So at the weekend I was all set to bake a cake when a trip to the supermarket saw me walk away with a nice big jar of mincemeat and a bag of ground almonds. I knew in my heart they should be together. I’d had a craving for frangipane since an episode of Masterchef so I decided to stick it all together into one magical almondy mince pie. It’s been done before I admit but that doesn’t stop it from being amazing. Continue reading
Caramel spiced rum + hot chocolate mix = perfect gift
The tree’s up – the traditional red baubles and white lights, despite my attempt to trick the flatmates into allowing wonderfully tacky coloured lights and my lusting over the pink and white baubles from Junk and Glitter – the first glass(es) of mulled wine have been drunk, and the “What do you want for Christmas?” texts have both arrived and been sent. So naturally, it’s time to think about the food and drink. You’ll notice I say that as if “thinking about food” isn’t my permanent state.
An evening at Harrods, for the launch of their hampers, showed how decadent Christmas food can be – any present with big quantities of cheese and booze is good in my book, and there were plenty of options that weren’t more than my monthly income – and this month’s list is no different. Continue reading
Move over, all other variations, for I have found the most warming, accidentally-boozy, rich hot chocolate out there. Even if you make it with low-calorie drinking chocolate, we’re talking thick, dark, and creamy. This is serious business. Meet caramel spiced rum hot chocolate.
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ontrary to the December diet I described in my last post, there are plenty of vegetables that are in season in December, as well as, you know, biscuits, cakes, and meat wrapped in more meat.
Admittedly, fruit is thin on the ground – at this point we’re mostly importing or living on booze-soaked dried fruit. No complaints here! Continue reading
There are still nine days till Christmas and I am preemptively festively plump. I’ve drunk cocktails and sprained my ankle and danced on it anyway already. The tree is up, wrapping paper has been purchased, and still it does not feel like the season, because none of these things, in this city, are part of the traditions.
It’ll be almost time for the real festivities when I catch the train home, listening to “Driving Home for Christmas”, carrying a suitcase containing far more pairs of shoes than are at all necessary.
It’ll feel like December when I get the chance to sneak-peek at the presents.
It’ll be Christmas when I’m at home, sat in front of the fire with one of my mum’s boozy mince pies, watching Miracle on 34th Street yet again.
The best mince pie I’ve ever had remains a mystery to me – it was eaten during the sweltering part of summer 2012 in a test kitchen, where I was part of a team sampling dozens of Christmas puddings and mince pies. It was tough work. The one I loved was flaky, and buttery, and had just the right amount of booze and…I have no idea who made it. It will forever remain a mystery to me.
So rather than go around every supermarket trying to find it, I thought this year I’d break with tradition just a little bit. I put my own twist on it to make a festive variation that keeps in with one of 2013’s biggest baking trends, the hybrid dessert. Bottom half mince pie, Viennese whirl top, 100% delicious. Continue reading
I’ve been sitting on this post for a couple of days, trying to find something to say up here in the gap between pictures. Truth is, I’m in hibernation mode, so I’m just gonna make another batch of these truffley delights and curl up under my duvet for a bit, mmkay? Sometimes you’ve just gotta play The Sims for 6 hours straight and forget about standing on a cold kitchen floor, painstakingly creaming butter and sugar. Sometimes you need to smash up some biscuits, melt some chocolate, and be done with it. Continue reading
Christmas may have passed, but for most of us it’s not yet time to put down the whisks and sieves to sit back and plan how we’re going to lose this festive flab. But before we have cause to mourn the foods that a January diet disallows, there’s still one last night of blissful indulgence to go. But by the time new year rolls around, no-one wants to cook a full spread. Just a few little bites to keep guests from partying a little too hard. So here’s a few easy-to-whip-up recipes for new year party nibbles. Continue reading
These (really naughty and delicious) truffles are the last in my Christmas gift ideas series, with a few sweet ideas for the skint (me) or thrifty.
Knowing full well that this little corner is just a tiny drop in the ocean of food blogs out there can be a little overwhelming. At Christmas, this becomes doubly clear: because it’s a time when a lot of bloggers are sharing very similar recipes and ideas. It’s not just an internet thing – if you watch a morning of cookery shows at a weekend in December you’ll be bombarded with ingredients like celeriac. In a lot of ways, this seasonality is the lifeblood of food and everything associated with it – and rightly so. But it brings with it a certain inevitability, and a need to innovate.
Equally, there are some things that really don’t need innovating, that speak for themselves the moment you take an innocent little bite. Although many Pinterest users and bloggers could say it more eloquently than I: ladies and gentlemen, these Oreo truffles are that perfect mouthful. Continue reading
When you’ve lived away from home for a while but still go back for Christmas, you get used to hearing, “Is there any particular food you want me to get in?” around the first week of December. This year, there was one less thing on my usual list of Christmas visit must-haves, because my mother entrusted me with the secret of these two-cheese biscuits. They don’t look much, these wee biccies, but oh boy do they pack a punch. Supposedly, they taste even better after a few days, but they’ve never been around long enough for us to test that theory.
Although I’m posting these as a Christmas gift (in-laws, I’m lookin’ at you), they’d also be great after Christmas to help to use up the leftover nuts and Stilton you just couldn’t fit into your stomach. Yep. they’ve got Stilton in them – but in my experience, even Stilton haters love these.
Recipe makes around 50 biscuits 5cm in diameter – perfect to pop straight in your mouth! They are happy to be frozen (and I confess to sneaking to the freezer to eat a few there and then. Oops). Continue reading