Tag Archives: Christmas

Christstollen made with Spelt flour

‘Tis the season to be merry… and make Stollen. I can’t imagine Christmas without a good Stollen, spread with a little butter and maybe an extra dusting of confectioners sugar.

Nothing beats a homemade StolIen and it looks so beautiful on the breakfast table. I have filled this Spelt Stollen with a pistachio paste rather than a more traditional almond paste. The paste comes together in minutes but you can skip it, use storebought almond paste or leave out all together. Essentially, pistachio paste is pistachios, caster sugar and egg mixed together in a food processor until a paste forms. It couldn’t be easier and it is so outrageously delicious that I highly recommend that you try it at least once.

The dried fruit in the recipe can be adjusted to your liking and soaked in either brandy, whiskey or tea. I have opted for the Earl Grey tea in this recipe. I also haven’t added a lot of dried fruit since I think it gets too heavy, so this is not one of those overly fruit studded loafs.

Once the paste is made and the fruit has soaked it comes together fairly easily. It is an enriched dough that can be made in a stand mixer.

The Christstollen can be stored for upto a month, very well wrapped in cling film and then wrapped in foil or placed in a large ziplock bag. Keep in a cool place but not the fridge.

INGREDIENTS;

Ingredients Pistachio paste:
100 gr. / 3.5 oz. pistachios shelled
100 gr. / 3.5 oz. caster sugar
1/2 large egg

Ingredients Christstollen:
1 cup of freshly brewed Earl Grey tea or booze if you prefer.
300 gr. / 10.5 oz. Sultanas
100 gr. / 3.5 oz. Mixed peel

450 gr / 1 lb. Spelt flour
1 sachet instant yeast, 7 gr./ 1/4 oz.
60 gr. / 1/4 C. Sugar
7 gr. / 1 tsp. table salt
7 gr. / 1 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Cardamom
1/8 tsp. Nutmeg ( a pinch)
120 ml. / 1/2 C. Hot water (from tap)
120 ml. / 1/2 C. Milk
45 gr. / 3 tbsp. Soft butter
1 large egg, room temperature
100 gr. / 3.5 oz. Sugared Bigarreau (red and green cherries), chopped
35 gr. / 1/4 C. Almonds toasted, chopped
A little extra soft butter for brushing over the loaf.
Confectioners sugar for dusting.

Instructions:
Step 1.
Soak the dried fruit of your choice (sultanas and peel in this recipe), in the hot tea or boize, and leave to soak at least two hours but preferably overnight.

Step 2.
Make the Pistachio paste by placing the nuts and sugar in a food processor and pulsing until very fine. Add the half of an egg and pulse again until the paste holds together.
Scrape the paste on to a sheet of cling film and form into a ball. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use. You can also make the paste the night before.

Step 3.
Mix the hot water with the milk from the fridge into a jug, it needs to be hand warm.
To a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the flour, yeast, sugar, salt and spices. Turn the mixer on to a low setting, add the milk mixture, butter and the egg.
Mix for 7 minutes until you have a smooth dough.
Drain the dried fruit and pat dry on a clean kitchen towel. Add these to the dough together with the chopped almonds and bigarreau.
Mix gently until combined well.
Cover the bowl with a clean slightly damp kitchen towel or cling film and leave to rise until double in bulk. About one to one and a half hours.

Step 4.
Pre heat oven 170 C. / 340 F.
Once double in bulk. Punch down the dough and place on a floured surface.
Shape into rectangle about 20 x 30 cm./ 8″ x 11.5″.
Take the pistachio paste from the fridge and roll into sausage, place on the dough towards one side.

Roll the side with the past over to close, then fold over the other side on top as if it were an envelope.
Make sure to seal and pinch closed the ends of the loaf so that the paste does not come out. If this is not sealed in, it will ooze out during baking. I always try to push in any visible fruit into the dough so that this doesn’t burn while baking.
Leave to rise again for 30 -40 minutes.
Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 45 – 50. the.
Instert wooden skewer to test if it comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a rack to cool.
Brush with melted or very soft butter and dust with confectioners sugar. Omit this last step if you ate going to store the Christstollen.

If you want to keep the loaf for a later date… Once cooked completely, wrap in two layers of cling film and place in tin or ziplock bag. The Christstollen will keep for upto a month. You can also make double the recipe and pop one in the freezer for Easter.

Make ahead Cinnamon rolls

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These are the quickest cinnamon rolls to make, perfect for any celebration or occasion.

For the dough, you can place all the ingredients in the mixer and knead the dough without waiting to activate the yeast (when using the fast acting kind). So they come together fairly quickly.

Once filled and sliced, you can leave them out for a second rise and bake straight away or you can cover the cinnamon rolls tightly with cling film and leave them to rise overnight in the fridge. This way you can bake the rolls fresh on Christmas morning. You can also freeze them at this point. They keep in the freezer for at least a month.

From frozen you take them out the night before and defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
Before baking take the cinnamon rolls out of the refrigerator at least half an hour before baking.

