Christmas is a time for indulgence: click here to discover more
Welcome to: Christmas classics...
Christmas Cake A rich dark fruitcake usually fortified with brandy or dark rum, coated with an apricot glaze, marzipan and covered in a white icing. Traditionally eaten at Christmas. Several 
recipes exist for Christmas cake, however I have only come across one that works without fail. The following family recipe is based upon the classic English Be-Ro recipe. To produce take 350g/12oz of plain flour, 225g/8oz of unsalted butter, 225g/8oz of caster sugar, 4 medium hens eggs, 225g/8oz of currants, 225g/8oz of sultanas, 225g/8oz of raisins, 100g/4oz of glace cherries, halved, 100g/4oz of cut mixed peel, 100g/4oz of ground almonds, a teaspoon of mixed spice and a quality brandy. Macerate the currents, sultanas and raisins with the brandy overnight. Preheat an oven to 150° C/300° F gas mark 2. Grease and line a cake tin, use either a 23cm/9inch round or 20½ cm/8inch square tin. Sieve the flour and mixed spice into a bowl. Add the almonds. Beat the eggs together with the milk. Soften the butter. Cube and cream together with the sugar. Slowly stir in the flour and then the egg mixture. When completely mixed, add the dried fruit, cherries and mixed peel. Stir until evenly distributed. Place the mixture into the prepared tin and protect with brown paper. Bake for about 3½ to 4 hours. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Turn onto a wire rack. Pouring a small amount of brandy over the cake whilst warm. Allow to cool thoroughly. Wrap with greaseproof paper and then tinfoil, store in an airtight container. Store for at least 4 weeks before use.
Christmas Pudding A rich dark steamed pudding produced using dried fruits, candied peel, spices, suet and usually fortified with brandy. Traditionally prepared and cooked well in advance, then reheated by steaming and eaten on Christmas Day. A good pudding may be made
more that a year in advance, preserved due to the often high alcohol content. To produce take 100g/4oz self-raising flour, pinch of salt, 2½ ml/½tsp of grated nutmeg, ½ ml/½tsp of mixed spice, 75g/3oz suet, 100g/4oz raisins, 100g/4oz of sultanas, 100g/4oz of currants, 100g/4oz of soft brown sugar, 50g/2oz of mixed peel, 2 medium eggs, ½ a lemon grated and 60ml/4tbsp of brandy. Macerate the dried fruits overnight. Grease a 1.2litre/2 pint pudding basin, placing a small round of greaseproof paper in the bottom of the bowl to help prevent the pudding from sticking. Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Add the eggs and brandy, mixing well. Pour the mixture into the prepared basin, placing a second round of greaseproof paper onto the top of the mixture. Cover with foil and then a cloth. Secured with string. Steam for 8 hours. Allow to cool completely. Keeping the pudding in the basin, and store in a dry place until required. Reheating by steaming for 2 hours. Serve as required.
Panettone A large pot shaped fruit cake, produced using a yeast dough and originating from Milan, Italy. Traditionally eaten at both Christmas and Easter. Baked in a special tubular mould 
to give it its distinctive height and shape. They are usually presented in tall decorated boxes. To produce take 450g of strong white flour, a tsp castor sugar, a tsp of salt, a lemon, 50g of pine nuts, 50g of raisins, 50g of mixed peel, 7g of yeast, an egg, 25g of unsalted butter, 200ml of warm water and 2 eggs and a little butter for a finishing glaze. Pre heat an oven to 190°C. Place all of the ingredients into a bowl, retaining two eggs for the glaze. Mix thoroughly, forming a stiff dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes. Beat the two remaining eggs together with a little melted butter. Brush over the dough. Place the dough into a greased tin. A terracotta flowerpot works well when making panettone, it should be at least 18cm in diameter and 9 cm deep. Cover, and place in a warm place to prove until doubled in size. This should take about 2 hours. Place in the oven an bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Traditionally panettone is hung upside down and allowed to cool. This helps maintain the distinctive lightness of the cake.
Old Fashioned English Mince Pies A Christmas classic eaten throughout the festive season and consisting of a mixture of spiced and finely chopped fruits including apples, raisins and candied peel presented within a sweet, crispy pastry. Traditionally served warmed with a
flavoured cream. To produce this English tradition first make the sweet mince filling. Take a lemon, 100g/3½oz of raisins, 100g/3½oz of sultanas, ½ a Bramley apple peeled and chopped, 100g/3½oz of dried mixed fruit, 75g/2½oz of mixed peel, 100g/3½oz of beef suet, 100g/3½oz of dark brown muscavado sugar , 100g/3½oz of currants, ½ a tsp of ground cinnamon, a ¼ tsp of freshly grated nutmeg, a 1 tsp of mixed spice, a ¼ tsp of ground ginger, 50ml/2fl oz of brandy and 50ml/2fl oz of sherry. Boil the whole lemon for an hour until soft. Allow to cool. Quarter and remove all of the pips. Core and dice the apple. Place the lemon, raisins, sultanas, mixed peel and apple into a processor. Whiz to a paste. Add the suet, muscavado sugar, currants, cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spice, ground ginger, brandy and sherry. Blend with a spoon until the mixture is combined. Allow to rest in a fridge overnight. For the pastry take 450g/1lb of plain flour, a tsp of baking powder, 120g/4oz of unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing, a tbsp of caster sugar, 140ml/5fl oz of fresh orange juice, the zest of two oranges and a medium egg. Grease a muffin tin with butter, you will need a tin with 18 wells. Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt together into a bowl. Cube the butter and add to the mixture, rubbing it in until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the orange zest. Gradually add the orange juice. Blending continuously until the mixture comes together as a dough. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead lightly until smooth. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for an hour. Preheat an oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Cut the chilled pastry in half. Roll out one half of the pastry onto a lightly floured work surface to a ½cm/¼in thickness. Using a 7cm/2½in pastry cutter, cut out 18 discs placing one into each of the muffin tin wells. Spoon a tablespoon of the mincemeat mixture into each of the mince pie cases and brush the rim of each pastry case with a little beaten egg. Roll out the remaining pastry onto a lightly floured work surface to a ½cm/¼in thickness. Using a 5cm/2in pastry cutter, cut out 15-18 discs and place one on top of each mince pie. Press together the edges of the pastry to seal. Use a knife to cut star shaped lids for a more decorative effect. Brush beaten egg over the tops of the mince pies. Make a small steam hole in the top of each pie if using a full lid. Dust with castor sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. Serve warm with whipped cream, brandy butter or vanilla ice cream.
