Raspberry snitter (hindbærsnitte)

An iconic Danish cake, this is crunchy and both sweet and tart at the same time. In Denmark, there are long discussions about where to find the best hindbærsnitte, and the best recipe for it. Whether the icing should be pink or white and if it’s ever permissable to use any other jam than raspberry are also hot topics for debate!

• makes

  8

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  35 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Here is my traditional recipe, though I like to make it round as opposed to the classic triangular shape.

Ingredients

For the jam (jelly)

• 300 g (10½ oz) fresh or frozen raspberries
• 100 g (3½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

For the biscuit base

• 200 g (7 oz) plain (all-purpose) flour, plus more to dust
• 50 g (1¾ oz) icing (powdered) sugar
• 100 g (3½ oz) chilled butter, chopped
• ½ egg, lightly beaten

For the icing (frosting)

• 100 g (3½ oz) icing (powdered) sugar
• 1½ tbsp (30 ml) water
• Elderflowers, if in season

Chilling time: 30 minutes.

Instructions

1. Start by making the jam. Place the raspberries in a small heavy-based saucepan set over a medium heat and bring to the boil, stirring all the time. Add the sugar and let the jam simmer for 10 minutes. It should be quite thick. Leave to cool.
2. To make the biscuit base, sift the flour and icing sugar into a mixing bowl and rub in the butter with the tips of your fingers until the mixture resembles crumbs. Add the beaten egg and stir with a spatula until the pastry comes together in a ball. Wrap in clingfilm (plastic wrap) and leave to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan/350°F/Gas 4).
4. Roll the dough out on a floured surface to about 3mm (1/8 in) thick and use a pastry cutter to cut out 16 discs of about 7cm (2¾ in) in diameter, then place them on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.
5. Bake for 20 minutes, then leave to cool on a wire rack.
6. Place 8 of the pastry discs on a sheet of baking parchment. Mix the icing sugar with the measured water, whisk until smooth, then spread evenly on the discs and leave to set for 30 minutes.
7. Place the remaining 8 discs on another sheet of baking parchment and spread over the raspberry jam. Top with the iced discs, then sprinkle with the elderflowers, if using.
8. Serve, or these will keep in an airtight container for 4–5 days.

This is an edited extract of Midnight Sun by Trine Hahnemann (Quadrille AU$49.99, NZD$59.99). Photography: Kim Lightbody.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.