Christmas
On the twelfth day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me…..Brandy Snap Baskets
The last in the 12 Days of Baking Christmas from The Pink Whisk.
On the eleventh day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me……Christmas Bakewells
Instead of the usual jam try these Christmas style with Cranberry and Port mincemeat!
Makes 18 small Bakewell Tarts
Ingredients:
Pastry
225g plain flour
25g caster sugar
100g butter
1 egg yolk
35ml cold water
1/2 jar of mincemeat
100g butter, melted
2 eggs
100g semolina
100g ground almonds
a few drops of almond essence
100g caster sugar
flaked almonds or icing to top
Start off by making the biscuity pastry base, because its so rich and buttery you can get away with making it in the food processor.
On the ninth day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me…. Mince Pies
Mince pies The Pink Whisk way – with zesty pastry, mince pies were meant to be individual, sticky, oozy, bursting with mincemeat and a good dusting of icing sugar to hide the imperfections!
My mince pies are like my scones, very definitely homemade – I have never striven for looks of perfection with these beauties – uneven tops and sticky bits of mincemeat that ooze over the edge are everything I like in a mince pie – if you’re after neat and precision perfection you won’t find it here!
On the eighth day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me……Stollen
Another traditional Christmas baking treat – candied peel and almond paste- mmmmmmmm!
Ingredients:
450g strong plain flour
15g dried yeast
40g caster sugar
zest of one lemon
200ml milk, lukewarm
1 egg large, beaten
115g melted butter
115g sultanas
55g currants
70g mixed candied peel
90g blanched almonds, chopped
250g marzipan
50g butter melted to brush on before baking
icing sugar for sifting onto finished loaves
Makes 2 x small loaves.
On the seventh day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me…..Ultimate Sausage Rolls
There is nothing that tastes better than home made sausage rolls, I have to admit that it’s been a Christmas tradition since I was little and was in fact my Dad who taught me to make them, these really are delicious.
On the sixth day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me…. Chocolate Coconut Snowballs
Chocolate and coconut were made to go together, add in some marshmallow and it’s heaven in a snowball!
Ingredients:-
Cakes
200ml milk
2 tsp malt vinegar
75g dessicated coconut
140g butter, softened
200g caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
55g self raising flour
165g plain flour
3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
60g cocoa powder
Marshmallow
225g caster sugar
85ml water
1 x 7g sachet of gelatine
50ml water
Topping
20g dessicated coconut
50g plain chocolate to drizzle
Preheat the oven to 160c Fan/180c/ Gas Mark 4.
On the fifth day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me….Party Breadsticks
I suppose you’re thinking breadsticks is a really random type of recipe to include in a twelve days of Christmas, believe me if you’re having a party these will amaze people….you made them yourself…..? really…? Watch them disappear at the speed of lightening!
On the fourth day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me………ideas for decorating your Christmas Cake!
I feel like we’ve been working on our Christmas cakes for such a long time lovingly stirring boozy fruit, baking our precious cakes and feeding them with brandy it’s really exciting to be at the final stage – decorating!
For an 8″ cake you will need:
1 x 10″ cake board
500g marzipan
1kg ready to roll icing
2 tbsp apricot jam or marmalade
Unwrap your cake from the paper and foil you’ve been storing it in and set it on your worksurface.
On the third day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me……Christmas Monkey Bread
It’s Monkey Bread time….but this time with a Christmas twist – I couldn’t resist. This is my entry into the Merchant Gourmet Christmas Chestnut Challenge! (If you don’t want the Christmas twist the original version is here.)
Ingredients:
For the dough
500g Strong White Flour
2 tsp Mixed Spice
1 1/2 tsp Salt
55g Butter
2 Eggs beaten
2 tbsp Honey
15g Dried Yeast (3 tsp)
175ml Milk
For the sugar coat
150g Caster Sugar
2 tsp Mixed Spice
For the Sauce
200g Butter
100g Dark Brown Sugar
Plus 1 x regular sized jar of ready made mincemeat
1 x 100g pack of Merchant Gourmet Whole Chestnuts you can find stockists through their website – Merchant Gourmet but most major supermarkets sell them at this time of year.
On the second day of Christmas The Pink Whisk sent to me….Snowman Cookie Lollies
So cute, last year I sent these to all the children in the family instead of a christmas card. This batch are off to the School Fair to raise some money for the PTA.
Make up the cookie dough as per the instructions here Sugar Cookies and roll out slightly thicker this time to about 7mm thick and chill the sheets of dough.
