Directions

• In a medium bowl mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside
  
  
• In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter on a medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add sugar and cream together for about 2 more minutes. Add an egg and vanilla and beat on high speed until well combined. Make sure to scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl as and when needed.
• Add the flour mix into the butter mixture and mix on low speed until combined.
• Divide the dough into two equal parts. Place a sheet of baking paper or a silicone mat on a flat working surface and lightly dust it with flour. Place one-half of the dough onto the baking paper/ silicone mat, and cover it with another sheet of baking paper. Roll the dough between sheets of baking paper to about 5mm thickness. Transfer the rolled dough to the fridge (if stacking one on top of each other, make sure to cover the top one with some baking paper too, so it doesn’t dry out). Chill for at least 1-2 hours or ideally, overnight.
• Once chilled, preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Line the baking trays with some baking paper. Remove one of the pre-rolled dough pieces from the fridge. Using your favourite cookie cutters, cut the desired shapes. Re-roll any remaining dough and repeat until you have used all of the dough. Do the same with the second piece of chilled dough.
• Transfer the cookies onto the baking tray and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for about 10 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through. They are ready when the edges are turning lightly brown. Take them out of the oven, and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
• For the royal icing
• In a bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or a hand-held electric mixer with beaters, place the sugar and water and mix together for about 2 minutes until well combined. When lifting the whisk up of the icing, the icing should drizzle down and smooth out within 10- 12 seconds (‘draw’ a line with the dripping icing, if it disappears after 10-12 seconds and melts back into the rest of the icing, you are good to go).
• If the icing is too thick, add a bit more water, only about a teaspoon at a time. If the icing is too thin, add a little more sifted royal icing sugar.
• Divide the icing between the bowls and add a few drops of gel food colouring to them. Using a toothpick or a skewer (different toothpick for each colour), mix the icing until you reach the desired colour. Transfer the royal icing into piping bags and snip the very tip of each piping bag.
• Draw the border lines around all of the cookies and allow them to dry for a few minutes. When ready, start to ‘flood’ the cookies with the icing. Try to work top-to-bottom or edges towards the centre motion, rather than doing it in random order. Use a toothpick or a skewer to fill any gaps in the icing. Once you finished filling the cookie with the icing, tap the cookie gently a few times, to spread the icing in an equal layer. Allow the icing to dry completely, before adding another layer or more details to the cookies.