Among all the other treats that we all love at Christmas, there’s nothing like a little bit of home baking to tie everything together. Now that we’re all staying at home more this Christmas more than ever, we could even have a little more time on our hands to try baking something new for Christmas.
Whether you’re planning on surprising your aunt with a gorgeous Christmas cake, or whipping up some cupcakes for the kids, there’s something here that everyone will enjoy.
Christmas Pudding – Catherine Leyden
Ingredients:
- 75g/3oz Odlums Self Raising Flour
- 175g/6oz Shamrock Dark Muscavado Sugar
- 175g/6oz Butter
- 3 Eggs
- ½ teaspoon Goodall’s Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Goodall’s Nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon Goodall’s Mixed Spice
- Pinch of Salt
- 225g/8oz Shamrock Raisins
- 225g/8oz Shamrock Sultanas
- 125g/4oz Shamrock Mixed Peel
- 100g tub Shamrock Cherries
- 100g packet Shamrock Ground Almonds
- 85g/3oz Breadcrumbs
- 300ml/½ pint Stout
Click here for the method.
Christmas Cake – Catherine Leyden
Ingredients:
- 225g/8oz Odlums Cream Plain Flour
- 175g/6oz Butter or Margarine (at room temperature)
- 175g/6oz Shamrock Muscavado Brown Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Goodall’s Mixed Spice
- ½ teaspoon Goodall’s Nutmeg
- 4 large Eggs
- 350g packet Shamrock Luxury Fruit Mix
- 350g packet Shamrock Fruit Mix
- 100g packet Shamrock Chopped Almonds
- 100g packet Shamrock Ground Almonds
- Rind of 1 Lemon
- Rind of 1 Orange
- 2 tablespoons Whiskey
Click here for the method.
Butterscotch Pudding – Donal Skehan
Ingredients:
For the salted caramel sauce:
- 50g butter
- 75g soft dark brown sugar
- 1 generous tbsp golden syrup
- 75ml double cream
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of sea salt
For the pudding:
- 2 tbsp soft unsalted butter
- 75g dark brown sugar
- 120ml cream
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- Pinch of salt
- 190ml milk
- 2 medium free-range egg yolks
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 125g crème fraiche
Click here for the method.
Cinnamon Rock Buns – Clodagh McKenna
Ingredients:
- 220g/1 cup plain/all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp of baking powder
- 110g/¼Ib butter, cubed and chilled
- 110g/½ cup light brown sugar
- 80g/½ cup of any of these dried fruits – sultanas, raisins, cranberries, dates, figs, orange peel
- ½ tsp of ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp of ground cinnamon
- 1 egg
- A little milk
- A sprinkle of brown sugar for the topping
Click here for the method.
Vegan Banoffee Pie – The Happy Pear
Ingredients:
For the base:
- 100 g almonds
- 300 g cashew nuts/walnuts
- 200 g pitted dates
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 tbsp coconut oil
For the toffee layer:
- 10 tbsp coconut oil
- 300 g pitted dates
- 100 g tahini can be replaced with almond butter/cashew butter/peanut butter
- 10 tbsp water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- a pinch of salt add more if you like
For the coconut cream:
- 2 x 400 ml tins of full-fat coconut milk refrigerated overnight
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
For the topping:
- 3 ripe bananas
- 3 squares of good quality dark chocolate
Click here for the method.
Christmas Tart – Catherine Fulvio
Ingredients:
For the fruit mince:
- 3 plums, pitted and finely diced
- 100g butter
- 90g soft dark brown sugar
- 100g raisins
- 100g sultanas
- 4 tbsp dried cranberries
- 1 orange, zest only
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- A generous grating of nutmeg
- 3 tbsp sherry
- 50ml orange juice
For the pastry:
- 350g plain flour, sifted
- 180g chilled butter, diced
- 2 tbsp ground almonds
- 3 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 egg yolk, beaten
- 3 to 4 tbsp cold water
- Egg wash, to glaze
- Icing sugar, to dust
Click here for the method.