Mix the butter and sugar (sachet 1) with an electric mixer until smooth – don’t cream or aerate the mixture too much as this will cause the cookies to spread out and lose their shape during baking. Mix in the egg yolk and rosewater until combined. Add the cookie mix (sachet 2) and rose petals and mix to form a smooth, soft dough – you may need to use your hands to bring the dough together.

Roll the dough between two pieces of baking paper into a rough rectangle, about 1cm thick and 13cm wide. Place onto a baking tray and chill in the fridge for 1 hour until firm.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 160°C fan-assisted convection and line a large baking tray with baking paper.

Use a large sharp knife or metal bench scraper to cut the dough into 12cm-long, 1cm-wide sticks and space evenly on the prepared tray. You can reroll any dough scraps to cut out more cookie sticks or other cookie shapes. If the cookie sticks feel soft, place them in the freezer to firm up again before baking.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. As soon as they come out of the oven, quickly straighten any wonky cookies by firmly pressing them between two spatulas, bench scrapers or rulers while still warm. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the tray.

Melt the white chocolate over a bain marine until smooth and mix in food colouring a little at a time to reach your desired intensity. Working with one cookie stick at a time, dip one end into the chocolate, allow any excess to drip off, and place on a lined baking tray to set. Pouring the chocolate into a small, narrow vessel makes it easier to dip the cookies; alternatively, you can spoon the chocolate onto the cookies with a bowl underneath to catch the excess.

Sprinkle the cookie sticks with extra dried rose petals while the chocolate is still soft and place in the fridge to set.

Tips: Be careful not to overdo the rosewater as it can quickly morph from a delicate infusion to an overwhelming potpourri flavour. Different quality rosewaters will have different intensities – start with a drop or two and add more in small increments until you reach your desired flavour. 

Liquid or gel food colouring will cause chocolate to seize because they are water-based. Whenever you’re colouring chocolate, make sure to use the powdered variety.

Unless you’ve tempered your white chocolate, you’ll need to store the finished cookie sticks in the fridge to stop the chocolate from softening.

Have a look at our Instagram recipe reel on @nomu.minimakes here.