Langues de chat

I got a dinner invitation at the weekend (thanks T for a fab dinner!) so I thought I'd make something for my host. I was told cake was not required. As I was short on time, I decided to make a biscuit or cookie. I looked through my recipe books for inspiration. I happened to have some spare egg whites so I decided to make Langues de chat. It means "cats tongue" in French. It's really light, delicate and tasty. Why not give it a try?

125g butter, softened

125g caster sugar

3 egg whites

125g plain flour

Optional extras (choose only one of the following)

2 tsp lavender flowers/dried rose petals/fennel seeds or crystallised fruits, finely chopped

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Grated rind of 1 orange or lemon

(I used 1/2 tsp of vanilla essence for these)

• 
  
  Preheat the oven to 200C
• 
  
  Line a baking sheet with baking parchment
• 
  
  Beat the butter and sugar together until pale and creamy.
• 
  
  In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff, then gradually fold them into the butter mixture.
• 
  
  Sift in the flour and gently fold into the mixture.
• 
  
  Fit a piping bag with a medium sized plain nozzle (or a ziplock bag with the end snipped off) and spoon in the mixture.
• 
  
  Pipe the mixture into 3inch long fingers, no thicker than 1/2inch wide, leaving a little space between them to allow for spreading.
• 
  
  Sprinkle with optional extras of your choice and bake for 5-8 minutes or until crispy and pale golden around the edges.
• 
  
  Allow to cool completely.