Packing away Christmas

Did you watch the Christmas special of 'Great British Bake Off Masterclass'?  I thought it was lovely when Mary Berry was showing the silver bells her children had made when they were small and saying how much she enjoys them each year. Well, having just got around to sorting some photographs I remembered that I had taken some to share with you.

Marlee thought tree decorating was a fun game to play.  That is a guilty expression on her face as she tried to pretend she was being good. Actually she did manage to leave them alone after the initial excitement...

These three ornaments are polystyrene shapes decorated with sequins and pins and I sat making them with my mother many years ago.

 This one I cross-stitched from a free kit that came with a magazine, again a good number of years ago.  My Grandad's name was Noel and it always reminds me of him.

 


I didn't make this one but bought it at a craft fair the first Christmas I was married, 30 years ago. There was a lot of work in it although I am sure I cannot have paid much for it.  Wouldn't it be lovely if the maker knew it still went on my tree each Christmas?  Interestingly I have never seen another like it.  The outside is felt but it feels as though there is card inside.

My favourite hand made ones of all are the ones my children made.  I didn't take pictures of them all.

There is always debate as to whose angel should be on the top of the tree.  The one my younger son made at Sunday School...

or the one my daughter made at home, totally her own work, she just surprised me with it.

 
I wish I had made a note of how old she was at the time, but regretfully didn't.  Both of these angels go as close to the top of the tree as possible.

 My mother knitted nine little Santa hats this year and each had a chocolate underneath, to go on the Christmas dinner table.  My daughter decided that Samba should not miss out on Christmas fun!  He didn't get the chocolate though! 

I also had a new decoration for my tree and have realised that I don't have a photo to show you.  I love it so much that I have kept it out and will make sure I show you very soon.

Packing away all the Christmas things is always sad but looking back at these photos has certainly made me smile.  If we didn't pack them away there would not be the excitement and fun of getting them all out again though!

Still making them...

Hello everyone, I do hope you have all had a happy and peaceful Christmas.

Hmm, well posting shorter blogs has still not happened as often as I would like, but  it does tend to get rather busy around December, and time seems to speed as it gets nearer and nearer to Christmas Day.  Anyway, having just finished baking another 3 dozen mince pies I was reminded that I was going to let you know how the tally is going.

As you know I had opened the last jar of mincemeat so next job was to make some more.  The Mincemeat with Port was very tasty but alas the recipe was proving rather elusive to find so I went back to an old favourite.  This is from Nigella's 'Domestic Godess' book, and has no suet in so you could say that it is healthy!  Slightly healthier anyway!  

More mincemeat meant more baking could be done.  I didn't get around to taking photos of all of them, and actually one batch of mince pies usually looks very much like the next.  However, just before Christmas I did use up a packet of puff pastry in the fridge and thought we would try a variation on eccles cakes.

Circles stamped out and a spoonful of mincemeat in the middle.

Gather the edges in, a little at a time, overlapping as you go.

The very last turn in pulled across the rest of the pleats, and then turned over and a cross cut into the top.  I normally would just score three slices across the top of eccles cakes having first rolled them again, but was a little concerned that the mincemeat was a little runnier and did not fancy scrubbing baking trays clean.

 I forgot to photograph these when cooked - I did tell you that they don't last long in my house!  However, I did also use up half a packet of filo pastry, cut into small squares, each layer brushed with melted butter and 4 layers put together so they form a star shape then pushed into a tartlet tin before filling with mincemeat. 

Now, for the tally.  We went from 4 and a half dozen, to 6 and a half dozen, then the puff pastry and filo pies took us up to 10 dozen.  More pastry was made last Thursday, although I only baked 2 dozen that day, so the tally went to 12 dozen, and I have just used the rest of the pastry so the count is now 15 dozen!  170 mince pies.  

Although I haven't actually had any assistants helping with mince pie making, my son did make gingerbread men, ladies and trees.  He used the Baker Brothers gingerbread recipe from their television special and it is delicious.  He did halve the quantities though as a kilo and a half of flour did sound rather an excessive amount.  My daughter was extremely pleased about this as she sat and iced them until her hand was aching!  She doesn't like her photo being taken but I managed to sneak one!  They looked very professional when she had finished and quite a number have been given as presents.

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas...

We are starting to see more and more decorations in the streets, and the odd little bits are creeping into the house.  Two very cute snowmen candle holders came home with me today from the German Christmas Market in Birmingham.  I didn't think to take a picture earlier but will definitely do so soon.  It was the first time we had been to this Market and I would highly recommend it, so reminiscent of a fantastic trip to the one in Dortmund a few years ago.  We found some fun Christmas presents, listened to Street musicians, drank gluwein, ate frankfurters, and also potato cakes with apple sauce (very unusual).  Then hot chocolate with whipped cream before catching the train home.  A fun day out.

Before we went this morning I did manage to bake some more mince pies, although I did use a packet of pastry rather than making my own.  There is a definite preference for home made pastry though as I still have mince pies left this evening! The count is now 4 and a half dozen.

