Tag Archives: Christmas recipes

First Sunday in Advent

This coming Sunday will be the first Sunday in Advent and the start of the proper countdown to Christmas.

Plaetzle - German Christmas treats

I must confess, being a bit of a Christmas-obsessive, I have been feeling festive for weeks!

I am an avid subscriber to Baked and Delicious magazine and back in early November when I saw the flyer for their Festive Special I was eager to don my pinny and make the gorgeous gingerbread house.

Festive foods
On a recent visit to see my German friend Gudi, she offered me some delicious little baked fruit treats, which got us talking about festive foods.

It is traditional in Germany to offer these
plaetzle to visitors in the run up to
Christmas as a gesture of hospitality.

It’s really interesting to see how festive foods change throughout the world. The Baked & Delicious Festive Special includes recipes for Roscón, a Spanish ring cake traditionally baked for Epiphany; Buche de Noel, a French yule log; and Semifreddo Natalizio, an Italian alternative to Christmas pudding. As well as our fabulous mince pies and Christmas cake of course!

Baked and Delicious Baked & Delicious magazineThe magazine plops onto my doormat once a fortnight complete with silicone bakeware – FREE with every issue! I am such a convert to this – it so easy to clean and the cakes virtually jump out of the pan when they are ready. A winner in the Davenport household.

Take a look at their Facebook page www.facebook.com/bakedanddelicious or order online http://www.baked-and-delicious.com/subscribe.aspx or just pop out to the shop and buy an issue!

 

Frost Lemon Top Cake

Frosty Top Lemon Cake. Quick, easy and lemony lovely. A perfect match for silicone bakeware!

Recipe taken from Clever Cooking for One or Two
now available for just £7 from the Dairy Diary website.

 

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Kent Plum Pudding

Not quite as rich as a traditional Christmas pudding, it can be made a few days before, then steamed for an hour before serving.

Kent Plum Pudding from Around Britain Dairy CookbookPreparation time – 30 minutes
Cooking time – 3 hours steaming plus1 hour reheating time
Calories per portion – 385 Kcal
Fat per portion – 17g
of which saturated – 4.9g
Serves – 8
Suitable for vegetarians

Butter 50g (2oz) plus a little extra
Clear honey 50g (2oz)
Cooking apple 1 small, peeled, cored and diced (110g/4oz prepared weight)
Dried figs 110g (4oz) 6 figs, stalkstrimmed, diced
Raisins 110g (4oz)
Sultanas 50g (2oz)
Currants 50g (2oz)
Mixed peel 50g (2oz)
Muscovado sugar 50g (2oz)
Blanched almonds 100g pack, finely chopped
Hazelnuts, Brazil or Macademia nuts 25g (1oz), chopped
Stale white breadcrumbs 75g (3oz)
Mixed spice generous ½ tsp
Lemon ½, grated rind and juice
Eggs 2, beaten
Rum 1 tbsp
Brandy 3 tbsp

1 Butter a 900ml (1½ pint) pudding basin and have a pan with a steamer and tight-fitting lid ready.

2 Put the butter and honey in a small pan and warm through over a low heat until the butter melts. Set aside.

3 Mix the apple with the dried fruits, sugar, nuts, breadcrumbs, spice, lemon rind and juice.

4 Add the butter and honey mixture, eggs, rum and brandy and mix well. Spoon into the bowl and press the mixture down. Cover with a piece of bakewell or greaseproof paper and then foil, both containing a pleat to allow for expansion during steaming. Tie with string.

5 Put the basin in the steamer with boiling water underneath. Cover and steam for 3 hours, topping up with boiling water every so often. Let the pudding cool without the foil and paper.

6 Cover and keep chilled for a few days. Put fresh bakewell and foil on top and steam for 1 hour to reheat the pudding. Turn it out, decorate with a sprig of holly and flame with warmedbrandy if you like. Serve with cream or custard.

Cook’s Tip
This is one of those recipes where you can put in whatever fruit and nuts you have in your cupboard that need using up! One version had a total of 175g (6oz) nuts so you can add more, or use less if you’re not so keen on nuts. The figs really are good in it, but feel free to change the ratios of the other fruits to suit your tastes.

Recipe taken from Around Britain Dairy Cookbook

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