Preheat oven
to moderate 180C. Brush oven trays with melted butter or oil. Using
electric beaters, beat butter and sugar in small mixing bowl until light
and creamy. Add egg yolk and honey, beat until combined. Add sifted
flour, soda and ginger; press together to form a soft dough. Turn onto
lightly floured surface, knead 1 minute until smooth. Cover with plastic
wrap, and chill 15 minutes.
Roll dough
out to about 3mm thick, between two sheets of baking paper. Cut 30
Christmas tree shapes from the dough using an 8cm cutter. Re-roll the
dough scraps and re-use. Cut six star shapes from the remaining dough,
using a 4cm cutter. Place on prepared trays, allowing room to spread.
Press cachous onto the top of each tree and onto one point of each star.
Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly golden, cool on wire rack. Using
electric beaters, beat egg white until slightly frothy. Add sifted icing
sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until smooth between additions.
Add enough icing sugar to give a stiff spreading consistency.
To assemble
tree : Stack cones on top of each other, spreading a little icing
between each to join them together. Starting with the bottom cone,
spread icing thickly. Press Christmas tree and star biscuits into the
icing, stacking biscuits in overlapping layers around the cone. Work
your way up the cones in this manner, spreading with icing as you go.
Leave room at the top, spread with icing. Press two stars, standing
upright back to back, on the top. Sift extra icing sugar over tree.
Note - If
biscuits won't adhere to cones, add more sifted icing sugar to icing to
give a stiffer consistency. Biscuit can be made up to 2 days ahead;
store in an airtight container. Once assembled, cover tree with plastic
wrap until serving time. Make extra biscuits with excess pastry as
gifts. Unsuitable to freeze.
