250g (9oz) butter, slightly softened<br />
150g (5½ oz) caster sugar<br />
1 egg yolk<br />
2 tsp vanilla extract<br />
325g (11oz) plain flour, plus extra flour for dusting<br />
½ tsp salt<br />
340g (12oz) royal icing sugar<br />
Pink and blue food colouring <br />
Silver balls, white sprinkles, edible gold and silver glitter, to decorate<br />
Think ribbon, for threading <br />
<ol>
<li>In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar until place and fluffy. Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat until combined.</li>
<li>Stir the flour and salt together with a fork in a separate bowel, then add to the butter mixture. Mix until it forms a soft dough. Form the dough into a flattish disk, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or until firm enough to roll out.</li>
<li>Pre-heat the oven to 180 /350 Fan/ Gas . Divide the dough in half and roll out one half on a lightly floured surface to 5mm (¼ in) thick. Cut out cookies with an angel shaped cutter. If liked, you can cut out patterns on the cookies using mini cutters and/or the tips of icing nozzles. You can also make a hole in the top of each cookie using the end of a straw, so that you can thread the end of a ribbon through once baked. Repeat with the second half of the dough, then re-roll the trimmings and cut out more cookies.</li>
<li>Transfer to baking sheets lined with baking parchment, spacing the cookies about 2 ½ (1 in) apart. Bake the cookies for 11-12 minutes until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.</li>
<li>To ice the biscuits: make up the royal icing according to the packet instructions. Colour one quarter pink and one quarter blue using the food colouring. Transfer the remaining white icing to a piping bag fitted with a narrow (no.1 or no.2) nozzle. Some of the cookies can be iced with coloured icing using a small palette knife, others can be left plain. Pipe patterns on the plain cookies and decorate with gold or silver balls, sprinkles and glitter. Allow the iced cookies to set and then pipe patterns on these. Hang the angels with loops of think ribbon threaded through the holes.</li>
</ol>
Tree Decoration Angel Cookies
These Tree Angel Cookies not only look beautiful but taste delicious too!