Stollen A German loaf shaped fruitcake coated in melted butter and dusted with icing sugar. The cake is usually made with a combination of candied fruit and dried fruits together with nuts 
and spices. Eaten during the Christmas season when it is traditionally known as ‘Christstollen’. The Dresden stollen, also known as ‘Striezel’, was first mentioned in official documents dating from 1474. Similar cakes can be found across Europe, including the Dutch ‘kefrom’. Modern stollen is usually always produced with a central core of marzipan, although the original German recipe does not include this. To produce an authentic stollen take 3 3/4 cups of plain flour, a cup confectioners' sugar, ½ a cup of lukewarm milk, 3 teaspoons of fresh yeast, 8 tbsp of softened unsalted butter, a tbsp of lard, a large egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt, a teaspoon vanilla extract, a tbsp of dark rum, a pinch of ground cinnamon, the grated peel of 1/2 a lemon, a cup of sliced almonds, a 1/4 cup of candied lemon peel, 1/4 cup of candied orange peel, a 1/4 cup of raisins and for basting 6 tbsp of lukewarm milk, 8 tbsp of unsalted butter and 3/4 of a cup of icing sugar. Sift the flour into a bowl and make a crater in the centre. Into the crater, add 1/4 cup of the confectioners' sugar and 1/4 cup of the milk. Sprinkle the yeast over the milk and dust the yeast with a little flour. Let the yeast develop for 15-20 minutes. Add the butter, lard, egg, salt, remaining sugar, vanilla extract, rum, cinnamon, grated lemon peel, slivered almonds, candied lemon and orange peels, and raisins. Add only enough of the remaining milk to make dough pliable. Knead thoroughly and cover the dough with a damp towel and let it rise overnight. Knead again for 1 minute then shape the dough into a loaf and put it on a large buttered baking sheet. Use your fingertips to push back into the dough any raisins that may have popped up to prevent scorching. Baste the loaf with tablespoons of milk and bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for approximately 50 minutes. Stollen must turn golden brown. Test to make sure it is done with a toothpick. Baste the stollen generously with butter while it is still hot, then sprinkle with powered sugar. Repeat this process in order to attain a nice white surface and to help keep the stollen fresh and moist for several weeks. It's best to store for at least a week before serving.
Shortbread Is a traditional Scottish pastry famous for its crumbly sand-like texture and brittle consistency, this results from the fact that no liquid is used in the recipe. The gluten in the flour particles 
does not create any cohesive structures due to the lack of water, so yielding a crumbly and sandy paste. Shortbread is normally produced by pressing the resulting paste into flat decorative moulds, which are then baked on a tray or non-stick sheet. Traditional Scottish shortbread recipes consist solely of butter, flour and sugar. A typical recipe would consist of 500g of plain flour, 250g of unsalted butter and 125g of sugar. Often a recipe known as a 3:2:1 mix is used, this would be for example 3lb of flour, 2lb of butter and 1lb of sugar. They may vary in the proportion of flour and butter used, some use double the amount of flour to butter by weight, while others will indicate a higher butter quantity so giving a softer texture and more pliable paste. The butter should always be at room temperature and cut into small cubes. Always add the butter to the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Always sieve the flour. Add gradually to the creamed butter and sugar mix, turning lightly. Knead thoroughly. The consistency of the dough is dependent on the amount of humidity in the butter as well as its temperature. If it is too cold or too dry the dough will not hold together for rolling. It could still however be pressed together into a mould. Pastes produced with a higher butter content will need to be chilled before rolling. Some recipes suggest a sprinkle of salt while others stipulate avoiding even salted butter. Salt does far more than simply add flavour when used in foods. As a seasoning, preservative or flavour enhancer it begins to affect cakes, pastries, biscuits and breads from the moment it is added. So what exactly does salt do and why would you include it a shortbread recipe? Firstly even a small amount of salt will slow down the chemical reactions that are happening in the shortbread paste, in yeast dough for example the addition of salt slows fermentation activity to a more manageable rate. Salt makes the paste a little stronger and tighter. It improves the shelf life of the finished shortbread, but its effects depend on ambient conditions. Salt is hydroscopic, which means it absorbs moisture. In humid climates salt will trap moisture from the air, so making a crisp crust soggy and shortening shelf life. In dry climates salt helps trap any moisture in the paste for longer, so inhibiting staling and extending shelf life. Salt also adds flavour. It enhances the natural flavour of other the ingredients including butter and flour. Several verities of salt are available including fine, course, rock salt and sea salt. All types act chemically in the same the same way, with no difference in cooking results. Many variations of the basic shortbread recipe exist. Some include flavourings such as vanilla extract, sour cream almond oil, while others recommend replacing half of the flour with ground rice or semolina. Shortbread should be baked at 350°F/170°C gas mark 6 for 20 minutes 20 until lightly browned. Sprinkle with castor sugar while still warm. Cool on a wire rack and serve as required.
