Beat the butter and the sugar into the mixing bowl ensuring the mixture is consistent.

Add the flour (and vanilla extract if you choose to) into the mixing bowl and mix the dough thoroughly.

For the best results, refrigerate the dough for at least a couple of hours, preferably overnight.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan/ gas 6).

Cut out shapes in the dough using your Christmas tree and snowman cookie cutters.

Place the shaped cookies onto baking tray/s keeping them at least 2 ½ cm apart.

Bake in the oven for about 12 minutes.

Check to see if the cookies are fully cooked by placing a wooden pick/ cake tester into the middle of each. If they come out clean, then you are good to go onto the next step!

Let the cookies cool in the baking tray for about 5 minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack and leave them until they are fully cooled.

For the Christmas tree shaped cookies, spread melted dark chocolate across the cookie. Then cut up any colour of jelly beans you like and shape them into small balls. Stick these balls of jelly beans onto the tree in bowed lines as colourful decorations.

For the snowman shaped cookies, spread melted white chocolate across the body. Apply melted dark chocolate to the hat shaped part of the cookie and to make the eyes and mouth. Cut up half an orange jelly bean to stick onto each cookie to represent a carrot nose. Using whatever colour of jelly beans you like, cut and shape the jelly bean into small balls to decorate the hat and make the buttons.

Enjoy! 😊