Stained Glass Biscuits

Place the sweets, still in their wrappers in a polythene bag, taking care not to mix the colours and bash them with a rolling pin until they are crushed. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugar and then add the egg and vanilla. Add the flour to make a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and bring together with your hands, wrap in cling film and chill for about an hour.

Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°fan / Gas Mark 4 and line two baking trays with parchment.

Roll out the dough one quarter at a time and cut out the biscuits with the large star cutter. Transfer them to the trays. Once on the trays cut out a window with the smaller cutter. Bring together the leftover dough and keep cutting out until all the dough is used up.

Using a drinking straw, make a hole in the top of each biscuit - you will need this to hang the biscuits as decorations.

Using a teaspoon, carefully fill the star cut-out with the crushed sweets.

Bake the biscuits for 12 minutes and once cooked allow to cool on the tray. When cool, carefully peel off the paper and leave to cool completely on a rack.

When the biscuits are cool, mix up some royal icing according to the instructions on the packet, and using a piping bag, pipe your decorations.

Allow to dry completely and hang up with the ribbon.