Bride and groom cookies recipe

Method

• To make the sugar cookies:

  1. In the electric mixer with paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar and any flavouring until well mixed and just becoming creamy in texture. Don’t overwork, or the cookies will spread during baking.
  2. Beat in the egg until well combined. Sieve in the flour and mix on low speed until a dough forms. Gather it into a ball, wrap it in cling film and chill it for at least 1 hour.
  3. Place the dough on a floured surface and knead it briefly. Using two 5mm (¼-inch) guide sticks, roll it out to an even thickness.
  4. Use cookie cutters to cut out the desired shapes and, using a palette knife, lay these on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. Chill again for about 30 mins and preheat the oven to 180°C (gas mark 4).
  5. Bake for 6-10 mins, depending on size, until golden brown at the edges. Leave to cool on a wire rack. Wrapped in foil or clingfilm, they will keep well in a cool dry place for up to a month.

  To decorate the cookies:

  1. Divide the icing between two bowls, about 250g in one and 350g in the other. Mix the 250g with black food colour. Add a little water to both bowls until the icings have reached soft-peak consistency. Fill one piping bag with each colour.
  2. Snip a small tip off the bag with black icing and pipe the outline of each groom in a steady smooth line. Do the same with the white icing on the bride cookies. Cover the bags with cling film or damp cloth to prevent the icing drying out.
  3. Dilute the remaining white and black icing with a few drops of water to a runny consistency. Fill one piping bag with each colour and flood the centres of the cookies in the appropriate colours, being careful not to overflow the sides. Flood the tuxedo centres with white first, let dry and then flood the black part.
  4. Once dry, pipe the detail on each cookie, using the soft-peak icing then let it dry.