Christmas Cookies

I just used a standard shortbread recipe as I love shortbread. I got some lovely cookie cutters in Kitchen Compliments, green food colouring for the icing, smarties and silver food spray and the rest is history! Little goody bags for the family members, neighbours and my good pal Joe who gets tipped with baking when he does my hair.

Walnut and Sultana Cinnamon Rolls

I have made these as a treat for Christmas Eve tomorrow when I go home. I will see if they go down well at home!

Milk Bread

This is a recipe for Milk Bread, something I had not heard of before but my parents were raving about a local cafe that made their own and I had to taste. It was light and fluffy and delicious so the above was a recipe I found from Dan Lepard in the Guardian food section. It's coming home as a Christmas Eve gift to my parents so I dont know if it tastes any good yet! It was my first bread, my first time using yeast and my first time kneading so fingers crossed!

Festive Chocolate Cake & ChocChip Xmas Trees

 My dear colleague Brenda was leaving work so I made my 'best chocolate cake ever' recipe but added some snow and a customised name ( melted choc, handle of a teaspoon and greaseproof paper). In hindsight as the letters actually worked I think in future I would just melt white chocolate to make the letters and skip the snow!.

 I couldnt leave out some chocolate chip shortbread Christmas Trees!

Best Chocolate Cake

You know when a cake just doesnt turn out as big and plump as you'd like it too. Well not only is this cake the best fudgy chocolate cake I have made,  but its still quite light ( I said quite light). My husband loves it and he has a very selective sweet tooth. I highly recommned people try this. It's from the recipe section of the guardian online and it's called ' the best ever chocolate cake'. Try it!

Baileys Cheesecake

This is a recipe from the Odlums website and is very creamy and tasty. I love cheesecakes of any sort so am easily please. I messed up whilst dusting cocoa over a doyley in the first picture and I then changed the look and either way the presentation wasnt as I had hoped! There are little shavings of toblerone throughout and it's very creamy but for fear of not having enough baileys in it I nearly doubled the quantity and it was that little bit too much...not too much of a complaint! One thing I would change about the recipe is the base. Its made up of chocolate digestives and butter. However when that sets the chocolate in the biscuits turns the base rock hard and I prefer a little crumble and less of a dislocating your shoulder feeling. Tasty all the same but definately not the best recipe out there.