Tiny Star biscuits for kids (just like tiny teddies but homemade)

My kids LOVE Tiny Teddie biscuits and I have to admit they are the perfect little treat to carry in your handbag, pop in a lunchbox or pull out for morning tea.  I normally always have a stash in my pantry to shove in my bag before leaving the house as a 'just in case I need a snack snack' but yesterday morning I got caught out and my stash was empty!!!!!!  A very bad oversight indeed as a handful of cut apples just didn't cut the bacon after the promise of teddies!! So I decided to make my own.

Seriously I don't know why I haven't done this before as they were SO EASY!!!

Ingredients:
120g Caster sugar (or just raw sugar if using a thermomix)
240g butter
1 tsb vanilla essence
360g wholemeal flour (or you could just use plain flour)
40g hundreds and thousands (or 20g cocoa powder or 40g chocolate chips)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees.
2. Add the raw sugar to the thermomix and whizz for 10 seconds on speed 9/10 to give you caster sugar.  Scrape down the sides.
3. Add the butter and vanilla and cream together for 30 seconds on speed 5/6.  Scrape down the sides and repeat for another 5 seconds if necessary.  
   
4. Add the flour (and cocoa powder if using) and mix for 10 seconds on speed 6, until the mixture roughly resembles bread crumb texture.
   
5. Add the hundreds and thousands and set the thermomix to closed lid and knead for 30 seconds on interval speed until you have a dough.  
   
6. If you want to make chocolate stars then add 20g cocoa instead of hundred & thousands or you could add chocolate chips, but just make sure you crush them a bit first so that they they are teeny tiny.
7. Roll the dough into a big ball and either wrap it up in a thermomat if you have one, otherwise cling-film will do.  Pop it in the fridge for half and hour.  
   
8. Roll the dough out until it is about 2cm thick and then cut our your shapes using a tiny thumb sized cutter.  I have to admit, this bit is a bit fiddly and time consuming because you have to do so many, but it is worth it in the end.  
   
9. Bake in the oven for 10 - 12 minutes, allow to cool and then enjoy.

I only used 3/4 of the dough and saved the rest for Miss H as she wanted to make her 'own' shapes and not just stars.  You could also freeze whatever dough you don't use and save it for a rainy day.  Just make sure you wrap it up in cling-film and label it before you put it in the freezer!!

Store your tiny stars in a cute tin or you could buy some little zip lock bags and add 8 to 10 little stars into each one. That way they are just as handy to chuck in your bag (for emergency snacks) as the 'real deal' tiny teddies!!

I have used my thermomix but if you don't have one they are just as easy to make.  Put everything in a bowl together and use your hands to mix it all together.  Make sure the butter and sugar and well mixed before you add the dry ingredients to make your dough (if you have a hand held mixer use that first and then your hands to get a perfect dough).

ENJOY

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