Baking Reindeer – cookies, that is.

I must admit, cooking isn’t something I love but I do like to bake – yes, there is a difference. In my mind, cooking is what they do on Masterchef and baking is what they do on the Great British Bake Off.

I like to bake sweet and savory things, all the yummy treats that are probably not very good for you, however, I’ve never let that put me off.

Last weekend, I made some delicious peanut reindeer cookies with my daughter. I hadn’t made them before, but they proved to be very popular with the family. (I must admit, I was secretly impressed myself.) I have popped the recipe below if you fancy making some. I think these are going to be a regular of our Christmas menu.

Does anyone else have favourite/must have/not Christmas without treats?

Peanut Reindeer Cookies

Ingredients

225g smooth peanut butter

225g self-raising flour

100g soft brown sugar

75g caster sugar

1 egg

3 tablespoon of milk

1 tablespoon of vanilla essence

1 bag of chocolate M&M’s or Smarties (cherries can be used instead)

1 bag of chocolate chip drops

1 bag of chocolate covered pretzels

1 pinch of salt

1 teaspoon of baking powder

Method

Preheat oven to 175 C (based on an electric fan oven)

Mix peanut butter, sugar, milk and vanilla in a large mixing bowl

Then add egg – mix well.

Add flour, baking powder and pinch of salt.

Mix thoroughly.

To make reindeer, roll a small piece of mixture into a ball. Pinch one end gently between finger and thumb, then flatten out into the shape of a reindeer head. You can just cut the dough into a circle shaped face with a cutter if you prefer.

Place onto a greased baking tray or baking paper.

Place in oven for approximately 8-10 minutes, depending on size of your cookies.

When the edges start to brown, that’s usually a sign they are ready. Take from oven and immediately add the eyes, nose and antlers. You will need to push them into the warm cookies and leave to set for about 5 minutes before moving onto a cooling rack.