Well, that's it. After weeks of planning and going a little crazy; Christmas is all over. I've had a lovely few days spent with the family, eating, drinking, eating some more and laughing a whole lot. I also managed to squeeze in a little bit of baking so I thought I food round-up would be a good idea.
Christmas Pudding!
You may remember a couple of months ago myself and my mum rallied together and made our pudding. Well, we dug it out from under the bed, steamed it for a couple more hours and then set it alight! I have to say, it was bloody good pud. I also whipped up some brandy butter to go with it. Very easy: 4oz butter, 4oz icing sugar and a healthy splash of brandy. Whisk it up, pop in the fridge to chill and tuck in when needed.
Before and during. After was just an empty plate.
Boxing Day Buns.
Christmas pudding and mince pies get a little rich after a while, so for those of you who want something sweet but light; whip up a batch of cake mix, make some buns and enjoy! (It was just your standard 4 & 2, eggs, butter, sugar, flour and cocoa powder).
I did actually help me Aunty out and make some gooey, chocolate pots. They're amazing. Light, chocolatey and melt in the mouth. I don't actually know the recipe, but when I find it I'll upload it.
Well my dears, I hope you all had a marvellous Christmas and I hope you're not suffering nearly as much as I am.
I shall be back in the kitchen very soon, trying out all my new utensils! TTFN x
So, with a week left until Christmas it seemed only right to actually start baking some presents! Although, unfortunately I've still got a way to go!
First up; Shortbread biscuits. It was a bit of a cop out really, but when you're posting them to friends and family, it makes a lot more sense. I've just used the same recipe as the Halloween ones, so head over there and you'll be sorted. But of course, use Christmas cutters, not Halloween ones!
Secondly (and a lot more fiddly), miniature Christmas Puds!
I'll come clean and admit that I've pinched the idea from a certain Mrs Lawson, but when I saw them I thought, "ugh, amazeballs!". So they were added to the list of baked presents.
It's actually quite a simple recipe, but it requires a little bit of patience.
What you'll need:
-350g of Christmas Pud (last years left over, or one from the shop)
-125g dark chocolate
-60ml of sherry
-2 large tbsp of golden syrup
-100g of white chocolate
-green + red icing/glacier cherries
And....GO!
-First up, the pudding. If you've brought one you'll need to cook it and then let it cool completely. If not, crumble it up into a bowl.
-Melt the dark chocolate ban-marie style.
-In the bowl: mix the pudding, syrup, sherry and chocolate together. Mix until it's all gloopy and folded into each other.
-Now comes the fiddly part. Scoop up little handfuls of the mixture, and roll into neat balls. Neat being the operative word, as you'll see, mine aren't. But then, at least you can tell they're handmade! ha!
-Once they're all rolled, pop them on a plate, cover in cling film and whack in the fridge for about 15mins to harden up.
-Whilst they're toughening up, you can melt the white chocolate and then let that sit for about 10mins. Makes it a little easier to play with.
-Get your puds out, put a dollop of white chocolate on each and then decorate with either the icing or cherries. Nigella seemed to make it harder for herself but cutting out tiny holly and ivies; I went for the easier route and used the little tubes of piping icing. Personally, I think they look pretty darn cute!
I'm not giving these away until the end of the week, so to make sure they're truly set, I'm leaving them in the fridge. Nigella doesn't say how long to leave them in the fridge, but I'm guessing, if you're planning on the distributing them sooner than myself; leave them at least a day. You don't want to risk them falling apart!
Now, go share your baking wonders!
Traditional (ish) Christmas Pudding.
I know it's only just October, but as a rule of thumb, it's about time to get your Christmas puds on the go.
I'm currently at my mums house in the country, and of course I had the baking bug. But unfortunately she doesn't have an oven, just a hob. So the only option was to steam something; Christmas puds were the perfect option. It's just a shame I can't taste it for another 2.5 months.
This recipe is for a traditional pudding; there really isn't much point in making it fancy, seeing as there's only two of us that will eat it. I suppose you can argue though, that there are a few differences, but it's much of a muchness.
Ingredients:
-2oz self-raising flour
-4oz shredded suet
-4oz breadcrumbs
-2 large eggs
-8oz soft, brown sugar
-10oz mixed, dried fruit
-8oz dried cranberries
-2oz chopped, mixed nuts
-1tsp cinnamon
-1tsp nutmeg/ginger
-75ml of stout
-A glug of brandy
You will also need a bowl for the mix, a pan to steam it in, a plate,tin foil and string.
This is part is simple: Measure out all your ingredients and mix them together in a large bowl/pan, making sure to make a wish when you stir. This is not to be done on heat.
You then need to pop the mix into your bowl of choice, place a plate over it to keep it air tight, cover in tin foil and wrap tightly with the string. Then, you need to bain-marie the pudding for 4hours. Make sure you keep topping up the water, as you don't want it burn! Once your 4hrs are up, take it off the heat, take the plate and foil off and let it cool down. Once cool, re-seal it and store it away until Christmas. You will then need to steam it again for a further 4hrs on the day of use.
When it's all done, you can then enjoy with brandy butter, brandy ice-cream or whatever else you fancy!
