Shane Smith's orange & sultana Easter cookies

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and caster sugar until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
3. Add the egg and orange zest to the butter-sugar mixture, mixing well until fully combined.
4. Sift the plain flour into the bowl, add the sultanas, and mix until a dough forms.
5. Wrap the dough in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm up.
6. Once chilled, place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it out to a thickness of approximately 0.5 cm.
7. Using an oval-shaped cutter, cut out 20 cookies and arrange them on the baking trays.
8. Place the trays in the pre-heated oven and bake for 12 minutes, or until the edges turn lightly golden brown.
9. Remove the trays from the oven and let the cookies cool on a wire rack.
10. For the icing, in a bowl, mix the icing sugar with a few drops of water to achieve a thick, spreadable consistency.
11. Divide the icing into two portions.
12. Leave one portion plain (white), colour the second portion yellow, remove a tablespoon of the yellow and colour it orange.
13. Transfer the white and yellow icings into separate piping bags.
14. Outline the bottom half of each cookie (representing the eggshell) with white icing, and the top half (representing the chick) with yellow icing.
15. Flood the outlined areas with the corresponding coloured icings to fill them in.
16. Using the orange icing, pipe small triangles on each cookie to create beaks.
17. Using the melted dark chocolate, pipe two small dots on each cookie to form eyes, and outline the edges of the cookies to define their shape.
18. Let the decorated cookies stand at room temperature until the icing sets, approximately 30 minutes.
19. Once the icing has set the cookies are ready to be enjoyed. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.