Snowflake Biscuits

My wonderful moogi made these for Christmas and oh my! They're divine. I can't stop eating them! This is her recipe, adapted from one for lemon puffs in the January Good Food magazine.

You need:
200g butter, softened
140g caster sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract
280g plain flour.

Mix sugar and butter together and then add the egg yolk and vanilla. Add the flour and knead in to a dough. Chill if you want or else roll out and stamp into shapes. Cook in a medium oven for 10-12 minutes and leave to cool. Ice if you want and then try not to eat the whol batch in one day..!

Hugh's Ten Minute Cookies

This recipe is from River Cottage Everyday. I don't think they are as nice as Nigella's chocolate cookies from Nigella Express, but they lasted all week for lunch boxes and were nice and chewy.

For about 16 cookies you need:
125g butter
100g caster sugar
75g light soft brown sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
150g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
100g chocolate (I like a mix of white and milk)

Melt the butter and leave to cool slightly. Mix with the sugars and then add everything else. Spoon on to greased baking sheets, well spaced, and bake for 10 mins at 150 degrees. Leave to cool slightly before moving them to a cooling rack, but not for too long or they will stick...

Nigella's Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are ridiculous. Ridiculous as in delicious. And ridiculous as in calorific. But did I say delicious? Cos they are, and they freeze well too so are a good one to make in advance and freeze for lunch boxes during the week...

The recipe is taken from Nigella Express.
125g dark chocolate
150g plain flour
30g cocoa, sifted
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
125g butter, softened
75g light brown sugar
50g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
350g chocolate chips (I like to use a mix of plain, milk and white)

Begin by creaming together the butter and sugars. Add the flour, cocoa, bicarb and vanilla along with the egg. Fold in the chocolate chips and mix well. Pull off small pieces, about the size of a walnut, roll in to a ball and place on lined baking sheet. Flatten slightly. You can usually get 6-9 on each sheet.

Bake at 160 degrees for about 10 mins. Leave to cool slightly before moving to a cooling rack. Scoff whilst warm or else leave to cool completely before stacking into a freezer bag and freezing.

Vanilla Shortbread

This is unashamedly Nigella's recipe from Forever Summer. It's the best I have ever made. MIL asked where it was from and nearly fell of her chair when I said I had made it, it was so good. Make it. You won't be disappointed.

For about 24 squares you need:
100g icing sugar
100g cornflour
200g plain flour
1 tsp vanilla paste
2 tbsp vanilla sugar
200g very soft butter

Blitz the icing sugar and flours together in a food processor till combined. Then add the butter and vanilla paste. Combine into a dough and then press into a lined swiss roll tin. Score into squares and then prick the tops. Bake at 160 degrees for about 25 mins till light brown. Leave to cool then sprinkle with vanilla sugar and break into the squares you scored earlier. Try not eat it all yourself on the day you make it...

Flapjack

A storecupboard staple and a snack that's easily knocked up in 15 mins or so.

You need:
6oz butter
6oz sugar (I use half granulated and half soft brown)
2 tablespoons golden syrup
10oz oats

Melt the butter, sugar and syrup; then add the oats and pack into a lined baking tin. Bake at 160 for 10 mins, leave to cool, cut in to squares and scoff. Wonder why you've got that fat!

Vegan Chocolate Cookies

Also known as Granny Boyd's biscuits a la Nigella (from Domestic Goddess). I'm not that keen on these but Lex likes them and they store well so they're a great lunchbox staple.

For about 20 cookies you need:
250g vegan marge
300g self raising flour
30g cocoa
125g sugar

Whizz it all together in a food processor and then roll into balls (about the size of walnuts). Squish down with a fork and bake for 15 mins. Cool and store in an airtight container till needed. Sorted.

Ginger and Honey Snaps

I needed something different for Lex's lunchbox next week and fancied giving these a whirl. My mum used to make the most delicious ginger snaps on a sunday and these are pretty close to what she used to make. It's a recipe from Rachel Allen's Bake. If you substitute the butter for vegan marge and the honey for maple syrup or golden syrup then you can make these vegan too. Bonus.

For about 20 cookies you need:
225g self raising flour
2 tsp bicarb
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground mixed spice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
100g caster sugar plus a couple of extra tablespoons for dusting
125g butter, cubed
100g runny honey

Lob everything apart from the honey into a food processor and blitz till combined. Warm the honey then pour into the dry ingredients. Mix, then press into discs, dust with sugar and bake in a hot oven (180 degrees) for no more than 10 mins (if they go too dark they will taste bitter. Eat.
Next time I make these I am going to omit the ground ginger and add some chopped, preserved ginger to dough. I might also use the syrup for the binding agent to give it an extra ginger kick.