INGREDIENTS;

Dough:

150 ml. / 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. Milk, handwarm
7 gr. / 2 tsp. Instant yeast
30 gr./ 2 tbsp. sugar
1 Large egg, room temperature
30 grs. / 2 tbsp. soft butter
450 grs. / 1 lbs. All purpose flour
2.5 grs. / 1/2 tsp. table salt

Filling:

60 grs./ 1/4 cup soft butter
60 grs. / 1 /4 cup brown sugar
15 grs. / 1 tbsp. Cinnamon

Frosting:

225 grs. / 1 C. cream cheese, room temperature
60 grs. / 1.4 C. Soft butter
100 grs. / 1/2 – ¾ C. Confectioners sugar
½ tsp. vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS;

1). Place all the ingredients for the dough in your stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment, turn on the mixer to medium and knead for. 7 minutes.
2). Cover the dough with plastic wrap or damp tea towel and let rise for an hour and a half or until double in bulk.
3).Rol dough out to a rectangle of 40 cm x 30 cm. / 16″ × 12″ approximately (Horizontally from your perspective)
4).Spread the soft butter over the entire rectangle, then sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.
5). Rol up as tight (and best) as you can. Slice with a sharp knife into 8 and place in buttered baking dish. Cover again with plastic wrap.
6).Leave to rise for 30 to 45 minutes until nice and big. Meanwhile pre heat the oven to 180C/350
7). Bake for about 25 minutes. Tent with aluminum foil if it gets a little dark. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
8). Mix the frosting ingredients together and spread over the cinnamon rolls. Serve straight away.

Christmas Granola

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Perfect for Christmas morning!

Do you want to make your house smell like Christmas? Make some of this granola, works like a charm. You will instantly be in the Christmas spirit!

Our homemade Christmas granola is packed with holiday flavor, big clusters of chewy crunchy morsels with cinnamon, nuts, cranberries and chocolate.

It is also a festive, edible gift when wrapped in a holiday bag and tied with a ribbon. You can also attach a hand written label with the recipe on it.

Prep time : 10 min.

Cooking time : 40 min.

Makes : 7 cups approx.

INGREDIENTS:

5 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup Pecans, roughly chopped
1/2 cup Pistachios
1/3 cup Maple syrup
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried Cranberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips, (or dark)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 320° F/ 160° C . Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the oats, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Add the oil, the sugar and maple syrup and stir until thoroughly combined. Make sure all of the oats are moistened.
Spread onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and add the nuts and stir to combine. Return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Allow granola to cool completely in order to get the crunchy clusters. Now add the dried Cranberries and Chocolate chips. Enjoy with milk or yoghurt or by the handful as a snack.
Store in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Tiramisu Cream Puff Christmas Tree

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Ready to impress? A dramatic tower of cream puffs filled with Tiramisu cream, held together with melted chocolate. Then finally dusted with lots of confectioners sugar.

It is not as difficult as it looks, but it does require a few steps. I like to make the cream puffs the day before assembling to divide the work. You can also make the filling the day before, whatever works for you best.

Leftover cream puffs can be frozen for up to two months.

A stunning dessert for any special occasion!

INGREDIENTS:

Cream Puffs:

1/2 cup milk
1-1/3 cups water
1 cup butter, cubed
1/2 tsp. salt
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs, room temperature

FILLING:

1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1-2 tsp instant coffee granules
2 tsp instant gelatine powder
1 recipe pastry cream, home made or store bought (about 2 cups)

GLAZE:

1/3 cup butter, cubed
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tsp. instant coffee granules
3 to 6 tablespoons hot water
Additional confectioners’ sugar, optional

DIRECTIONS:

In a large saucepan, bring water, milk and butter to a boil. Add flour and salt all at once and stir until a smooth ball forms. Remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes to cool a little. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until mixture is smooth and shiny. Place mixture in a piping bag fitted with a large nozzle and pipe puffs onto baking sheet, about the size of a ping pong ball. You can press the tip of the puffs down with a wet finger to make them nice and round. Bake at 200C / 400F for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks. Cut a small slit in the side of each puff to allow steam to escape. Cool puffs.
For filling, Prepare creme patisserie, see below if making home made.

In a large bowl, beat cream until soft peaks form add sugar, coffee and intant gelatine powder beat until stiff. Fold in creme patisserie. Place filling in piping bag fitted with a pointed tip and pipe about 1 tablespoon into each puff.

For glaze, in a small saucepan, combine butter and chocolate. Cook and stir over low heat until melted. Remove from the heat. Using a whisk, stir in the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and coffee granules and enough water to make desired consistency for dipping. Stir until smooth and no lumps appear.

To assemble tree: Dip the bottoms of the puffs into glaze to start building your tree. Start with four puffs in the middle and then form a circle around them That’s your first layer, now continue for the second layer by dipping puffs in chocolate and placing them on the first circle. Continue all the way up until you are at the top. Drizzle remaining glaze over the tree, dust with confectioners sugar just before serving.

Enjoy!

Creme Pattiserie:

4 egg yolks
1/4 cup caster sugar
3 tbsp plain flour
2 tsp cornflour
1 1/4 cup milk

Method:

Beat the egg yolks and sugar for a few minutes until pale and slightly thickened.
Whisk in the flours.
Heat the milk in a saucepan until stating to boil.
Whisk the milk into the egg mix.
Put the whole lot back into the pan, stirring all the time until thick and boiling.
Take the pan off the heat – cover with cling-film to prevent a skin from forming.