Vanilla Biscuit Recipe

This is a recipe I've been using for years from an old Women's Weekly cookbook. It is a lovely plain vanilla biscuit recipe which is perfect for using cutters with. Biscuits are another name for cookies here in Australia, for my lovely American readers :)

I bake these a few times a year but mostly on special occasions like Valentine's Day, Easter and Halloween. but they would also be great for lunchboxes or a snack. I usually ice the biscuits by making a mixture of icing sugar, water and food colouring then dipping the front of each biscuit into this mix. Here is a video I found which shows the method better than I can explain it!  how to ice cookies I like the addition of the skewer to scrape the excess icing off, and think I will do this next time.


120 g butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks (I save the whites and add to a quiche)
1 c plain flour
1 c self raising flour
4 tsps milk approximately


Mix room temperature butter, essence, sugar and yolks in a bowl until smooth.

Stir in sifted flours and enough milk to form a soft dough.

Knead gently on a lightly floured surface, then roll out and cut into shapes.

Place shapes on greased trays.

Bake in a moderate oven for about 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on racks and then ice if desired.

This recipe makes about 30 biscuits. Depending on how big your cutter is.

Happy baking!