovereign nations...

 countries. Its is typically considered a traditional Scottish snack.

History

The biscuit was originally known as the "Linzer Biscuit", and later the "Duetch Biscuit". With the outbreak of World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 it was renamed to Empire biscuit, except in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 where it remains known as the German Biscuit and is commonly found with a jam and coconut topping. It is also known as the "Belgian biscuit", due to being topped in a similar way to a Belgian bun

Belgian bun

A Belgian bun is a sweet yeast dough bun, containing sultanas and usually topped with fondant icing and half a glace cherry. The bun is round or square shaped, with rounded off edges, making it similar in appearance to a Chelsea bun. It is also sometimes served with cream...

 made of pastry or dough.

Ingredients

The typical Empire Biscuit has a layer of jam in between two biscuits. The top is covered with white water icing

Icing (food)

Icing, also called frosting in the United States, is a sweet often creamy glaze made of sugar with a liquid such as water or milk, that is often enriched with ingredients such as butter, egg whites, cream cheese, or flavorings and is used to cover or decorate baked goods, such as cakes or cookies...

, usually decorated with a glace cherry in the centre. They are derived from the Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

n Linzer Torte

Linzer Torte

The Linzer Torte is an Austrian torte with a lattice design on top of the pastry. It is named after the city of Linz, Austria....

. The biscuit is smaller than the Linzer Torte and does not have a cut-out section on the top.

External links

• Review of biscuit on Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down
  Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down
  Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down is a website which mainly discusses tea and biscuits, with content including news and reviews of biscuit brands. It is owned and maintained by Stuart Payne and his wife Jenny Payne, who live in Cambridge, England, and has spawned a spin off book of the same...