Gingerbread stars recipe

Delicately spiced and attractively iced, this hanging stars make beautiful edible Christmas decorations or gifts.

If you're looking for a homemade gift, try these pretty iced gingerbread stars. Homemade gifts have such a lovely, personal touch. And no one needs to know they only take 30 minutes to make from start to finish. The biscuits are topped with two kinds of icing - a glacé icing which is easy to use and doesn't require any piping, and a royal icing to finish. If you're short on time or you don't fancy your icing piping skills, just use the glacé icing. Simply dip the whole topside of the biscuit straight in the icing bowl. Finish them with pretty, festive hanging ribbons and pop them in a small box or a clear bag tied with a bow. This recipe makes 48 biscuits: enough for gifting while still keeping a few for you or the kids.

Ingredients

• 150g butter, softened
• 115g caster sugar
• 3 tbsp honey
• 1 egg
• 340 g plain flour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• Silver balls

Glacé icing:

• 185g icing sugar
• ½ tsp softened butter
• 2–2½ tbsp boiling water

Royal icing:

• 1 egg white
• 185g icing sugar
• ½–1 tsp lemon juice

You will also need:

• 7 cm star-shaped cookie cutter
• Piping bag with small 2 mm plain nozzle (or use a small plastic bag and snip off a small corner)

Method

1. Cream together the butter, sugar and honey in a large bowl using electric beaters until pale and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well. Sift in the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon and ginger. Stir until the mixture comes together to form a ball. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and gently knead until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Line two baking trays with baking paper.
3. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 2mm thick. Cut the dough into star shapes with the cookie cutter, re-rolling any dough scraps and cutting out more stars. Place on the prepared trays, leaving room for a little spreading, and bake for 6 minutes, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool on the trays for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
4. To make the glacé icing, combine the icing sugar, butter and boiling water in a small heatproof bowl and mix to a smooth paste. Place the bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water and stir until warm and the consistency of whipping cream. Do not overheat. Dip the top of each star into the icing and allow the excess to drip off. Leave on a wire rack to set.
5. To make the royal icing, lightly whisk the egg white in a small bowl until just foamy. Gradually whisk in enough icing sugar and lemon juice to form a smooth icing that holds its shape. Spoon the icing into the piping bag and pipe decorations onto the gingerbread stars. Decorate with silver balls if desired. Allow to set.

Top tips for making gingerbread stars

If you want a more bling finish, dust the glacé icing with some edible silver glitter before doing the piped icing.

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