SPICED CHRISTMAS TREES WITH CARAMEL FUDGE

Preparation time 30 mins plus 2 hours cooling and 1½ hours chilling Cooking time 40 mins

Makes about 40-60

CARAMEL FUDGE

Cooking oil spray, to grease 150g unsalted butter, chopped 395g can sweetened condensed milk 2½ cups brown sugar

2 Tbsp treacle

290g packet white chocolate melts

TREE BISCUITS

¼ cup brown sugar, firmly packed ½ tsp ginger

½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp allspice

¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda

¼ tsp sea-salt flakes

½ cup treacle

60g butter, chopped

1¾ cups plain flour, plus extra to dust 1 free-range egg, lightly beaten 1½ Tbsp raw sugar

Icing sugar mixture, to dust

STEP 1 To make caramel fudge, grease a 27 x 17cm slice tin and line base and sides with baking paper. Combine butter, condensed milk, sugar and treacle in a microwave-safe bowl. Melt in the microwave for 8 minutes (take out and stir every 2 minutes.)

STEP 2 Stir through white chocolate melts, until mixture is smooth. Pour into prepared tin and smooth surface. Set aside at room temperature for 2 hours to allow fudge to cool completely.

STEP 3 Meanwhile, to make biscuits, in a medium bowl combine sugar, spices, bicarb and salt.

STEP 4 Put treacle and butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30-second intervals, for about 2 minutes, stirring, until butter has melted and treacle is beginning to bubble.

STEP 5 Gradually beat hot treacle mixture into sugar mixture, stirring to combine. Add flour, then use your hands to combine until a very soft, slightly sticky dough comes together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead dough into a ball, flatten into a disc then wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or ideally overnight.

STEP 6 Preheat oven to 180°C fanforced (200°C conventional) and line 2 oven trays with baking paper.

STEP 7 Roll out half of the dough to 2mm thick. Use cardboard triangle templates to cut out shapes (we used a 7 x 4cm, 9 x 6cm and 10 x 7cm). Arrange on trays 2cm apart, grouping similar sized pieces. Transfer to fridge. Repeat with remaining dough to make about 40-60, depending on the size. Chill for 30 minutes. If dough becomes too sticky and hard to work with, return to fridge to firm up.

STEP 8 Brush dough with a very light brush of egg and scatter with raw sugar. Bake biscuits straight from the fridge, in batches for 8-10 minutes or until golden around the edges. Cool on trays.

STEP 9 To assemble, remove fudge from tin and use a large sharp knife cut into 10 by 6 rows to make 60 pieces. Make a cut in each piece of fudge across the centre, about a quarter of the way into the fudge, and push in a tree, base down. Dust biscuit with icing sugar. Serve.

Spiced Christmas trees with caramel fudge