Chocolate and ginger oat biscuits

Less than 30 mins preparation time

30 mins to 1 hour cooking time

Makes 12 biscuits

Ingredients

• 225g/8oz unsalted butter
• 200g/7oz soft brown sugar
• 2 free-range eggs, beaten
• 50g/1¾oz golden syrup
• 8 tbsp water
• 200g/7oz plain flour
• 2½ tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp sea salt flakes
• 500g/1lb 2oz rolled oats
• 6 tsp ground ginger
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 50g/1¾oz stem ginger, chopped
• 115g/4oz good quality dark chocolate

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add the eggs, then beat in the golden syrup and the water.
2. Fold in the sifted dry ingredients and the stem ginger until well combined. Roll the mixture into small balls with your hands and place them onto a greased baking tray, leaving room for them to spread. Flatten the biscuits slightly then bake in the oven for about 20 minutes. Remove the biscuits from the oven and set aside to cool completely.
3. Melt the chocolate in a bowl suspended over a pan of barely simmering water. Dip the biscuits in the melted chocolate and place on a cooling rack until the chocolate has set.

Salted caramel millionaire’s shortbread

Less than 30 mins preparation time

1 to 2 hours cooking time

Makes 9 squares

Ingredients

For the shortbread

• 175g/6oz unsalted butter
• 75g/2½ oz caster sugar
• 1 vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped out
• 225g/8oz plain flour

For the caramel

• 200g/7oz unsalted butter
• 1 x 397g/14oz can condensed milk
• 4 tbsp golden syrup
• 1 tsp sea salt

For the topping

• 350g/12oz milk chocolate

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease and line a 20cm/8in square cake tin.
2. Rub the butter, sugar, vanilla seeds and flour together in a bowl to make rough dough. Press the dough into the cake tin and prick all over with a fork.
3. Bake the dough in the oven for five minutes, then reduce the oven to 150C/300F/Gas 2 and bake for a further 35 minutes. Once cooked, allow to cool in the tin.
4. Meanwhile for the caramel, place all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil for 10 minutes
5. Pour the caramel mixture over the shortbread. Chill in the fridge until the caramel has cooled and hardened slightly.
6. For the topping, melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, pour the chocolate over the caramel. Chill in the fridge again until the chocolate has set, then cut into 9 squares.

Christmas biscuits

Less than 30 mins preparation time

10 to 30 mins cooking time

Makes 24

Ingredients

• 100g/3½oz unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
• 100g/3½oz caster sugar
• 1 free-range egg, lightly beaten
• 275g/10oz plain flour
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• To decorate
• 400g/14oz icing sugar
• 3-4 tbsp water
• 2-3 drops food colourings
• Edible glitter

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until pale, light and fluffy.
   
   Technique: Creaming butter by hand
   Watch technique0:50 mins
3. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract, a little at a time, until well combined.
4. Stir in the flour until the mixture comes together as a dough.
5. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of 1cm/½in.
6. Using biscuit cutters or a glass, cut biscuits out of the dough and carefully place onto the baking tray. To make into Christmas tree decorations, carefully make a hole in the top of the biscuit using a straw.
7. Bake the biscuits for 8-10 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. Set aside to harden for 5 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.
8. For the icing, sift the icing sugar into a large mixing bowl and stir in enough water to create a smooth mixture. Stir in the food colouring.
9. Carefully spread the icing onto the biscuits using a knife and sprinkle over the glitter. Set aside until the icing hardens.

Stained glass window biscuits

Less than 30 mins preparation time

10 to 30 mins cooking time

Makes 25

Ingredients

For the biscuits

• 350g/12oz plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 100g/3½oz butter
• 175g/6oz soft brown sugar
• 1 free-range egg, beaten
• 4 tbsp golden syrup
• packet wrapped fruit-flavoured boiled sweets in different colours

To decorate

• tube ready-made white icing (available in the baking sections of most supermarkets) (optional)
• narrow ribbon

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. For the biscuits, mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and ginger together in a bowl.
3. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, then stir in the sugar.
   
   Technique: Rubbing in
   Watch technique0:46 mins
4. In another bowl, beat together the egg and golden syrup, then pour this mixture into the flour mixture and mix to make a smooth dough, kneading lightly with your hands.
   
   Technique: Kneading bread
   Watch technique2:35 mins
5. Crush the sweets in their wrappers using a rolling pin.
6. Roll the dough out on a floured work surface to about 0.5cm/¼in thick, then cut into shapes using a selection of Christmas-themed cookie cutters. Transfer the biscuits to baking sheets lined with baking paper.
7. Cut out shapes in the centre of each biscuit, making sure you leave a good edge all around the biscuit. Completely fill the hole in each biscuit with crushed boiled sweets.
8. Make a hole at the top of each biscuit using a drinking straw so that you will be able to thread a ribbon through it later. Bake the biscuits in the oven for 10-12 minutes, or until golden-brown.
9. Remove the biscuits from the oven. While they're still warm, check that the holes are still there - if not, push a straw through again. Do not remove the biscuits from the baking tray until they have cooled because the boiled sweets need to harden. Once the sweets have hardened, gently lift the biscuits onto a wire rack with a palette knife to finish cooling.
10. If you like, you can decorate the biscuits with piped white icing. Thread ribbons through the holes in the biscuits to make loops for hanging from the tree.