Candy Cane Cookies

Yet another recipe taken from JoyofBaking.com. These cookies take a lot of work, but they look so festive.

Unfortunately, my family is full of clumsy rough-handed people and all of my candy canes got broken. I can only take responsibility for the one below - it snapped when I was trying to hang it on the tree!

I've made these cookies twice now and each time they have been really delicate - so be careful! You can use variations of food colouring to make different coloured candy canes - try red and green.

This recipe yields 30 candy cane cookies.

Ingredients

325g flour

Pinch of salt

227g butter

120g icing sugar

2 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp red food colouring

Recipe

1. Whisk the flour and the salt together. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar until creamy. Add the egg yolks and vanilla and beat until combined. Slowly add the flour, mixing all the time, and beat until you have a smooth dough.

2. Place half of the dough in another mixing bowl and add the red food colouring. Mix until it is evenly distributed throughout. Wrap the two separate doughs in cling film and place in the fridge for 30-60 minutes to harden up.

3. Preheat the oven to 190C and separate each colour of dough into 30 evenly-sized balls. Roll each ball out onto a floured surface and make a 10cm rope. 

4. Take a red and yellow rope and pinch them together at the top. Twist the ropes together to form a spiral then place on a baking tray. Bend the top of the rope to make the 'hook' of the candy cane.

5. Bake the cookies for between 8-10 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to turn brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a baking sheet. These cookies can be stored in an air-tight container or frozen.