We’re dreaming of an Orange (cookie) Christmas

 Ingredients

• 200g butter, softened
• 100g brown sugar
• 250g flour (alternatively: spelt flour)
• 1 orange, juiced
• 3 heaped tbsp  sugar
• 60g walnuts, chopped
• 1 vanilla pod, scrape out seeds.
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 160°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Boil the orange juice with 3 slightly heaped tbsp. of  sugar until it forms a syrup and allow to cool down. Beat the butter and brown sugar in a bowl until pale and fluffy. Mix 2 tbsp of the orange syrup into the flour until well mixed. Then knead with your hands until a firm dough is produced (if you’re finding it hard to knead the dough, try popping it in the fridge for 10 minutes).
3. For the filling: mix the walnuts, cinnamon, vanilla seeds and the remaining orange syrup.
4. For each cookie, roll a heaped tsp of dough into a ball and make a thumbprint in the middle of the dough. Add 1 teaspoon of the filling.
5. Place the cookies on your lined baking tray.
6. Bake in your pre-heated oven at 160°C for approx. 15 – 20 minutes (until golden brown).
7. After baking, allow the cookies to cool down slightly before serving and enjoy!

Speaking of Santa Claus, is anyone else as enamoured with the epic British tradition of absolutely mental Christmas adverts as I am? Every year, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and the like seem to find yet bigger and more festive ideas (that inevitably make my cry – but in a nice, Christmassy way). One of our favourites this year has to be the M&S version of how on earth Santa gets everything done in time for the big day. You know what they say about every great man…