Using a hand held mixer or a food processor beat together the butter and sugar until smooth.
Whisk in the egg yolk and vanilla extract, then finally the flour to make a dough. If it’s a little sticky add a little more flour.
Remove from the bowl/food processor and on a floured work surface roll out pieces of the dough in batches to about a £1 thickness.
Cut out into shapes using a biscuit cutter, place onto a lined baking tray. Re-roll the off cuts and repeat until all the dough is used up. Place these in the fridge for 15-30 minutes to firm up so they keep their shape when baking.
Heat the oven to 180/160C fan/gas mark 6
Bake on the middle shelf for 8-12 minutes or until just coloured on the edges. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack before decorating with icing.
To make the icing sift the icing sugar into a bowl and mix in a couple of tablespoons of tepid water, wadding more water if needed to make a thick paste.
