Christmas Pudding

Rum & Raisin Trifle

Place the raisins, sultanas, currants, mixed peel, almonds and dates in a bowl and pour over 3/4 cup rum.  Cover and allow to macerate for at least 8 hours or overnight. Keep additional raisins seperate and add 1/4 cup rum these will be used for garnishing the trifle.

Pre heat the oven to 140 degrees C.  

Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and creamy.  Gradually add the eggs and beat well.  

Place the butter mixture, soaked fruit mixture, flour bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon and allspice in a large bowl and stir to combine.  

Line a 20cm square cake tin with two layers of non-stick baking paper.

Spoon in the mixture and bake for 2 hours or until cooked when tested with a skewer.  

Cool in the tin.  Once the cake has cooled remove from tin and freeze to semi-firm

Cut the fruit cake into 3cm pieces and decoratively line the base of trifle bowl & pour over the extra rum

Layer custard over fruit cake and repeat cake & custard layers if desired.

Whip caster sugar & thickened cream until stiff and add to trifle

Garnish with rum soaked raisins, and crushed ginger snaps

To make spun sugar, combine sugar with the water in small heavy-based saucepan. Stir over heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves; bring to the boil.

Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, without stirring, until mixture is golden brown. Remove from heat; stand until bubbles subside. To make spun sugar, drizzle toffee between 2 wooden spoons over baking paper-lined oven tray.

Shape & stand at room temperature until set.

Mini Fruit Tarts

Christmas Pudding

Greese 2 small or 1 large basin.

Mix all the dry ingredients together. Fill the mixture into the basins, or if preferred a well seasoned pudding cloth. Place 2 thicknesses of foil over the basins and tie securly.

Boil steadily for 6 hours for the lrge pudding and 4 hours for the small. On the day pudding is to be served, boil for 1 hour.

Apple Pie with Raisins

Pre-heat oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced).

1.  Peel and core apples, cutting into eighths. Tossing in a saucepan with the lemon juice as they are prepared.

2. Add the raisins, sugar, butter and cinnamon stick to the apples. Simmer, stirring often for 10 minutes until sugar has dissolved and apples are just tender. Set aside to cool.

3. Press one of the pastry sheets into a lightly oiled round 22 x 5cm pie dish. Trimming edges where required. Brush edges with egg wash. Sprinkle the base with almond meal. Cut the second pastry sheet into 3cm wide strips.

4.  Spoon cooled apple mixture into pie dish, discarding any excess liquid. Lay strips of pastry over the top of the apple mixture, to form a lattice pattern. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with almonds and the additional sugar. Bake for 35 minutes until pastry is golden. Serve warm with cream.

Chocolate Bark

Line a 25cm x 35cm with baking paper. Place chocolate into a medium heat proof bowl; stir over a medium saucepan of simmering water until smooth (don’t let water touch base of bowl). Stir in puffed rice and coconut.

Working quickly, spread chocolate mixture onto tray as thinly as possible; sprinkle with dried fruits, nuts, remaining coconut & rice puffs.

Refrigerate until set. Break bark into pieces to serve.

Hot Cross Bun Loaf

Place flour, yeast, sugar, allspice, cinnamon and salt in mixing bowl and briefly mix until combined. 

Add in melted butter, warm milk, egg, sultanas and currants. 

Mix with dough hook on medium speed for 5-7 minutes until a dough ball is formed and is coming away from the sides of the bowl. 

Leave the dough covered with clingfilm in a warm place for approximately 1 hour or until doubles in size. 

Knock the air out of the dough and then shape it into a loaf. 

Place dough into a greased dough tin approximately 24cm x 13cm x 6.5 cm in size. 

Cover dough with cling film again and let rise for approximately 40 minutes or until it has risen to about 70% of its original size. 

Pre heat oven to 180 degrees. 

Cross Method 

Mix flour and water together until a thickish paste forms. Using a ziplock bag with the corner cut off or a piping bag, pipe crosses down the center of the loaf, and then across the other way three or four times. 

Bake in the oven for 35 minutes, or until it sounds hollow when you tap it. 

Let cool on a baking rack for 15-20 minutes.  

Drizzle Method 

Mix icing sugar and lemon juice together and drizzle over loaf whilst still slightly warm.