It’s two days till Christmas and it’s my favorite time of the year. I love having an excuse to spoil my family and friends with home baked Christmas and holiday inspired treats. Not only are these cookies are nice to look at and super tasty, they are also easy and fun to make especially with kids. They also double up as edible Christmas decorations so its a win on all fronts!

The warmth of the ginger in the biscuits compliments the sweetness and freshness of the orange and you’ll literally keep eating them until their all gone. They are super easy to make – just follow these steps and you’ll be able to enjoy the coolest Christmas cookies ever.

Ingredients:
175 grams flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger
zest of 1 orange
1 tablespoon milk
100 grams cold butter (diced)
50 grams caster sugar
salt
hard, boiled sweets
(star shaped cookie cutters, icing sugar to decorate and ribbons to hang)

Preparation Method:

1. If you have a food processor, this recipe is done in no time! if you don’t have one, dont worry!
   Food processor method: Add the flour, ginger, zest and butter with a good pinch of salt and mix until fine crumbs are formed. Pulse in the sugar & milk, and take out the dough and knead shortly (on a floured surface) until smooth. Wrap in cling film, then chill for about 30 mins.
   Method without food processor: Add the flour, ginger, zest and butter with a good pinch of salt and rub together with your fingertips until fine crumbs are formed. sugar & milk, and take out the dough and knead shortly (on a floured surface) until smooth. Make sure NOT to overwork the dough! Wrap in cling film, then chill for about 30 mins.
2. Preheat the oven to 180C Roll out the cookie dough on a floured surface to a thickness of 1/2cm. and cut out desired shapes using the cookie cutters. Using smaller cutters or any sharp round object, carefully take out the center of the cookies.
3. Carefully place the cookies on a nonstick baking sheet and repeat until all the dough is finished. If you wish to hang the cookies as decoration, pierce a hole in the top of each cookie.
4. Crush or chop up the sweets and place in the holes of the biscuits, making sure the sweets are relatively level with the height of the cookiedough. Bake the cookies for 15-20 minutes, until the sweets have melted and the ookies are a light golden brown.
5. Take the cookies out of the oven and leave to harden. Once hardened, transfer to a wire rack and  let them cool down before tying a ribbon through the hole, dusting with icing sugar and hanging in a christmas tree or around the house as decoration!

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