Around the world in a biscuit tin

Just north of the border, the Scots are fiercely – and rightly – proud of their shortbread. Buttery, sugary and crumbly, you can’t pass any souvenir store in the country without seeing a decorative tin of these wonderful biscuits. The Walkers brand, which began in 1898, are the undisputed kings of this fine Scottish delicacy. Fellow Scot producers, Nairn’s make a wide range of sweet Scottish oatcakes that are embedded with berries or flavoured with chocolate or coconut.

Moving onto the Continent, the French and the neighbouring Belgians are masters of the biscuit. A nation with a sweet tooth, especially when it comes to chocolate, Belgium is the home of the caramelised rectangular Lotus Biscoff biscuit. Found on the saucer of millions of cups of tea, the biscuit is simple but delicious and came out of a family-owned bakery in Lembeke in 1932.

France’s reputation as supreme butter makers means their biscuits are packed with the stuff. St. Michel have been satisfying taste buds since 1905, relying on traditional baking techniques and no colourings when making their biscuits in France. Their round Grandes Galettes come in flavours such as sea salt, caramel, and chocolate and are a luxurious teatime treat.

The crepe biscuit from French bakers Gavottes was the result of an accident in 1920 when a baker named Marie Catherine Cornic accidentally left a soft crepe on the stove, turning it crispy. Their cocoa hazelnut crepe biscuits are definitely one to try.

With its HQ in Hanover, German bakery Bahlsen are renowned for their Leibniz biscuits that come in distinctive yellow packaging. Created way back in 1891, the rectangular biscuits have trademark grooves, that led to one German newspaper naming it as a ‘monument of German design.’ The biscuit was named after the philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz who lived in Hanover.

At the other end of Europe is the Napolitaner wafer from Naples, Italy – a light and crispy triple-layered sandwich filled with Italian hazelnut cream from expert manufacturers Loacker. The cantuccini biscuit, meanwhile, is another Italian icon, with its distinctive almond slices visible in every piece.

Denmark’s famous blue tin of butter biscuits has a regal connection. The sight of Royal Dansk’s mini butter cookies is a familiar one, especially during the festive season. Turkey, a huge nation in terms of tea consumption, loves the petit beurre biscuit from Ulker.

Further afield and we arrive at the American giant that’s the Oreo. Born in Manhattan in 1912, the chocolate sandwich has grown into a global food icon and it’s estimated that 34 billion of the cookies are sold every year. Also from the National Biscuit Company, now known as Nabisco, is another cookie: the flamboyantly – named Chips Ahoy!. Second in the sales league table to the Oreo, the chunky chocolate chip cookie began life in 1963 and was marketed as the first factory cookie to taste as good as a homemade version.

Last stop on our biscuit tour is the beloved Tim Tam. Hailing from Australia, the chocolate sandwich was named after the winning horse of the 1958 Kentucky Derby. Made by Arnott’s, the biscuit was invented by its director of food technology, Ian Norris who wanted to recreate – and improve upon – Britain’s Penguin biscuit. Dip a Tim Tam into a cup of tea for just a second and you’ll be in biscuit paradise.