• Line a baking trays(with greaseproof paper, tacking down the corners with a little vegetable spread.

Make the vanilla shortbread dough.

• Place the vegetable spread and sugar into a good sized bowl and beat together with a wooden spoon or electric beaters until soft and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and beat again until well combined. Sieve the flour and corn flour into the mixture. Use a wooden spoon to mix together, it can take a little while to combine the flours with the creamed fat mixture.  Add the milk a teaspoon at a time ONLY if you find the mixture not coming together. The dough shouldn’t be sticky.  Once well combined use your hand to bring the dough together. Avoid over mixing and handling.
• Shape the vanilla dough into a ball. Flatten a little to a disc shape. Wrap in clingfilm. Set aside to rest.

Make the strawberry shortbread dough.

• Place the vegetable spread and sugar into a good sized bowl and beat together with a wooden spoon or electric beaters until soft and fluffy. Add the strawberry jam (avoid adding any strawberry pieces if possible). Beat again. Add the freeze dried strawberry pieces. Beat again until well combined. Sieve the flour and corn flour into the mixture. Use a wooden spoon to mix together.  As with the vanilla shortbread dough it can take a little time to combine the flour into the creamed mixture.  Add the milk a teaspoon at a time ONLY if you find the mixture not coming together.  The dough shouldn’t be sticky.  Once well combined use your hand to bring the dough together. Avoid over mixing and handling.
• Shape the strawberry dough into a ball. Flatten a little to a disc shape. Wrap in clingfilm. Set aside to rest.

To make the biscuits

• Roll out the vanilla dough between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper. You’re aiming for it to be about 1cm (¼ ithick.
• Use the larger heart shaped biscuit cutter to cut the dough. Gently place the shortbread biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet. Gather together the dough offcuts and re-roll once only. Cut out more biscuits.
• Use the smaller heart shape biscuit cutter to carefully cut out a small heart from the centre of each of the larger hearts. Set the smaller hearts aside.
• Roll out the strawberry dough between 2 more sheets of greaseproof paper. You’re aiming for it to be about 1cm (¼ ithick. 1
• Use the larger heart shaped biscuit cutter to cut the dough. Gently place the shortbread biscuits onto the prepared baking sheet. Gather together the dough offcuts and re-roll once only. Cut out more biscuits.
• Use the small heart cutter to cut out a heart aperture.
• Carefully place the small vanilla heart shapes into the strawberry shortbread apertures, and the small strawberry hearts into the vanilla biscuits.
• Place the baking sheet(into the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 170℃ (160℃ fan)/25°F/gas mark Place the baking tray into the centre of the oven. Bake for about 18-20 minutes until the biscuits are turning slightly golden brown around the edge.
• Remove from the oven and allow the biscuits to cool on the tray for a few minutes before carefully transferring to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
• Make the strawberry icings.
• Place the icing sugar into a bowl. Add a teaspoon of jam to the bowl (avoiding any strawberry pieces). Add half a teaspoon of water to the icing. Gently mix together, adding drips of water until it is a thick consistency that will pipe as a defined line without running. Mix well. Place the pink icing into an icing bag (no nozzle required, though use a small plain nozzle if you like).

To complete

• Pipe a heart onto the cooled biscuits along the line where the two doughs meet. Add further decoration as you like. Enjoy!