Preheat the oven to 120°C fan/140°C/275°F/Gas mark 1 and line a baking sheet with baking paper. Using a sharp knife or vegetable peeler, carefully remove the peel from the lemons with as little of the white pith as possible. Slice the peels into very thin (matchstick) strips.

Measure into a small saucepan 85g (3oz) of the caster sugar, 4 tablespoons of lemon juice and the 4 tablespoons of water. Place over a medium–high heat until fully dissolved. Add the strips of lemon peel and simmer for 10–12 minutes until the peel turns translucent.

Drain into a bowl through a sieve – keeping the lemony syrup – and pressing down to remove as much liquid from the peel as possible. Spread out over the lined sheet and bake in the low oven for 20–22 minutes until completely dry – tossing and turning halfway through. Remove from the oven, dust with extra caster sugar and leave to cool completely.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together the butter, miso, the remaining 150g (5½oz) of caster sugar, the soft brown sugar and the demerara sugar until completely smooth. Add the egg and vanilla bean paste to the bowl, then beat for another minute, scraping down the sides to ensure everything is fully combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Use a rolling pin to bash the butterscotch candies into small shards, then add these to the bowl.

Chop most of your candied lemon peel into small chunks (keep a few strips whole to decorate) and mix these through the flour mix.

Add half the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and beat until fully incorporated. Tip in the rest of the dry ingredients, beating for 30–45 seconds until there are no dry patches. Compact the dough into 18 tight round balls (about 60g/2¼oz each), roll in demerara sugar, then refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 175°C fan/195°C/385°F/Gas mark 5½. Place no more than six balls on two baking sheets, well spaced apart – they will spread as they cook. Bake for 17–18 minutes – rotating the sheets halfway through – until golden brown.

Remove from the oven. Use a round glass or pastry cutter to shape the warm cookies while they are still soft into perfect circles if you like. Leave to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, while you cook the remaining six. The cookies harden as they cool, becoming crunchy on the outside.

The lemon syrup will have transformed into a loose jelly by this point. Give it a quick whisk, then brush over the cooled cookies. Decorate with the reserved strips of candied peel and extra demerara sugar, if you like. Enjoy.

TIP: If you don’t have any butterscotch candies, use toffee chunks or white chocolate chips instead.