Orange and ginger cookies

Quick and tasty, and fantastic for glace ginger junkies like myself.

Orange and Ginger Cookies

You will need:

• 120g (4 oz) butter, softened and cubed
• 1/3 cup (3 oz) caster sugar - we keep whole vanilla beans in our caster sugar jar, just for a little extra flavour bonus
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1 cup (4 oz) plain flour
• 1/4 cup ( 1 oz) cornflour
• 50g ( 1 3/4 oz) glace ginger, finely sliced
• 1 tablespoon orange juice

Heat the oven to 180 degrees C (350 F). Cover two trays with baking paper.

Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla with electric beaters until light and creamy. Sift together the flours, and fold into the butter mixture with the ginger and orange juice. Knead it lightly with your fingertips.

Roll teaspoons of the mixture into small balls. Place them well apart on the trays and press lightly to flatten. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. Leave on the tray for three minutes, then transfer onto a wire rack to cool.

This makes about 25 cookies, which in my experience lasts a household of three approximately half an hour. I tend to make double this mixture, but this would be a good number to try once.