One I found at BBC Food, is great for baking festive treats at short notice. Plus, decorating them is fun and easy and my grandchildren love to help out. If you’re looking for an easy Christmas recipe that’s quick to prepare, uses simple ingredients and is popular with all the family why not have a go?

Ingredients

100g/3½oz unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

100g/3½oz caster sugar

1 free-range egg, lightly beaten

1 tsp vanilla extract

275g/10oz plain flour

To decorate

400g/14oz icing sugar

3-4 tbsp water

Black Writing Icing

Mini Chocolate Beans

Method

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until pale, light and fluffy.

Beat in the egg and vanilla extract, a little at a time, until well combined.

Stir in the flour until the mixture comes together as a dough.

Roll the dough out on a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of 1cm/½in. Using biscuit cutters or a glass, cut biscuits out of the dough and carefully place onto the baking tray.

Bake the biscuits for 8-10 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. Set aside to harden for 5 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

For the icing, sift the icing sugar into a large mixing bowl and stir in enough water to create a smooth mixture.

Carefully spread the icing onto the biscuits using a knife and decorate with black writing icing for the wire and chocolate beans for the bulbs. Set aside until the icing hardens.