Bring water and sugar to a boil. Remove from the heat and add the syrup, butter and spices and mix well. Mix flour well with baking soda and knead it into the dough, until it is completely smooth and without any flour streaks.

Wrap the dough in cling film and let it chill in the fridge for a minimum of four hours.

Mix the flour, confectioner’s sugar and vanilla sugar in a food processor. Add the butter (cut into small cubes) and mix again, until it looks like coarse sand. Knead the dough with a few drops of water at a time, until it holds together.

Wrap the white dough in cling film and let it chill in the fridge for at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F (regular, not fan). Line the baking trays with greaseproof paper.

Roll out the brown cookie dough to a thickness of 3-4 mm on a lightly floured surface. Cut out the dough using your Ampelmann cookie cutter (or your preferred cookie cutter).

Roll out the white cookie dough to a thickness of 2 mm and cut out hearts with a small heart shaped cookie cutter.

Place the white hearts on top of the brown cookie men and gently fold in their arms, as if they hold the hearts. (For the green Ampelmann, just place the white heart underneath his hand.) Press lightly to keep the arms in place.

Place the Ampelmann cookies on a baking sheet, leaving a gap between them, and bake them for 5-6 minutes, until lightly golden-brown.

If you bake some of the brown cookie dough without the white dough, the cookies must bake for only 4½-5 minutes.

Let the cookies cool on the baking tray for 5 minutes, before you move them to a wire rack to cool completely.

In a clean bowl whisk egg whites until frothy. Gradually add the confectioner’s sugar and lemon juice, until it is incorporated and the icing is shiny. Add food coloring if desired.

Transfer icing to pastry bag with a round piping tip, 1 or 2 mm wide. Decorate your Ampelmann cookies with icing and sprinkles as desired. Let dry completely before storing the cookies in an airtight container.

Leftover icing can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to three days.