Christmas Pudding Iced Cookies

Looking though my local bakers shop window I spotted some beautiful Christmas Pudding Iced Cookies, which gave me the inspiration to try and recreate some of my own at home. I used Mayan Gold Green & Blacks chocolate only because I had a little left over from another baking project. Of course it wouldn’t matter if you used plain or milk chocolate. I used Cradbury’s mini chocolate drops to resemble the currants in a Christmas pudding.

Christmas Pudding Iced Cookies

Makes 6 10cm (4 in) cookies – depending on what size cookie cutter you use

Ingredients
150g (5 oz) self-raising flour & a little for dusting
25g (1 oz) cocoa powder
100g (4 oz) butter
75g (3 oz) soft brown sugar
Few drops of vanilla extract
1 egg, beaten
75g (3 oz) Mayan Gold Green & Black chocolate, chopped
75g (3 oz) Cadbury’s chocolate mini buttons, from the baking section in a supermarket
For The icing
100g (4 oz) icing sugar sieved, & a little extra
1egg white, you may need only half the quantity * see method *
Few drops of lemon juice
Coloured fondant icing in green & red - cut out in shapes of holly leaves & berries
Edible glitter
You will also need
Cocktail stick
Piping bag with a small writing tube for piping icing
10cm (4 in) round cutter
1-2 baking trays lined with non-stick paper

Method

In a mixing bowl add the flour, cocoa powder, butter, sugar and vanilla extract. With your fingers rub in the butter to combine all the ingredients, it should look clump together. Now add the Mayan Gold chopped chocolate working through a little with your fingers. Add the egg and with a fork start to bring the mixture together and finally press together the dough with your hands. Wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour to firm up enough to roll out.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/350°F/Gas mark 4.

Lightly dust a work surface with a little flour, unwrap your dough and roll out to about 5mm (¼ in) thickness. Cut out with your cookie cutter as many rounds as possible then re-roll and carry on cutting out rounds until all the dough is used. Place onto the lined baking trays and take the chocolate drops and press them in to the cookies equally, now place into the preheated oven.

Cook for about 15 – 20 minutes until they look cooked. Leave to cool for about 5 minutes on the baking tray before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

For The Icing, in a bowl add the sieved icing and a half of the egg white to start with and a few drops of lemon juice. Beat thoroughly until smooth and glossy and a runny consistency, (enough to coat the back of a spoon). If the icing is a little thick add a little more egg white until you achieve the correct consistency.

Into a small bowl add about 4 tablespoons of the icing and thicken with the extra icing until it forms peaks and thick enough to pipe with.

When the cookies are cold enough, pipe an icing line around the edge at one end and a quarter of the way onto each cookie to resemble brandy sauce dripping down. Take a small teaspoon and with the runny icing fill in the gaps between the piped icing. Take a cocktail stick and work the icing into all the curves until its completely filled in the middle of the piped icing. Carry on the same until all cookies are covered the same in icing. Let the icing harden a little before taking the fondant holly leaves and berries and sticking them onto each cookie with a little icing, then finally sprinkle a little edible glitter over the holly leaves and berries, it doesn’t matter if some goes onto the icing it just gives it a little glitzy finish. Leave to set completely before eating or storing them away.

Note: This recipe will make 6 10cm (4 in) cookies but depending on what size cookie cutter you use, you may have more or less. You may have a little icing left over from this recipe again depending on how many cookies you make.