Bringing Christmas

Food is such an important part of what makes christmas special in my family.  Sitting round a table with friends and family enjoying prawn cocktail, turkey, pigs in blankets and invariably overcooked sprouts. My sister used to say that I used to bring Christmas with me when I arrived home on Christmas Eve.  That was because I usually arrive with the Christmas Cake, Christmas Pudding, Mince Pies and (her favourite) Delia's Chocolate Log.  This year was no different, so even though my Uncle was cooking the main event we filled the car with ‘Christmas’ as we drove down to Kent.

This year's cake dispensed with the normal marzipan and royal icing.  The glazed fruit topping was quite effective and healthier than the 'normal' - although Mr Vitty missed his sugar rush

Chocolate log

Stollen for my Mum

Changing Christmas food traditions at christmas can be difficult -so changing the chocolate log recipe from Delia’s to Will Torrent’s from his Chocolate at Home Book was quite a risk.  I chose this recipe because it included a french meringue buttercream which I wanted to try and make.  It involves making a french meringue and then enriching it with butter and flavourings. It was quite straight forward and Mr Vitty said the buttercream tasted like Sara Lee Chocolate Gateaux - which I guess is a compliment ?!

Chocolate Cake Base

Meringue Butter Cream

Probably the strangest thing I've done with a cake - but it was subsequenly easy to roll

Ready for covering

As well as the chocolate log I made the Christmas Cake, Mince Pies and Christmas pudding.  I have made mincemeat in the past but generally find that enhancing the shop bought stuff serves just as well.  I therefore added some hazelnuts, flaked almonds, fresh orange juice and zest and a good slug of brandy to some quite basic mincemeat and made them up into mince pies with a mishmash of puff and shortcrust pastry and crème amande that I found lurking in the freezer.  The crème amande ones went down particularly well with my father-in-law.

The crème amande was left over from what has become a more recent christmas tradition - a gift of stollen for my Mum and work colleagues. The recipe I use is from Richard Bertinet's book Crust. It's less sweet than much of the shop bought stollen, freezes well and tastes really good.

Enriched Bread Dough

Fruit and nuts ready to be incorporated into the dough

Dough, creme amande and marzipan for the filling

Proved and ready for the oven

Baked and ready for eating

Christmas baking over for another year it's now just eating up the left overs and planning the New Year's diet and fitness kick.