Countdown to Christmas....
One week to go until Christmas Day and I'm slowly crossing things off the to do list, mainly baking related.
When the weather is dull, grey and wet which seems to have been the case for weeks now, my preferred place is in the kitchen.
And so consequently, there has been much stirring, chopping and mixing.
First up, the Christmas Cake, which is tucked away in a tin awaiting its decoration.
I'm not sure whether to go for the classic white fondant icing ( but, oh so much sugar) or a more rustic look with nuts and raisins. What do you think?
Then there is my most favourite thing ever - homemade mincemeat. So simple to make, but SO delicious.
Every year I have to resist the temptation to eat huge spoonfuls straight from the jar!
But, the mince pies are now made and safely stored in the freezer until the big day.
Except for one or two which had to be sampled for quality control!
And if you are looking for a book which perfectly captures the essence of Christmas with food related stories and recipes, may I recommend Nigel Slater's "Christmas Chronicles' - a lovely read at this time of year.
Hoping your countdown to the festivities is going well.
Speak soon
Annie
x
Oh, I could just help myself to one of those mince pies. Who am I kidding, I'd help myself to all three! I'm also dipping into Nigel's book (can also recommend Jeanette Winterson's Christmas Days) and I'm in a similar quandary regarding cake toppings (though it's likely to be Royal icing for the big cake and fondant for the smaller vegan one). The 25th is coming all too quickly!
ReplyDeleteThat book has been on my list for a while, I shall look out for a copy. I agree about fondant icing, it's a bit of a shocker. The middle boy decorated a cake with it at school, and I'm surreptitiously removing some of it when I serve it! Love your little mince pie tin, we used to have something like that when I was little, why is it vintage things are always prettier? CJ xx
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