Cigarettes Russes

Before starting this Cigarettes Russes recipe, organise the necessary ingredients.

Pour the castor sugar in a mixing bowl and add the sifted flour.

Add the orange juice...

... orange zest...

... and the melted butter.

Combine carefully...

... with a spatula...

... until homogeneous.

Cover with cling film and store in the fridge overnight.

On the day: Take the preparation out of the fridge. Spread over a Silpat baking mat...

... creating rectangular shapes, with a length of 15/20cm and a width of 7/8cm.

Place the silicone mat on a Silichef XL perforated baking sheet and bake at 180°C (gas 4) until gold.

When the rectangles are golden, remove from the oven and slide the silicone mat onto your workbench. Leave to cool for a few seconds. Using a small cranked spatula, gently detach the rectangles from the mat.

Return the mat into the hot oven for about 20 seconds and take it out. Roll the cigarettes around a wooden or copper tube, with the diameter of your choice. Wrap the end of each rectangle around the tube...

... and roll the 3 cigarettes at the same time.

Place the tube on your workbench and leave to cool for about 1 minute.

Slide the cigarettes carefully along the tube, making sure they do not break as they are very fragile.

The result should look like this.

Repeat the above steps to make more cigarettes. Spread the preparation over the Silpat mat, then bake into an oven preheated at 180°C (gas 4). Remove from oven and leave to cool for a few seconds. Detach the rectangles gently with a cranked spatula.

Return the baking mat over the baking sheet and place in the hot oven for 20 seconds. Remove from the oven.

Place the copper tube over the end of the rectangles.

Wrap the tip of a rectangle around the tube. Repeat with the other rectangles.

Roll all three cigarettes at the same time.

The roll should be regular and tight.

Once the cigarettes are wrapped around the tube...

... leave to cool for about 1 minute. Then carefully slide the cigarettes out of the tube...

... and set aside to cool down.

Store these cigarette cookies in an airtight container away from light and humidity. They make a delicious treat served with ice cream or a cup of coffee!