This Christmas I decided to "pimp up" my gingerbread a bit, after a last minute inspiration. I saw a photo of this cake, literally a day before making the cake and decided it's an absolute must this Christmas. I really like how the cake combines gingerbread and gateau type cake features, it's both presentable and delicious. The cake (4 layers): 150 g honey (liquid) 200 g butter or margarine 500 g plain flour 3 yolks 4 tbsp milk 1 tbs purified soda 100 g sugar 1 tbsp ground ginger 1 tbsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp ground nutmeg 1 tsp ground cardamon 1tsp ground cloves a pinch of ground black pepper Combine the ingredients in a large bowl - as it's really hard to do, you may be best off using dough whisks on a food mixer. Cover the bowl with cling film and put into the fridge for 24 hours. After that time, divide the dough into 4 parts, place on a baking paper-lined baking tray and bake in 180C for about 15 minutes. Leave to cool.   The cream:

Gingerbread houses remind me of fairy tales. :-) I made my first "gingerbread winter village" a couple of years ago, and it's become an integral part of my Christmas preparation by now. You may say it's quite time (an labour!) consuming, but most of all - it's so much fun! OK, maybe apart from  the moment of sitting still and holding the walls and roof to "stick the house" together. :-) Ingredients (enough to make a couple of houses) 2 and 1/4 cup flour 1/4 cup honey 1/2 cup icing sugar 1 egg 5 tbsp soft butter 1 tsp baking soda 1 tbsp cinnamon 1 tbsp ground ginger 1 tsp ground nutmeg 1/2 tsp ground cardamon 3 ground cloves Icing: Egg white Icing sugar In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, soda, and spices. Melt butter on a hob and add honey and stir until they blend, then pour into the bowl with other ingredients and crack in the egg. Knead until the dough is smooth. Cover the bowl with cling film and put it in the fridge for 30

I got in the mood for making these cakes in the morning, and then it all started. Actually, the day started off with an argument, as I actually said I was gonna make 'mince pies' so it gave Sam all the wrong idea... as mince pies they are not! They look deceptively similar, but the filling (both in the original recipe, and my altered version is nothing like mince pies). They are both pretty and tasty, though they may be a bit tricky to make. The main reason to try out these little goodies, was actually my latest kitchen equipment purchase - star cutters. I ordered them online, hoping the delivery would make it before Friday (as I planned baking my last batch of gingerbread cakes). With my luck the courier arrived at my door just when I put the last tray of cakes into the oven. Well, what I could I do? Had to find a recipe for other cakes, and came across these little goodies. Looked nice, and the association with minced pies was immediate, plus the recipe looked simple enou

The first batch of edible season decorations is ready, and I must admit that the temptation to eat them rather than put up, is really strong! After long hours of kneading, cooling, and rolling the brittle gingerbread dough, which was incredibly adamant in falling apart, there was a fair bit of icing and decorating, but it was worth it. So far, the flat is filled with Christmas smell, and I can't wait to put the cakes up! To make gingerbread cakes you need: 2 and 1/4 cup flour 1/4 cup honey 1/2 cup icing sugar 1 egg 5 tbsp soft butter 1 tsp baking soda 1 tbsp cinnamon 1 tbsp ground ginger 1 tsp ground nutmeg 1/2 tsp ground cardamon 3 ground cloves 1 tbsp cocoa powder (if you wish for a darker shade) In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, soda, and spices. Melt butter on a hob and add honey and stir until they blend, then pour into the bowl with other ingredients and crack in the egg. Knead until the dough is smooth. Cover the bowl with cling film and put it in the fr

I got around to making my breakfast butter crescents by accident. I got this sudden craving for croissants when we had no French pastry in the freezer. A quick research and I came up with a recipe that looked promising. The crescents, though totally different from French croissants, but yummy nonetheless! In fact, we've got to like them so much that they've become an indispensable part of out lazy weekend breakkie. Though, knowing me and my faddy nature towards food, I'll switch to something else in a few weeks time. Before that happens, I'll share the crescent recipe, as it really is worth trying! Ingredients: 250 g plain all purpose flour 70 g soft butter 15 g yeast 1/4 cup lukewarm milk 3 tbsp icing sugar 1 yolk 1 egg Combine the yeast with milk, add flour, sugar, yolk and egg. Knead into a dough and leave in a warm place to rise.When it doubles in size, flatten it with a flour dusted rolling pin, on a floured surface. Spread 1/3 of butter on top of the

It's probably last chance to take advantage of the seasonal fruit, so I used my midday break today to make a plum tart. One of the great things about it is that the plums are so fragrant that they fill the house with their wonderful scent while baking, it's better than aromatherapy! For the pastry you need: 3 cups plain, all purpose flour 3 tbsp butter 1 tbsp margarine 3 eggs 1 cup caster sugar 2 tsp baking soda 1 pack vanilla sugar a handful of chopped almonds icing sugar to dust The filling: 1 kilo plums 1-2 handful chopped almonds (optional) 2-3 tbsp caster sugar In a large bowl mix the flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, and baking soda. Crack in the eggs, add butter and knead into smooth pastry. Cover the bowl with cling film and put into the fridge for about 30 minutes. Grease the baking tray and line it with breadcrumbs, so as the cake doesn't stick to the tray while baking. Place the pastry onto a slightly floured surface and with a slightly floured r

I really wish it was possible to make pumpkin dishes year round, but then again, it might be their seasonal nature that makes them all the more special? With the pasta maker at hand, pumpkin-filled ravioli and tortellini have now taken over pumpkin soup and became the new favourite of the season. Pumpkin and sage filling, wrapped into spinach pasta is an absolute hit! You need: 1 portion of green and white pasta (the recipe is in the Pasta Frenzy Continues)  about 1 kilo pumpkin 3 tbs oil 2 tbsp dried sage 1 egg yolk, beaten 25 g grated Parmesan cheese 1 tsp grated nutmeg a handful of fresh sage leaves salt and pepper Preparation: Begin the preparation with the pumpkin. Peel and dice the pumpkin, then place it on the baking tray greased with  3tbsp oil, season and sprinkle dried sage on top. Put the pumpkin into a the oven and bake it for about 40-45 minutes in 180C, until pumpkin is completely soft. Leave to cool, move the pumpkin to a large bowl and squash it with