The most underrated Arnott’s biscuits, ranked from great to greatest
At tea time, everybody agrees (or do they?).Our taste testers rank the best Arnott's biscuits that have fallen off your radar. Here's why they deserve a comeback.
Why should Tim Tams steal all the biscuit limelight? Our team of bikkie testers put some of the often-forgotten Arnott’s creations to the test and unearthed some new faves that’ll be high on our arvo tea rotation for years to come.
After some debates (no Custard Cream?), here’s our list, ranked from great to greatest.
8) THE BUTTERNUT SNAP
The quieter cousin of the Choc Ripple biscuit, the Butternut Snap doesn’t need to boast about its strengths. It simply does basic better than any other bikkie out there.
Elisa says: “Sure, I could harp on about their delicious buttery, slightly nutty flavour or that unmistakable iconic snap they make (the reason they were named as such!) or how wonderful they are dipped into a piping hot cuppa… but while these delicious morsels are perfect to eat on their own, they’re also the most versatile multitasker you’ll find in the biscuit aisle.
“Cheesecake bases? Tick. Slice bases? Tick. Warmed up in the oven? ABSOLUTELY. And this is where they really shine! Not only can you mould these babies into the perfect cup-shaped tartlets (using a muffin pan) once warmed and fill them with all sorts of deliciousness (think caramel, mousse, cheesecake, chocolate), eating them straight from the oven gives them a just-baked Anzac biscuit vibe.
“My fave recipe that uses these iconic biscuits though has to be what my family has named the Christmas Grog Log…our take on a Choc Ripple Cake layered with Butternut Snaps, cream and, you guessed it, lots of booze.”
7) THE ICED VOVO
Too much going on to be dunked (coconut in tea isn’t for everyone), yet without a chocolate coating to make it mainstream, the Iced VoVo sits somewhere between party food and afternoon tea, but that shouldn’t put you off.
Georgia says: “As Australia’s #1 Iced VoVo fan, I find it quite alarming the number of haters my beloved raspberry, coconut bikkie has. IMO the Iced VoVo follows the formula for the perfect biscuit: a golden biscuit topped with a soft pink icing, raspberry jam for tartness and a textural element from the coconut.
“Plus, it has to be the prettiest bikkie out there and I’m just glad it exists. Everyone needs to appreciate this beautiful bikkie more! 💖”
Note: we love this bikkie so much, we created a new Iced VoVo cocktail recipe inspired by it.
6) THE NICE BISCUIT
What the Nice lacks in bells and whistles, it makes up for in versatility. It’s a biscuit for dunkers, a biscuit for snackers, a biscuit for people who don’t ‘do’ biscuits. And, most of all, it’s the cheesecake maker’s biscuit, as our dessert queen Michelle confirms:
“The Nice makes the best fine-yet-compact cheesecake crust ever. This means you get the perfect clean slice, rather than it falling apart like coarser crumb biscuits – like Granita – or scratching the inside of your food processor – like a Butternut Snap. RIP, Granita I know we grew up together with cheesecakes #ReplacedButNotForgotten.”
5) THE RASPBERRY SHORTCAKE
While debates may rage about whether jam belongs in a doughnut, or whether it goes first or second on a scone, surely few can take issue with the fact that jam and biscuits belong together?
Sonya says: “With its delicious, berry jammy centre and a sugar-sprinkled top, I rate the Raspberry Shortcake as a top-tier bikkie selection from the barrel. Plus, they’re super cute on a morning tea plate with their sweet, scalloped-style edge. (Secretly, I kind of love them once they’ve gone a bit stale and softer too. Yum!)”
4) THE MALT ’O’ MILK
Surprisingly not the only Arnott’s bikkie to boast an apostrophe in its name (anyone else remember Full O’Fruit?), this generously punctuated bikkie is generous in the flavour stakes, too. Sweet, malty and perfectly crispy, it’s a great dunker that doubles as dessert.
