Christmas baking started.

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autumnwinds, Nov 30, 10:26am
Crikey - just popped in to see what others are up to. but here's a couple.

Festive Biscotti
This is a good basic biscotti recipe, altered with different types of nuts, chocolate and fruit. I usually double this, to make 2 big logs, and vary what I put into them, so they're different.

Ingredients
1 cup Sugar
3 Eggs
2 cups Flour
½ tsp Baking powder
½ cup Dried cranberries
¼ cup Chocolate bits (or glace cherries, or. )
½ cup Toasted almonds (or cashews, or pistachios. or. )

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 140C. Beat sugar and 2 eggs together until pale and creamy. Add plain flour, baking powder, dried cranberries, chocolate bits and chopped toasted almonds, then mix well.
2. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until firm, adding a little more flour if necessary. Divide dough in half and shape into logs. Place on a greased baking tray and brush with 1 egg white, lightly beaten.
3. Bake logs for 40 minutes, then remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. While warm, slice biscotti logs into 1cm-thick slices and place in a single layer on oven trays.
4. Reduce the oven temperature to 80C and return biscotti to the oven for 30 minutes to dry.
5. Remove from trays, cool and store in an airtight container.

Ruth Pretty's Ginger & Orange Shortbread
Makes 75-80
This makes buttery, crisp little ginger shortbread to store in a jar to serve at any time of day. I particularly love them with tea or coffee, but they take on a new life served with dessert wine or port and your favourite blue cheese. The yield is large but remember they are only little biscuits. Baked shortbread stores well in freezer, but also freeze pieces of the raw dough to bake biscuits later.

Ingredients
125g unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces, at room temperature
⅓ cup sugar
1 egg yolk
1 cup + 1 tablespoon flour
⅓ cup crystallised ginger, finely chopped
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
Beat the butter and sugar in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle (or "K") beater for 3-4 minutes or until smooth. (Alternatively, beat with a wooden spoon.) Add the egg yolk and beat until combined.
Remove the bowl from the mixer and sift in the flour. Add the ginger and orange zest and mix until a dough has formed.
Place the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap and, using the plastic wrap to cover your hand, flatten the dough into a block 2cm thick and 10cm x 11.5cm. Wrap in the plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
Place the dough on a board and, using a sharp knife, cut it into 4 equal pieces, then cut each piece into small pieces, about 6-7mm. Place onto the prepared trays and into the preheated oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until firm and the edges are golden brown.
Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. When cool, store in an airtight container in the pantry for up to a week, or freeze for up to 3 months.

autumnwinds, Nov 30, 10:47am
Pumpkin passionfruit pineapple and apricot jam

This is soo easy, and so delicious, and not too sweet, I usually double the mix. (darn it, I usually double MOST things I like. ). but everyone loves it and it looks great, too. In a pretty jar, great to pop in with other gifts.

Ingredients
250g dried apricots chopped
4 cups water
400g grated pumpkin or butternut
1 kg jam setting sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup passionfruit pulp (I use the canned ones, about $2 at Countdown) or substitute with a small can of partly drained crushed pineapple. (I use both pineapple AND passionfruit! ) Count the pineapple juice as part of the water amount, or you may have trouble setting.

Method
Soak chopped apricots in water overnight. In the same water boil apricots and pumpkin for 20 minutes. Add jam setting Sugar and boil for another 25 minutes. Add lemon juice and passionfruit. Boil for 5 minutes. Bottle while hot in sterilised jars. Cover when cold. (Well, I usually use self-sealing lids and cover when hot, but what the heck. !)

Old story I've told before, but some may not know it. It may seem to be unusual o use pumpkin in a jam. but was common (apparently) in the Depression, and certainly during WW2, to use swede or pumpkin as "fillers" in jam, when fruit was scare or unavailable. It goes translucent, and imparts little of it's own flavour, but enhances whatever fruit it's added to. A friend in Dunedin once asked me "Why are truckloads of swedes going to the . jam factory?". and I was able to enlighten her, as above. I don't know if they still do that. lol

And this jam really is a beaut, being nice and tart. for those who don't like overly sweet jam on their breakfast toast. or croissants. or crumpets.

korbo, Nov 30, 1:16pm
. what is christmas snow. recipe please.thanks.

lythande1, Nov 28, 7:10pm
Nope. Here it's Christmas Pate Maison.