“Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion’s starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don’t see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it’s not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it’s always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.”
– Hugh Grant as David in the film Love Actually
That is the best opening monologue which 15 years later still relates. During this holiday season we still overcome the gloomy state of the world to give and find love around us. Love Actually is a 2003 romcom that tells the love story of nine different couples. It stared a bunch big names and is delightful to watch no matter how many times I see this film. This film brings me a little closer to British culture, which is dear to my heart, in various loosely interrelated tales all set during a frantic month before Christmas in London, England. Most of the film was filmed on location in London. The story begins five weeks before Christmas and is played out in a weekly countdown until the holiday, followed by an epilogue that takes place one month later. If you haven’t seen it already, do go grab it from Netflix or Amazon
When it comes to food in this film, it is not a focal point, but with the holidays being center stage there are plenty of scenes with champagne and holiday food. The most famous is the Prime Minister’s chocolate biscuits and his famous line “Who do you have to screw around here to get a cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit?”
If you are remotely British, then you know that biscuits in England are known digestive cookies – a semisweet cookie or biscuit that is popular in the UK. I actually like the plain and lightly sweetened biscuit. Chocolate biscuits are basically these digestive cookies with chocolate on one side or sandwiched between them. It’s pretty easy to find these digestives at most large grocery stores in the United States and you could prepare a chocolate ganache to spread on them. However, I decided to take this a step further and use the famous British shortbread cookie to sandwich luscious chocolate between them.
There you go Mr. Prime Minister, dance to these cookies why don’t you!
It’s the holidays and I have very little time in my hands, so I went with store bought shortbread. After all, it’s all about bringing this spirit of the film to your living room, not how you brought it *wink*. Shortbread cookies are buttery and rich. Just right for the holidays.
Ingredients
24 Short Bread Biscuits
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
Method
- Place chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl; set aside.
- Place cream in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Pour over chocolate and let stand until chocolate has softened, about 5 minutes.
- Stir until smooth. Let cool slightly before using.
- Spread ganache on cookies and sandwich.
- Serve immediately.
