Ombre Raspberry Shortbread Cookies

Ingredients:

• 300g gluten-free flour

• 200g dairy-free spread (I used Stork)

• 100g caster sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla essence

• Icing sugar (for glaze)

• Freeze-dried raspberry powder (for ombre effect)

• Freeze-dried raspberries (for topping)

Method:

In a large bowl, combine the gluten-free flour, dairy-free spread, caster sugar, and vanilla essence. Mix until the dough comes together. Wrap the dough in greaseproof paper and chill in the fridge for 30-45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 160°C. Remove the dough from the fridge and, between two pieces of baking paper, roll it out till about 1cm thick. Cut the dough into heart shapes and sprinkle generously with caster sugar. Prick each cookie with a fork or toothpick.

Place the cookies on a baking sheet, spaced about 1cm apart. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes, or until they are lightly golden around the edges. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Mix icing sugar with a bit of water to form a glaze. Add freeze-dried raspberry powder gradually increasing amount into each bowl to achieve 2 different shades of pink to create an ombre effect. Spread the lighter colour on the top half and the darker pink on the bottom half and mix the the glaze over each cookie to have the desired effect. Top with pieces of freeze-dried raspberry for an extra burst of flavour and colour. Enjoy!

N.B When making the glaze add the liquid into mixture slowly until desired texture is achieved.