MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06 Title: Ruby Tandoh's Black Olive And Almond Biscuits Categories: Biscuits Yield: 20 Biscuits 50 g Toasted flaked almonds; +2 -tb 125 g Plain flour 25 g Parmesan; finely grated 75 g Unsalted butter; cold, cubed 100 g Black kalamata olives; -drained and patted dry As far as after-dinner snacks go, you could do worse than these elegant, simple biscuits. Because the olives are blitzed to a paste, they leave the biscuits a charcoal grey colour a smart backdrop to the flakes of toasted almond. These really are very easy to make: Keep a close eye on them while they're in the oven: such thin biscuits burn easily. If you must serve them with something, make it a soft, mild goats' cheese, but they're delicious just as they are. Put 50 g flaked almonds into the bowl of a food processor with the flour and a pinch of salt. Pulse several times until the almonds are finely chopped. Tip in the parmesan and pulse again until the cheese and almonds are evenly distributed throughout the flour. Add the butter to the mixture and pulse until the whole thing resembles course breadcrumbs. At this point stop whizzing and tip the almond mixture into a large mixing bowl. Set aside. Throw the olives into the food processor and blitz to a rough paste. Add the olive paste to the flour and almond mixture and, working quickly with a bread knife, mix the two together until fully incorporated. The almond mixture will have black olive flecks running through it. Get your hands in and bring the mixture together, squeezing gently as you go to form a firm but pliable dough. Add a drop or two of water if your dough doesn't want to come together. Wrap the dough in parchment or clingfilm. Chill it for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface. Then cut out shapes you can use any shape cutter, but I use a 6 to 7 cm round cutter and arrange on the prepared baking tray. If there isn't enough space for all of the biscuits, you may have to bake them in two batches: just keep the remaining biscuits chilled in the meantime. Press a few pieces of the flaked almond from the remaining 2 tb into the top of each biscuit, then bake in the preheated oven for 12 minutes. These are delicious as a savoury snack, and especially good with a glass of wine. Recipe by Ruby Tandoh Recipe FROM: MMMMM