All posts filed under: Christmas
Popcorn “Cranberry” Garland.
Gift Ideas for the Pedantic Vegan, Just Vegan & Everyone In Between.
Last year I wrote my first Christmas guide for the blog: Gift Ideas for the Home Cook, Foodie & Meat-Head. And while it didn’t get very many page likes, it was one of my most viewed posts. So this year, I decided to write another guide; only this time for vegans: Gift Ideas for the Pedantic Vegan & Everyone In Between. Now, I don’t mean to insult anyone by the title, but I do feel that it is apt for the way some vegans live their lives – I am by no means judging – which can be intimidating for the average person who isn’t fully up-to-date with veganism and the lifestyle. And I know this to be true, as a few months ago I had my sister ring me in distress as she was stumped, as to what to buy a vegan: it was all last minute. I gave my sister many ideas, but in the end she settled on an orchid, from fear of having the gift not being fully appreciated. So …
Spiced Orange Slice Decorations
Did you know that a Christmas tree was traditionally decorated with fruits, nuts, and other edibles? I quite like that idea. I especially love the look and thought of having orange slices hanging from the Christmas tree: either spiked with Cloves or twined with cinnamon sticks: I like how the orange slices look when they’ve been dried, I like the dark, shiny colour they turn from the drying process, and I like the thought of having something natural to look at on my Christmas tree, rather than some garish bauble or tinsel.
Tangy Piccallili.
Bacon Wrapped Roast with Sage & Apple Stuffing
I created quite a few recipes for Christmas last year and I enjoyed every minute of it. When I first started my Instagram page and blog two years ago, I never went out of my way to create recipes to share. I made them because I was either craving the food at the time or wanting to try something different to mix up my diet and if it was good, then I’d post the recipe here. I had a lot of fun last year and I couldn’t wait to get started on writing more recipes this year.
Vegan Pecan Fudge
While I’m not a vegan, I do like to make vegan treats now and again; not only because they are absolutely delicious, but I like to challenge myself too. I have never made fudge before – although I have eaten plenty – but it was always something which I thought I would never be able to make and it’s obviously laden with sugar too. While this fudge isn’t your traditional vanilla flavoured, buttery fudge, it is still delicious and chewy, and like the majority of my recipes the ingredient list is small and the cooking process is easy. The base of this vegan pecan fudge is vegan condensed milk, it is easy to make and even more delicious than the other stuff that is packed with refined sugar. You could even give these to a vegan or a chocolate lover, as a Christmas gift: tied up with pretty ribbon. I will say that these melt quite fast, so keep them refrigerated or store them in the freezer and because the fudge is made with condensed milk, the fudge wont freeze hard. Ingredients …
Mince Pies for Santa
We all know Santa loves a mince pie or two, but we also know that sometimes mince pies contain alcohol and drinking and driving is strictly prohibited – even for the elves – which is why these mince pies are alcohol free. I haven’t had a mince pie all year, so I was anxiously anticipating for the day to arrive when I could make my own and that day just so happened to be Friday – a week away from Christmas day – and they were worth the wait. I used the marmalade which I had left over from my St Clemente tartlets in my own variation of mince meat and I was impressed; I also added some Irish cream flavouring from the Skinny Syrups range too. For the pie cases I used the same recipe that I made for the St Clemente tartlets, but doubled it so I would have enough pastry for the lids too. I would recommend making the mince meat a few days to a week prior to when you plan to make these mince pies as …
Vegetarian Herb Pate
Do you have a vegetarian or vegan visiting you over the Christmas period? Are you are at a loss as to what to serve them? I know it can be stressful to cook at Christmas time – there’s just so much to get done – then throw a vegetarian or vegan into the mix and you have yourself a very stressful little Christmas; as you not only have to be extra vigilant with the ingredients, but you also have to be aware of cross contamination too. Well, look no further my little beauties because I have you all covered with this delicious vegetarian herb pate, which can also be adapted to suit vegans too. It’s so good in fact, it will have your guests singing the famous words in chorus – “Please Sir, can I have some more?”. As always I used Quorn in this pate recipe, as I have a lot of respect for the brand and everything they have tried to accomplish over the years for not only vegetarians, but also people who are trying to lead a healthier life and cut back on fat and meat. …