I had to open the last jar of the 2011 Mincemeat today so will need to make some more fairly soon.  This one was very tasty but I am not sure where I got the recipe from.

Hubby was busy too before we went out and just look at this wonderful sour dough loaf.  He went on a course a few months back and now we have a weekly treat.  Needless to say it doesn't last long in this house!

 

Time Flies... and the Tale of Mince Pies

Well the phrase says that, 'time flies when you are having fun'.   This year, for me, time seems to fly by for too many reasons and since the new academic year started back in September time seems to have speeded up even more!  So having been very remiss at posting on the blog as whenever I think about it there is just so much to include, that procrastination sets in.  It is often hard to start if you think there is not enough time to complete something, and then you don't actually start at all.  So, having dilly dallyed far too long, short posts must be the answer in the meantime.

The start of Advent heralds the start of the mince pies in our house and here is the very first tray out of the oven yesterday.  Two and a half dozen mince pies came out the oven but my family don't eat just one at a time but rather a lot.  Any time of day is mince pie time, especially for my husband and sons, one of whom was eating them for breakfast today!  Actually it was probably only because he wasn't here yesterday when I baked that there were any left this morning!

For the last few years I have kept a tally on the kitchen blackboard of mince pies made and the record was 20 dozen (240 mince pies made and eaten).  I only make them for the family and not to stock the local coffee shop, so it is a rather alarming amount and today came a suggestion that I really don't make enough!

I will let you know how the baking goes.  Speaking of which I still haven't made the Christmas cake yet as I cannot decide which recipe to use!

Harry Pottering Cake Games

My daughter is Harry Potter mad, along with several of her friends, and for a recent 2 day Harry Potterathon ( watching the films non stop) I became inspired the other day to join in with the fun.

First I made an ordinary fairy cake mix, split it into 6 bowls and added different flavours.  Any guesses what they might be?

Baked as normal it becomes even harder to see what they might be.

Does a closer peek help?

Next I made icing in six different bowls and added different flavours to each.

Hard to tell the difference isn't it, so here's a little help.

Now to add some colouring and then ice some little cakes.

A sprinkle of glitter and there you have the finished article.

 

Well the cake and icings are different flavours and the colour of the icing does not match the flavour at all, so perhaps a little message is required.

Oh what fun!  Will they guess?  Perhaps I should give them the answers so a little message on an envelope.

Open the envelope and what is inside?  Another envelope!

 

 

Oh, I am a bit of a tease!  Inside the second envelope I did give them the answers.

I wonder if you would have guessed?  The taste of some was quite easy, such as mint and lemon.  Cherry and ginger were not too tricky, but lavender cake and rose icing was likened to bubble bath!  Not sure that I have ever tasted bubble bath!  Not sure that I wish to either. 

I grew up with the delights of Enid Blyton and the Famous Five but although all my children enjoyed those books Harry Potter had a firm place in their childhood.  I well remember a 6 hour journey back from Cornwall in the car with a 4 year old, 7 year old and 9 year old, all totally enthralled by Harry Potter as an audio book.  We only stopped once the whole journey and that was very briefly as they were missing the story and could not wait to get back in the car!

I have to say that making the cakes did take up rather more time than a normal batch of fairy cakes and if I do this again I would probably start the day before, but as it is the summer holidays it was rather fun to 'play' with the cake making.

The easy way to go on holiday!

Now the weather has been truly un-summer like here in jolly old England.  It rained for the Queens Diamond Jubilee celebrations, cakes made by my daughter and her friend were eaten inside watching festivities, rather than at the local big Picnic in the park event.

It poured with rain on our wedding anniversary (but didn't dampen our happiness)!

It poured with rain on Monday when the Olympic torch came to town.  We were quite soggy by the time we got home.

Now I still have to arrange our summer holiday, and shall we go abroad or stay home?  Decisions are not yet made but if we do want to fly perhaps British Airways new service would be ideal.  Have you seen the advert for it yet?  Do have a look, and remember to put in your postcode or address.  Door to door service especially for you!

http://taxi.ba.com/

Actually a neighbour told me about the BA advert, Olympic themed and courtesy of CGI and Google Maps, you see a B777 taxiing up your own road.  I am not sure whether it only works in the U.K. and I am sure some of you will let me know, but it is rather fun.  The neighbour who told me has lived in the road for 58 years and said she also put in the address she lived at as a child and what a delight it was to see that house just as she remembered it.

It's getting close!

The olympic torch was in town today, there were huge crowds lining the route so although I got a few photographs there are a lot of heads in them!  It was a great atmosphere, lots of cheering and waving, and even police motorbike riders were waving back. It reminded me of the carnival.

Start of the vehicles leading the way.

The side of the Samsung lorry was like a giant television screen, great fun!

These specialised lorries must have cost rather a lot

The flame is here - just about visible over the top of the flag!

That's it! Another 2 seconds and it had gone on its way but I am glad we went to see it.