Photos of your special home made treats for xmas

looking for more ideas to make for my christmas gifts, please add your photos of your home made creations....

Things like mellowpuff puddings, gingerbread houses, stained glass windows

just made four of these tonight i would put pic up but dont know how to

That is amazing!!Are the windows those bikkies with barley sugars melted into them?

What are these made out of?

The windows are made from Mary Gray boiled sweets (the clearish ones). The reason that they are orange is that I purchased battery operated Tealights, and placed them in the windows on the inside of the house.

White Chocolate. I used acetate to create the molds.

Love the house and candles. We made gingerbread houses this year for the first time. My boys had a ball decorating them so I think it will be a family tradition from now on.

YUMMO -love the tree!

Everyone is so creative.....makes me feel kinda useless...lol

rito they all look fab, how long will one of those houses if i made it now, would it not be edible by xmas?? and what is the recipe for that yummy looking xmas tree?? thanks

The house is stored in TWO Xtra Large Oven Bags and sealed. Humidity will kill gingerbread, so keep in a cool place. I only took it out for the photo purposes. It should keep until Xmas Day = Demolition Day. The one shown was my practice one. I have another three to do for three small girls.

oh please please can i have the recipe for those hazelnut and coffee truffle.

I use cointreau when I made mine so I guess any liqueur would work well.

Chocolate Hazelnut and coffee liqueur truffles
Makes 49 pieces

500g chocolate – we use Whittakers 62% dark cacao
1 395g can sweetened condensed milk
4 tbsp coffee liqueur (we used Cafe Java)
1 tbsp butter
¾ cup hazelnuts, roasted, skinned and roughly chopped
Line a 20cm x 20cm baking tin with baking paper.
Spread hazelnuts on a baking tray and put in an oven set on 190degC fan bake for 5-10 minutes. You will be able to smell the roasted hazelnut aroma when they are ready and the skins will have become crisp and flaky.

Tip the nuts on to a clean tea towel, and roll them round rubbing gently to slough off the skins. Pick out the skinned nuts, and don’t worry if a small quantity of skin remains.

Place a small saucepan containing a couple of centimetres of water on the element to heat. Set a heat proof bowl over but not in contact with the hot water. Break the chocolate into the bowl. As soon as the water is simmering remove the pan from the heat and stir the chocolate continuously allowing the residual heat from the hot water to gently melt the chocolate.

While the chocolate is melting, in another saucepan, gently warm the sweetened condensed milk, and stir in the coffee liqueur and butter.
When the chocolate is completely melted, mix in the sweetened condensed milk mixture and the toasted skinned hazelnuts.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and place in the fridge to set.

Once chocolate is set, cut into 49, 2.5 cm cubes.

Yes our gingerbread are soft already but I had no idea how to store them. Next year I will try the oven bag thing. It's a real pity as the gingerbread was delicious.

pamellie...how do you hold the tree together..icing??

Here is the recipe. It's been awhile since I made it.
Ruby, I used melted choclate to hold it together and we had to prop each layer up until the chocolate was set and it would hold still! The recipe is for two trees but this one is bigger, I think I doubled the recipe and made some bigger crosses, you will get an idea how big it will be once you have drawn up your paper crosses. It's certainly worth the effort as it looks very impressive. Good luck.

CHOCOLATE CRACKLE CHRISTMAS TREES

You will need 2 x 30cm round boards to support the trees, heavy cardboard covered with gift paper a large plate or a foil-covered upturned tray could be used.
Any remaining chocolate crackle mixture can be spooned into paper patty cases. Recipe can be prepared a week ahead. Assemble trees up to 3 days before serving; keep trees refrigerated. Makes 2.

CHOCOLATE CRACKLE MIXTURE
11/2 cups (240g) icing sugar mixture
1/4 cup (25g) cocoa powder
4 cups (140g) Rice Bubbles
3/4 cup (65g) coconut
100g packet Mallow Bakes
250g Copha, melted
11/3 cups (200g) dark chocolate Melts, melted

Chocolate Crackle Mixture: Combine sifted icing sugar and cocoa with remaining ingredients in large bowl; mix well. Stand mixture 5 minutes, stir again before using.

1/2 cup (75g) dark chocolate Melts, melted
Coloured cachous
1/2 cup (75g) white chocolate Melts, melted
Thin taper candles
Sweets
Icing sugar

Mark 12 crosses on sheets of baking paper; you need 2 of each size: 18cm, 16cm, 14cm, 13cm, 9cm and 7cm.
Place paper onto trays.

Press 2 teaspoons of the chocolate crackle mixture into a greased 5cm star cutter; refrigerate until set. Remove the cutter carefully, repeat process to make 2 stars.
Drop teaspoonfuls of remaining chocolate crackle mixture along marked crosses, press mixture together lightly; refrigerate until set.
Spread one side of each star shape with a little dark chocolate; press on some of the cachous, allow to set.
To assemble trees, place a small amount of dark chocolate in centre of prepared boards, press the 18cm crosses onto chocolate. Repeat process with remaining crosses and chocolate, from largest to smallest, to form 2 trees. It is important each layer is set before topping with another cross. If crosses are uneven, support underneath until chocolate has set. Secure stars to tops of trees with a little more chocolate; refrigerate until set.
Drizzle white chocolate over the branches. Cut the candles into 2cm pieces; secure candles to branches with more white chocolate. Be sure candles do not touch the higher branches when alight. Attach sweets and remaining cachous to branches with a little more white chocolate.
Just before serving, dust trees with sifted icing sugar. Light candles only with adult supervision.
Not suitable to freeze. Chocolate suitable to microwave.

Hi Pamellie - did you hand decorate the wrappers for your delicious sounding truffles or did you find a source for them?

pameille.. thanks so much for that I know some littlies who will love that!!

I made my fudge in a square tin and it was about 18cm x 18cm when I turned it out. I then cut it into 7 bars 15cm x 3 cm. I wrapped them in clear cellophane and then wrapped ribbon around them using whatever I had. Some with plain curling ribbon, some with a rafia(?) type, the one in front of the photo is a xmas ribbonI got from the warehouse (don't get the wired edge ones as they are hard to get to sit straight). I just used what I had and made them all different. I was really pleased with how they turned out.

They will indeed, it was my son's choice and he is a teenager!!

thankyou so much pamellie, last year i made a pile of various cupcakes with different icings, but i cant be bothered with fluffing around with them this year lol, but we have 3 girls in the family,and you know
what chocolate and girls means, so will be making this.
Do you have to have a liquer, or could you use a essence, would there
be a essence with a strong enough coffee taste do you think

I'm not sure on the coffee essence, perhaps you could dissolve some instant coffee in a small amount of water? I also thought it would be nice with orange juice and finely grated rind.

hmmm yes i might give the orange a go, sort of jaffa. lol