Shortbread Ginger Biscuits - Something for Santa

Once school breaks for the Christmas holidays the children have a long ‘to do list’ that must be completed before the big day. Near the top of this list, and one tradition that we always maintain is the baking of festive treats each year. Even when they were toddlers they would love to help with any baking related activity. When better to spend some time together in the kitchen than over the Christmas season. Something simple to make, such as a batch of these shortbread ginger biscuits, are perfect for little hands to make and decorate. The biscuits can either be threaded with a thin ribbon and hung on the Christmas tree, or pop them into a pretty box as a festive edible present for a loved one. However, I’ve had it on good authority that Santa is rather fond of a good shortbread biscuit, especially when served with a glass of cold milk.

Shortbread Ginger Biscuits

Ingredients

• 225g plain flour
• 75g soft brown sugar
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 150g butter

To decorate

• Writing icing
• Icing sugar

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/Gas 6.
2. Sieve the flour, sugar, and ginger into a large bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Gather the mixture together. Turn out onto a floured board and knead the dough lightly. Roll out the dough to the thickness of a euro coin. Cut into shapes using festive cutters. Keep re-rolling the cut-offs into shapes until all the dough is used up.
4. Place on a lightly floured baking tray. Using a skewer make a hole at the top of each biscuit. Bake until golden or pale brown for 8–12 minutes, depending on their thickness.
5. Remove from the oven. Check with a skewer that the hole at the top of each biscuit hasn’t covered over. Cool on a wire rack.
6. When completely cooled decorate using some writing icing. Thread with a thin ribbon and dust with some icing sugar.