“By the way Mum, can you please…” Whenever I hear my children utter these words I know it means one of the following: 

A) They require me to cobble together a costume or mask or prop from the stash of gear in our dress-up box the night before it is needed for a class performance; or 

B) It’s time to turn on the KitchenAid and mix up a batch of something delicious for a class party… also the next day. 

This is how I ended up filling a batch of buttery, vanilla scented Classic Melting Moments with lemon buttercream at 10 o’clock last night. Yes, yes I could have stuffed something packaged from the pantry into the schoolbag but being particular by nature and a person who finds baking relaxing (especially in the quiet of the night when my little ones are tucked up in bed fast asleep), I decided to bake one of my daughter Jana’s favourites. 

This is an ever so slightly altered version of a Donna Hay recipe from her book, Modern Classics, 2 which I have had and referred to for over 10 years. Every dish I have made turns out just as expected. In my version below I have included custard powder for a pastel lemon hue and also added vanilla extract in the buttercream filling. 

I have also doubled the quantities because there is not point making a scant number of these beautiful biscuits when they are guaranteed to disappear fast!  


Classic Melting Moments makes 24 filled biscuits (48 halves)

350 grams unsalted butter softened at room temperature
1/2 cup icing sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups plain flour
1/4 cup cornflour
1/4 cup custard powder

Filling
120 grams unsalted butter softened at room temperature
2 cups icing sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 – 4 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind depending on how lemony you like your biscuits

To make the buttercream, simply combine all the ingredients in a bowl and beat until very smooth and fluffy. 

Now for the biscuits… 

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees on a conventional setting. 

Line your baking trays with baking paper. 

Prepare your piping bag by inserting a large, fluted nozzle. Don’t panic and shy away from using a piping bag. It will save you time, much faster than trying to fashion 48 tiny little balls out of biscuit batter between the palms of your hands. 

Put the butter, icing sugar and vanilla into the mixing bowl and beat together (either using hand held electric beaters or a stand-alone version like a KitchenAid) until the mixture is very, very pale and velvety smooth. 

Gently beat in the flour, cornflour and custard powder until combined. 

Scoop the mixture into your piping bag and carefully pipe small rounds onto your prepared baking trays. The rounds should measure 3 – 4cm in diameter. Leave room for the biscuits to expand. 

Bake for 12 – 14 minutes or until golden. Do not allow them to go brown because this means they have been over-baked. 

Cool on the trays completely before filling with the buttercream. Use a clean piping bag with a nozzle to quickly and easily fill one side of the biscuit before gently pressing on another half. 

If you are taking these to school, on a picnic or other event, place each Melting Moment into a cupcake wrapper. This will protect them and make it easier to hand around.