Marina says: “My Malt ‘O’ Milk obsession was only a very recent discovery (previously a big Arrowroot fan). The malt flavour makes it my go-to tea dunker of choice, but, most importantly, it makes the BEST ice-cream sandwiches.
“The humble Malt ‘O’ Milk is the biscuit that kick-started my ice-cream sandwich obsession. The crisp texture and cute swirly pattern make them the ideal vessels to sandwich ice-cream between. They’re thin enough to provide a great base without overpowering the ice-cream, and when you cut around them, they create the perfect-sized, handheld ice-cream sandwich bars.”
This is the iconic Malt-o-milk ice-cream sandwich recipe that inspired ice-cream sandwich upon ice-cream sandwich creation.
3) THE SCOTCH FINGER
It’s not plain: it’s just subtle. Sure, there’s not much depth to the Scotch Finger, but there’s much comfort to be found in its uncomplicatedness.
Rebecca says: “When you’re looking for a plain ol’ biscuit to pop in a lunchbox or enjoy with tea or coffee, nothing beats a Scotch Finger. It’s the closest you can get to classic shortbread without it crumbling all over you or leaving that buttery residue on your fingers.
“I think my love for Scotch Fingers deepened when I discovered that there’s a technique to eating them. That’s right, the line down the middle is there to make them easier to snap in two so you can easily dunk them in your tea. Eat your heart out, Tim Tam slam.”
2) THE CHOCOLATE SCOTCH FINGER
Just when you thought the classic couldn’t get better, along comes a superior Scotchie to prove us wrong. We’d love to be all, ‘oh, but the original is SO much better’, but really: CHOCOLATE.
Rebecca adds: “When you need something a little bit more than a plain biscuit, there’s the chocolate-coated Scotchie, too. What makes this one so incomparable to any other chocolate biscuit is the incredible thickness of the layer of chocolate. There’s no other choccy bikkie this satisfying.”
1) 🏆 THE VENETIAN 🏆
It was a close contest between this and the choc Scotchie, but the Venetian just edged it for its sheer underratedness. This one flew under the radar for us testers, with NONE OF US having tried it until now.
Here’s my verdict:
The Venetian is a complex culinary journey. Firstly, there’s the name: Venetian. This is the coffee table book of the biscuit world: for serving next to strategically-placed Italian holiday snaps the next time my neighbour* casually pops in for a cuppa.
Secondly, there’s the aesthetic: it’s fancier than your average packet bikkie. The delicate base, the creamy topping, and is that passion fruit in the icing? (Spoiler alert: no, it’s not passion fruit.) The product blurb does, however, promise real currants. No imposter currants here: this is a fancy bikkie for people who know the difference between real and fake currants. Am I one of these people? I’d like to think so, but I need to try another bikkie just to be sure.
Thirdly, there’s the taste. Once you get over the sensory confusion of something looking like passion fruit but actually being REAL CURRANTS, there’s a lot for your tastebuds to unpack. Melt-in-the-mouth base, white chocolate topping, and is that coconut? I’m definitely getting coconut vibes, but I need to try just one more Venetian be sure. (Packet confirms coconut. Phew! Taste buds are on their A-game today.)
Three Venetians in, and I can confirm these are my new go-to biscuits. I may not be Venetian, nor am I going to Venice anytime soon, but these forgotten gems have transformed my afternoon tea game. Some may say they’re purely aspirational, but what would they know? That just means more Venetians for the rest of us.
*My neighbours are yet to casually pop in, but maybe they will once word gets around that there are Venetians on offer. (Neighbours, if you’re reading this: REAL CURRANTS.)
More biscuit news:
- Nice or nice? Arnott’s finally confirms how to pronounce Nice biscuits
- Top 5 desserts made with Tim Tams
- You’ve been eating Scotch Fingers wrong all your life
Use Malt ‘O’ Milk bikkies to make these Frozen condensed milk biscuit bars
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