These birthday cookies are irresistible when freshly baked, so don’t be surprised if there aren’t any left over. They need to be thoroughly chilled, so make the dough the day before you need them.

Ingredients: (Makes 35)

• 115 g/4 oz/½ cup unsalted (sweet) butter
• 2.5 ml/½ teaspoon vanilla essence (extract)
• Large pinch of salt
• 150 g/5 oz/¾ cup caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 115 g/4 oz/1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour
• 1.5 ml/¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• 7.5 ml/1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten
• 35 pecan nut halves

Method:

Cream the butter, vanilla essence, salt and 115 g/4 oz/½ cup of the sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add the egg, beating constantly. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and 2.5 ml/½ teaspoon of the cinnamon into another bowl and stir a little at a time into the creamed mixture. Form the mixture into a dough, wrap in clear film (plastic wrap) and chill overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before using.

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4. Lightly grease a baking sheet. Roll out the dough until it is about 33 mm/? inch thick. Stamp out rounds with a 5 cm/2 inches cutter.

Place the rounds on the prepared baking sheet and brush the tops with the egg white. Mix the remaining ground cinnamon with the remaining caster sugar. Sprinkle over the rounds and press a pecan nut half into each center. Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown.