What is the difference between a cookie and a biscuit?
A much loved British delicacy, tea and biscuits may seem a peculiar pairing to our friends across the pond (that’s you) and that’s because depending on what side of the Atlantic you live on cookies and biscuits have very different meanings. In the US, what us Brits call a biscuit, Americans would call a cookie - whilst an American biscuit is something resembling a British scone… making a name like Biscuiteers seem rather confusing!
So, before we change our name, here is a UK focused distinction of the differences between cookies and biscuits for our US readers.
What is a British biscuit?
In many English speaking countries the word biscuit stems from the Latin meaning ‘twice baked’ and describes a light, sweet flour-based food product. Unlike a chewier cookie, biscuits are made with a dough, they can be cut into any shape and their firmer, snappier and flatter constitution provides the perfect blank canvas for icing and decorating. In North America you might know our British biscuits as a cookie or cracker!
At the Ministry of Biscuits in London, we bake and delicately ice all of our biscuit creations by hand…
What is a cookie in the UK?
Whilst in the US a cookie could mean both a biscuit and a cookie, in the UK this sweet treat refers to a larger, softer and chewier creation. Baked using a softer dough, cookies in the British sense are often loaded with chunky or chopped ingredients like chocolate chips, dried fruits, caramel…or whatever your heart desires!
What is an American biscuit in the UK?
The last piece of the puzzle, an American biscuit is a crumbly leavened quick bread similar to what we call a scone in the UK.
Whilst enjoyed with savoury dishes and sometimes paired gravy in the US, the UK equivalent is a sweet baked item usually enjoyed alongside an afternoon tea and topped with jam and clotted cream.
A bit about our biscuits and cookies
At Biscuiteers, as the name suggests, we’re famous for our hand-iced biscuits (or cookies to you!). We truly believe biscuits are a blank canvas and our icing artists prove this theory by lovingly hand making beautiful cookie collections for every occasion, right here at the Ministry of Biscuits in London!
Each of our hand-iced biscuits is totally individual and carefully delivered worldwide, including to you in the US - in just 3 days!
Explore all of our hand iced cookie gifts here.
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