Halloween Piñata Cookies

Method

1. Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla bean paste together until it has become pale and fluffy. Sift in the flour and mix just until a soft dough is formed. Wrap in cling film and chill for a minimum of 1 hour.

   Top Tip: How to Store Biscuit Dough

   How to Store Biscuit Dough

   You can keep unbaked biscuit/cookie dough in your fridge for up to 3 days before baking or freeze for a month. Tightly wrap the dough in clingfilm when storing in these conditions.

   • 225g Unsalted Butter (Softened)
   • 125g Caster Sugar (we like Silver Spoon)
   • 1 tbsp Vanilla Bean Paste (We like Nielsen Massey)
   • 300g Plain White Flour

2. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / gas mark 4 and line 2 baking trays with nonstick baking parchment. On a well-floured surface roll out the dough until 3mm thick. Using your cutters cut out 3 cookies of each desired shape and transfer onto the baking sheet.  Repeat with any remaining dough before chilling for 10 minutes on the trays. Once chilled use a knife to cut out the center of each of the shapes so you have a total of 3 cookies for each piñata cookie – 2 whole cookies and 1 with a cut out centre.

   Top Tip: How to Roll your Biscuit Dough Evenly

   How to Roll your Biscuit Dough Evenly

   Place two clean rulers (of equal thickness) either side of your dough, use them as a guide to roll your rolling pin over them and the dough until the dough is even and  flush with the top of the rulers.

3. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until pale golden in colour. Remove and allow to cool before transferring to a wire rack.

4. Once cooled mix the icing sugar with a little water until a paste is formed. Use a small amount to stick together a cut out cookie onto a full cookie. Fill the cut out centre of the cookie with a mini smarties, taking care not to overfill so the top cookie can lie flat. Secure the top cookie onto the cut out again using a little icing.

   • 50g Icing Sugar (We use Silver Spoon)
   • 6 Packs Mini Smarties (Treat Size Packets)

5. Decorate the cookies using ready to roll icing in desired colours to match the chosen shape. Enjoy your Halloween piñata cookies!

   • Packet Sugar Paste Icing (Assorted Colours)