Peppermint hearts recipe

I had quite a few requests for a recipe for the Peppermint Hearts that we made in my last post, and I'm only too pleased to write it up, and that has the added bonus of plumping up my rather scrawny Tutorials department (although maybe a recipe is not strictly the same as a tutorial...). The recipe is actually one from my head, honed and perfected down the years from the first time my ten year old self was allowed free-reign in the kitchen.

Ingredients:
1 Egg White
Icing Sugar (unlimited amounts!)
Lemon Juice
Natural Peppermint Essence
Pink or Green Food Colouring
Water

1.In a bowl mix an unspecified amount of icing sugar (a medium-sized mound is the best way I can describe it) with the egg white and a generous capful of peppermint essence (I think you may need less if your peppermint essence is of the more synthetic variety) and the food colouring (I tend to be quite restrained here as I love my peppermint creams to look as melt-in-the-mouth as they taste). At this point we carry out essential testing and check that they really do taste pepperminty enough - we like ours strong!

2. Once these are mixed, put your spoon to one side and let the eager little hands begin the work of bringing the ingredients together to form a large ball. If there isn't enough liquid in the mix at this point I add lemon juice (make sure it hasn't got 'bits' in and substitute with water if it's getting too lemony!) until the consistency is just right (you want the ball to be stuck together smoothly and quite dry).

3. Sprinkle icing sugar over your work surface to stop it sticking, put your ball on the worksurface and then sprinkle a little icing sugar over that too, and then let the rolling begin. We make our creams about 1cm thick.

4. Use your choice of cutter to make shapes. You may need to keep re-balling and then re-rolling to get the most out of your mixture. Take plenty of time over this section - if there are children involved it should fulfil all your children's play-doh needs until the next baking session (allowing those nasty tubs of carpet-ruiners to stay at the back of the cupboard).

5. As the creams are made I put them onto baking parchment (to stop them sticking) until they're properly hardened.

Once they are properly hardened start arranging prettily on a plate, using the 'one for me, one for the plate' method of distribution.

And here is what you have:

Thank you for all your lovely comment on my A Change of Heart post. Hope you are enjoying the weekend. x