vanilla & rosewater sables

Makes about 20

Preparation time 30 minutes, plus chilling and cooling

Cooking time 8 minutes

275 g (9 oz) plain flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting

200 g (7 oz) chilled unsalted butter, diced, plus extra for greasing

100 g (3½ oz) icing sugar, sifted

2 egg yolks

2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

Buttercream

50 g (2 oz) unsalted butter, softened

75 g (3 oz) icing sugar, sifted, plus extra for dusting

1 teaspoon boiling water

few drops of pink food colouring

1–2 teaspoons rosewater

Grease 2 baking sheets. Put the flour and butter in a food processor and blend until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, egg yolks and vanilla bean paste and blend to make a smooth dough. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for an hour.

Roll out half the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 2.5 mm (⅛ inch) thick, and cut out heart shapes using a 4 cm (1¾ inch) heart-shaped cutter. Space slightly apart on a baking sheet. Roll out the remaining dough and shape more hearts. Put on the second baking sheet and reroll the trimmings for extra. Bake in a preheated oven, 200°C (400°F), Gas Mark 6, for about 8 minutes, or until just beginning to turn golden around the edges. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Make the buttercream by beating together the butter and icing sugar in a bowl until smooth. Add the boiling water, the pink food colouring and enough of the rosewater to give a delicate flavour, then beat until pale and creamy. Use the buttercream to sandwich the biscuits together. Serve lightly dusted with icing sugar.

For ginger & nougat sables, make the biscuits as above, using 2 teaspoons ground ginger instead of the vanilla bean paste, and golden icing sugar to replace the white sugar. Cut out 4 cm (1¾ inch) circles instead of hearts. For the filling, put 75 g (3 oz) pink or white nougat in a heatproof bowl with 1 tablespoon milk and rest over a bowl of simmering water until the nougat has melted. Remove from the heat and cool. In a separate bowl, whisk together 25 g (1 oz) softened butter and 25 g (1 oz) sifted icing sugar until smooth. Stir in the nougat and use to sandwich the biscuits together.