Baking for beginners: Chocolate bourbons

There aren't many biscuits as chocolat-ilicious as the good old fashioned bourbon. Two slabs of lovely crumbly chocolatey loveliness, glued together with chocolate cream. Delicious. And surprisingly easy to make. Once you know you may never be able to leave the house as all you'll want to do is keep on making them over and over again! You have been warned!

For the biscuits you will need:

• 50g unsalted butter, softened.
• 50g caster sugar.
• 1 tablespoon of golden syrup.
• 110g plain flour.
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda.
• 15g good quality cocoa powder.

For the filling you will need:

• 50g unsalted butter, softened.
• 100g icing sugar.
• 2 teaspoons cocoa powder.
• A few drops of water.

Now make it!

• Firstly, pre-heat the oven to 190c and line a couple of baking sheets with silicon liners.
• Next, cream together the butter and sugar until its all light and fluffy, then beat in the golden syrup.
• Sieve in the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cocoa powder and mix all together until you get a nice stiff dough. At this point it really starts to smell amazing - resist the temptation to just eat it there and then, if you can!
  
• Knead the yummy smelling dough well and then roll it out until its about 5mm thick, but there's no need to be militant about it.
  
• Cut your dough into strips around 2.5cm wide and 5cm long (see note).
• Next, transfer them to the baking trays and prod a few times with a fork.
• Bake for 15mins but don't go too far as you need to keep an eye they don't get scorched at the edges. Your kitchen will now smell good enough to eat.
• Transfer biscuits to a wire rack to cool and meanwhile make the filling.
• Mix the butter, icing sugar and cocoa powder together, careful not to spray your kitchen with fine white dust - I am particularly good at doing that! Add in a few drops of water if needed to get the right consistency.
• Once your biscuits are cooled, spread half with the filling then sandwich another one on top.
• Now for the worst part...you have to leave them for an hour to let the filling set. Torture!!
• As it's Chocolate Week it's only fitting that you enjoy these on the sofa, under a blanket and with a good strong hot chocolate. Don't blame us if you get addicted....these are heavenly!
  

(Note: if you have something to use as a guide or cutter then this is good. I used a knife and my own judgement which, as it turns out, isn't that great. Mine turned out very 'rustic' - fine if you plan to gorge them all by yourself, in one sitting, in front of The X Factor, not so fine if you're making them to impress anyone!)

Recipe courtesy of the lovely Kate Shirazi's Cookie Magic book. She's rather fab, and she knows her biscuits.