Recipe

Serves:  12 people | Prep time:  45 minutes | Cooking time:  12 minutes

British | Vegetarian | Snack

Ingredients

• 350g Plain flour
• 140g Salted butter – cut into small chunks
• 100g Light brown soft sugar
• 75g Golden syrup
• 1 x tsp Vanilla essence
• 1 x tsp Bi-carb soda
• 1 x Medium egg
• 1 x Pinch salt

Icing

• 375g Icing sugar
• 75ml Water
• Food colourings
• Sprinkles, buttons – to decorate
• Ribbon to tie round the biscuits
• 1 x 8cm Round cutter

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.
2. Put the sugar, butter and golden syrup into a small saucepan.
3. Gently heat till melted.
4. Put the flour, salt and bi-carb into a large bowl and whisk well with a balloon whisk.
5. Then add the melted butter mixture.
6. Whisk the egg and add to the flour.
7. Mix well till you have a smooth dough.
8. Allow to cool.
9. Then dust a work surface with some flour.
10. Roll out the pastry to the thickness of a pound coin – and cut out 12 rounds with the cutter.
11. Put onto some greased baking sheets and bake for about 12 mins till golden.
12. Take them out of the oven and make a hole at the top of each one while they are still warm with the end of a pencil.
13. Allow to cool.
14. Collect the rest of the dough together and re roll – cut shapes – stars, letters and numbers with the leftover dough, smaller than the baked biscuits - and bake these in the oven for 10 mins.
15. Allow to cool.
16. Mix the icing sugar and water together.
17. Divide into smaller amounts and use different food colourings in each.
18. Put the big biscuits and smaller shapes on a cooling rack and with a teaspoon gently pour the coloured icing over the biscuits allowing any surplus to drip off the biscuits.
19. Allow to cool and then put the smaller shapes ontop of the larger biscuits – sticking them with a little icing.
20. Decorate with your favourite sprinkles.
21. Allow to cool completely – then thread some ribbon through the hole.
22. These will keep for a few days in an airtight container.