D&D DELIGHTS

DIFFICULTY

FEEDS

Roll the dice with this deliciously retro recipe

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE COOKIES

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 egg yolks

2¾ cups (5½ sticks) firm butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract or essence

TO DECORATE

1½ cups confectioners’ sugar

2 egg whites

Black, white, and red food coloring

FOR THE COUNTER

2¾ ounces milk chocolate

Milk chocolate buttons

Flaked almonds

Sprinkles

You will need:

Hexagon-shaped cookie cutter or a sharp knife

Piping bag with a small round nozzle

DIRECTIONS

TO MAKE THE COOKIES

Put the flour in a bowl. Cut the butter into small pieces and add to the flour, and then rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mix looks like breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla extract or essence, and mix to form a cookie dough. Put into a plastic bag and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 5mm thickness. Cut out hexagonal shapes with the cookie cutter or a knife and place them on a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Put back into the fridge to chill again for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the cookies for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on the tray before carefully lifting them off.

TO MAKE THE ICING

Sieve the confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl, and add the egg white, little by little, beating well until a piping consistency is reached. With a piping bag fitted with a small plain nozzle (or small paper piping bag with the end cut off), pipe the outline sections of the dice on the individual cookies. If needed, loosen the texture of the icing with a little water. Divide the remainder into thirds, and color each a different shade of red (using the black food coloring to modify), as shown. Carefully fill the jacket shapes using a small teaspoon. Once completely dried, use a paintbrush to apply the white food coloring numbers.

TO MAKE THE COUNTER

Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl, and set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally just until melted. Use a piping bag with a small nozzle to pipe the shape on to baking parchment as shown. Insert the almonds and sprinkles as shown and leave in the freezer to cool. Use a little melted chocolate to affix the counter to a chocolate button as a base.

Your quest is over. If you are looking for a new challenge why not try to fashion a Thessalhydra?