Blog

Jun 05, 2024

It’s a pudding…It’s a cake…it’s the super Marie Biscuit

By Diya Kohli There is no hyperbole that can let you wax eloquently and enough about the Marie biscuit. Perfectly skinny and flavoured just right, this is a biscuit that can hold its own whether

By Diya Kohli

There is no hyperbole that can let you wax eloquently and enough about the Marie biscuit. Perfectly skinny and flavoured just right, this is a biscuit that can hold its own whether dipped into tea, or slathered with butter and jam. Longevity is its strong suit, making the Marie the all-weather companion suited to Indian humidity and heat.

Whether you are rolling a Marie biscuit dexterously to reward your dog, or snapping it in two before feeding it to your child, this is a biscuit that is both trick and treat.

The first Marie biscuit was first made in 1874 by a London bakery called Peek Freans to commemorate the royal wedding of Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia to the Duke of Edinburgh. Created at the height of the British colonial enterprise, the unique long-lasting formulation of this biscuit allowed it to travel far and wide. And so began the dominion of the Marie biscuit across the Commonwealth nations. The first Peek Freans factory outside the England was set up in Kolkata where it continued producing Marie biscuits. And soon, the biscuit travelled from high teas in British bungalows and clubs to ordinary homes and tea shops across the country assimilating into the "cha and biskoot" culture of Bengal and beyond. Available in over 40 countries, the Marie is a biscuit that requires no translation no matter which part of the world you are in.

Even as biscuit makers across the globe compete with artisanal cookies and layered confections of jam and cream, there is always a Marie in their portfolio. The Marie has always found resonance in the times. From a quick fix dessert for last-minute guests to a post-play hour snack for your child—Marie biscuits have come to the rescue of many overworked parents and single people with limited cooking skills.

Right now, we are in a lockdown and our favorite cakes and macarons are no longer a Swiggy delivery away. Thrifty, frugal and priced at Rs30 for a 250gm packet (Britannia's Marie Gold), the Marie is the pantry staple of biscuits and a building block for numerous DIY cakes and puddings.

This is an ode to the Marie biscuit in five easy recipes.

Industrial precision and certain chemical components ensures a perfectly baked Marie biscuit with the right number of holes and snap. The detailed and rather complex technique belies the fact that this is a biscuit with about five ingredients.

However, there is a way to make a version of the same at home. Try your artistic skills to emboss the Greek key pattern patented by Peek Freans and make the right number of holes to create the closest approximation to store-bought Marie. This recipe offers very detailed step-by-step instructions including extra notes like "Now it is cut" and "Now it is lined up" after each instruction to encourage you to march ahead with your effort.

Serradura is one of the most popular desserts in Macao. Photo: Nikita Rao

This odd moniker does not take away from the fact that serradura, which is Portuguese for sawdust, is an absolutely delicious dessert. In its most basic form, it combines sweetened whipped cream with Marie biscuits crumbed into a fine powder. Although Portuguese in origin, the dessert has become intrinsic to Macau and is also known as the Macau pudding. CNT's Art Director Nikita Rao's version adds a creamier mouthfeel with the addition of condensed milk and a nutty crunch with a cashew topping.

Serradura by Nikita Rao

Ingredients:

250ml whipping cream 6-7 tbsp condensed milk 1 tsp vanilla essence 10-12 Marie biscuits A handful of cashew nuts

Method:

This recipe on Spruce Eats has five adjectives and four ingredients and is a dream dessert for all those who hate the whipping, folding and separating that a real cake involves. Marie biscuits provide the perfect crispy, crumby base that holds the whole thing together while lemon adds the zing. Milk in it evaporated and condensed adds creaminess and consistency of texture. If you are slightly adventurous, grate some lemon zest on the finished product. And if you see yourself as a budding pastry chef, try topping your cake with this divine citrus-vanilla compote by Martha Stewart.

A home-style tiramisu. Photo: Galina Zhigalova/Alamy Stock Photo

Arundhati Ail

Arundhati Ail

Connor Sturges

Shraddha Chowdhury

Patented by my mother, this home-style tiramisu is equally comforting and no less posh in its balance of coffee and chocolate flavours and the additional crunch of the biscuits. Easy to make with everyday ingredients and eschewing mascarpone, finger biscuits or Grand Marnier, this is the child-friendly version of the dessert and also equally fun to make. The dessert is a testament to my mother's ability to recreate restaurant classics with locally available substitutes and is an enduring childhood memory.

Marie Biscuit Tiramisu by Chandana Kohli

Ingredients:

36 Marie biscuits 1 cup powdered sugar 100 gms butter 150 gms Amul cream only the thick portion discard the whey 2 heaped tablespoons of cocoa powder Blend it together and make a nice chocolate cream. Make a cup of coffee with 2 tsp of coffee. Frosting 200 gms of white chocolate 100 gms of cream 2 tbs of icing sugar Few drops of vanilla essence Cherries or strawberries to decorate (optional)

Method

This recipe by investigative journalist and home cook Siddharthya Roy is a tribute to his geography teacher at school. Having failed to interest a bunch of easily distracted fifth graders in the structure of igneous and sedimentary rocks, one day she brought a cake to class. This caught their attention immediately. As she cut a thick wedge down the length of the cake, she pointed at it and said, "This, boys, is what the structure of a sedentary rock looks like." The recipe below is an augmented version of the original edible sedimentary rock cake.

Arundhati Ail

Arundhati Ail

Connor Sturges

Shraddha Chowdhury

The Sedimentary Rock Cake by Siddharthya Roy

Ingredients

A large pack of Marie biscuits 1 cup melted butter 1.5 cups fruit preserve 2 cups of refined flour ½ cup warm milk 2 eggs (or extra shortening for eggless) ½ cup caster sugar A generous pinch or two of baking powder A dash of vanilla essence Loads of whipped cream

Method