Cookies, various - by Ethan's Mommy

Ingredients
250g butter or brick margarine
250ml (1 cup) Huletts Castor Sugar
1 egg
2.5ml (½ teaspoon) vanilla essence
500ml (2 cups) cake flour



Method
Cream butter and add castor sugar gradually, beating continuously.

Beat egg and vanilla essence together and then add to the butter mixture, and beat further.

Sift the flour 3 times and add to the butter mixture. Mix thoroughly.

Shape into biscuits and place on a greased baking tray. Bake at 200ºC for 8 - 12 minutes, until golden brown.


Makes 100 biscuits.



VARIATIONS:

Ginger Biscuits:
Add 5ml ground ginger to the flour. Decorate each biscuit with a piece of melon or ginger preserve before baking.

Coffee Biscuits:
Dissolve 10ml of instant coffee into 10ml boiling water. Add to the butter mixture. Decorate with a coffee bean before baking.

Cherry Biscuits:
Push halved glacé cherries into each biscuit before baking.

Coffee Biscuits:
Dissolve 10ml of instant coffee into 10ml boiling water. Add to the butter mixture. Decorate with a coffee bean before baking.

Decoration:
Dip one half of each biscuit in melted chocolate (or drizzle over the top) and leave to set on a wire rack, or simply spread with made up icing.



Store in an airtight container.[b]