Stained-glass window biscuits

Method

1. Line two baking trays with baking paper. Beat the butter and icing sugar until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until fluffy, then beat in the custard powder. Fold in the combined sifted flours.

2. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Roll between 2 sheets of baking paper to 3 mm (⅛ inch) thick. Refrigerate for 15 minutes, or until firm.

3. Preheat the oven to moderately hot 200°C (400°F/Gas 6). Separate the lollies into their different colours and crush using a rolling pin. Cut out the dough with a 9.5 cm (3½ inch) fluted round cutter. Lay on the trays. Use small cutters to cut shapes from inside the circles.

4. Glaze the biscuits with the beaten egg and bake for 5 minutes. Don't let the glaze drip into the cutout sections of the biscuits or the stained glass will be cloudy. Fill each cut-out section with a different-coloured lolly. Bake for 5–6 minutes, or until the lollies melt. Leave for 10 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.