Decorated christmas cookies

Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Line two baking trays with baking paper.

Beat the butter and sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the egg and beat until combined.

Stir in the combined sifted flour and ginger. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until a soft dough is formed. Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out one half of the dough to 5mm thick. Cut into shapes using festive-shaped cookie cutters. Place shapes on prepared trays about 3cm apart. The leftover dough can be kneaded lightly, rolled and cut again. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 8-12 minutes depending on the size, or until starting to colour. They will be soft when they come out of the oven, but will become crisp as they cool. Cool on trays.

Meanwhile, sift icing sugar into a bowl. If you are going to use more than one colour, divide it among several small bowls. Very carefully, add a drop of food colouring to the icing sugar. Start to mix. Add enough water, a few drops at a time, until the icing takes on a workable consistency. It should not be too runny, but it should not be too stiff to pipe through a small nozzle.

The cookies need to be completely cold before icing. They can be iced by piping the icing on, or for younger artistes, by using a teaspoon (a lot messier, but guaranteed to be fun). Finish with decorations as desired.