Vanilla and raspberry rings

Make jam-sandwich biscuits or plain ones dusted with icing sugar.

PREPARATION 40MIN, PLUS CHILLING COOKING 7MIN MAKES 35-40

★ 50g butter, plus extra for greasing 85g golden syrup

★ 1tbsp caster sugar

★ 1tbsp milk

★ 200g self-raising flour

★ ½tsp bicarbonate of soda

★ 1tsp vanilla extract

★ Raspberry jam, for filling

★ Icing sugar, for dusting

1 Melt the butter, golden syrup and caster sugar in a pan. Add the milk.

2 Sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Pour in the butter mixture. Using a flat-bladed knife, work the flour to make a soft dough. Gently knead, shape into a disc and wrap in baking paper. Chill until firm.

3 Heat the oven to 180ºc (160ºc fan) gas mark 4. Grease three baking sheets. Roll out the dough on baking paper to 3mm thick.

4 Using a 6cm plain or fluted cutter, cut out circles and re-roll if necessary. For the sandwich biscuits, leave half as bases and stamp out 2½cm stars in the centre of the tops. If making plain ones, cut out the centres with a smaller round cutter. Place on the baking sheets and bake for 5-7min until lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack.

To make the raspberry rings, spread the bases with jam, dust the star biscuits with icing sugar and sandwich together.