Individually Wrapped Biscuits
PT’s Biscuits
Although you have to question the sanity of Paul Tidmarsh who has spent the last seven years trying to make the best biscuit in the world – I do have to admit the results are pretty impressive. To say he is obsessive is a serious understatement – he even bought every decent biscuit and cookie in the world just to make sure his were the best!
I haven’t had the luxury (or the stamina) to taste them against every biscuit in the world but I did get some Green & Blacks, Tesco’s Finest and some M&S biscuits to compare against. And I have to say PT’s are in a league of their own. They just feel home-made… warm, rich, buttery, crumbly melt-in-the-mouth. By comparison the others just seemed industrial.
Paul told me how the seven years took him all over the world, testing ingredients, tasting interesting biscuits and most importantly trying to find a mixer that could handle his unique dough. It turned out that there wasn’t a machine anywhere that could cope with this unusually rich mixture and Paul’s dream seemed doomed to end in failure. Most sane people would have given up and called it a day, but not Paul. He decided to brief a team of expert engineers to build a machine; a machine that not only could handle his dough but would also be gentler than making them by hand. Four years, three prototypes, one more mortgage later… he finally cracked it. Virgin Atlantic got to hear about the biscuits and asked Paul to supply Upper Class. The rest, as they say is history.
A quick look at the ingredients shows, unsurprisingly, no nasty ingredients like preservatives, powdered egg or vegetable oil. Instead – fresh rich butter, serious chocolate, real vanilla extract, brown sugar with dark molasses, fresh egg…I asked Paul why he hadn’t gone more crazy with the varieties. It seems this was a very conscious decision to stick to classic taste combinations that really work and then “to try my damn best to make them the best ever”. Actually I think he was right – the classics are classics for good reason.
I confess I did end up trying all 6…
White chocolate & macadamia nut
Big macadamia nut pieces with chunks of super creamy white chocolate in a simple biscuit with a hint of vanilla. A heavenly combination of crunchy nuts, creamy chocolate and a crumbly base.
Peanut butter & milk chocolate chunk
Peanut aficionados will love the fact it is made with peanut butter not just peanuts – that’s what gives it that moreish flavour – add creamy milk chocolate chunks (no little chocolate chips) and you have a classic.
Oat & milk chocolate chunk
The classic chocolate chip, but with much bigger pieces of creamy chocolate. You get a real texture contrast when you hit the chocolate rather than just a chocolate flavour. But the real secret is in the base – the jumbo oats slightly toast in the oven and taste so wonderful with the butteriness of the mixture.
Oat, apple chunk and cinnamon
Chewy bits of real apple in a classic oat biscuit with a just subtle pinch of cinnamon – along with the brown sugar to give a wonderfully warm flavour.
Muesli (oats, seeds & fruit)
Sounds healthy, but don’t be alarmed. This biscuit is truly delicious. The seeds toast in the oven to give a subtle nutty flavour that combines wonderfully with the sweetness of the apricots and chewiness of the raisins.
Jumbo Raisin & Chocolate
Here Paul uses huge raisins. This really change the character of the biscuit, as they are big enough to be soft & chewy which means you have the chewiness of the jumbo raisins, combined with the buttery crumbliness of the biscuit and the melt of the chocolate all in one.
PT Bakery
Tel: +44 (0)1297 578106
Website: www.ptbakery.com
Email: Paul@PTbakery.com