Gingerbread Boxes

Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 125 g butter (chopped)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (firmly packed)
• 1/2 cup golden syrup
• 1 egg (separated)
• 2 1/2 cups plain flour (all purpose)
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1 cup chocolate chips (melted)
• 1 3/4 cups icing sugar (pure)
• silver cachous (to decorate)

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 180c or 160c fan forced.
• 2 line 2 large baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
• 3 using electric beaters, beat butter and sugar until light and creamy and then add golden syrup and egg yolk and beat until combined.
• 4 add sifted flour, ginger and bicarbonate of soda, using a knife to mix until evenly combined.
• 5 gather dough together and turn out onto a sheet of non-stick baking paper.
• 6 divide the dough into 2 even portions, wrap one portion in cling wrap and set aside.
• 7 roll the other portion out to a rectangle about 26cm x 18cm and trim the sides to give straight lines, but don't make it any small than 24cm x 16cm.
• 8 cut dough into 12 pieces (four rows of three).
• 9 transfer pieces to one of the prepared trays, leaving a little room between them for spreading.
• 10 place trays in the fridge and chill while you roll out and cut the other piece of dough as you did the first.
• 11 bake first tray for 10 minutes, while chilling the second tray, then bake that tray for 10 minutes.
• 12 leave on the trays for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• 13 whisk egg until frothy, then gradually add sifted icing sugar to make a stiff paste.
• 14 place paste into a small plastic piping bag and snip off the end and pipe this icing on the outside of joins of the square to cover any gaps and then decorate with cachous.
• 15 pipe a cross onto the box tops and decorate and ;leave to set.
• 16 fill with chosen sweets.