Too Early for Christmas Recipes?
Is it too early for Christmas Recipes? Not in our household this year. Apparently our little house by the seaside in East Yorkshire is going to be slightly overflowing this Christmas, with my two cousins flying in from New Zealand and five members of my family are coming to stay as well. Help!! This was my first thought – but then I remembered that basically I love a lot of folk for Christmas, and, although I am still not fully recovered from my Cancer treatment and blood clot they have all promised to ‘muck in’ and help.
So, what to do? Well, come up with some different recipes that really appeal to me, some I can freeze ahead, and some new ones that make my mouth water. Hope you like them – and don’t think that it’s too early for Christmas recipes, even in November. I love the recipe ideas of Donna Hay, she always comes up with something different, Here is the first one, which looks delicious and can be frozen ahead of time.
Raspberry Lemona de Frose Recipe
- 450g frozen raspberries,plus extra to serve on top
- 500ml store bought Lemon Sorbet
- 55g caster sugar
- 270ml Rose wine
- 2 cups (about 350g) ice cubes
- Place the raspberries, sorbet, sugar and 500ml of the wine in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour into a 20cm x 30cm freezer container (metal if possible) and freeze for 2-3 hours until frozen.
- In two batches, place the frozen raspberry mixture, ice and remaining wine in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Serve straight away with a few slightly thawed raspberries on the top, or place in the freezer until ready to serve.
The next one in our ‘Too Early for Christmas Recipes’ post is a very different kind of Christmas cake. Also by the Australian chef, Donna Hay, this one if filled with ground almonds, cinnamon, blanched almonds, lemon juice and topped off with a Brandy Syrup Sauce. How can you resist that one – unless you are one of the unfortunate ones cannot eat nuts. So take a look at this.
Almond Olive Oil Christmas Cake with Brandy Sauce Recipe
sharingourfoodadventures.com
Almond Olive oil Christmas Cake with Brandy Syrup – courtesy Donna Hay
- 4 eggs
- 110g caster sugar
- 125ml good extra virgin olive oil
- 60ml fresh lemon juice
- 360g ground almonds
- 1 teaspoon baking powder - sifted
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 70g blanched almonds
- BRANDY SYRUP:
- 125ml Brandy
- 175g honey
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 160C (325Fan). Place the eggs and sugar in a bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 6 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Add the olive oil and lemon juice and beat to combine.
- Add the ground almonds, baking powder and cinnamon and fold in to combine well.
- Pour the mixture into a greased 22cm round springform tin lined with non-stick baking paper. Place the almonds on top and cook for 50 minutes, or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Set aside to cool slightly, before turning out onto a wire rack.
- Place the honey, cinnamon and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat, bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes or until thickened. Add the brandy and cook for 2 minutes, or until syrupy and reduced by half.
- Pour the syrup over the warm cake and serve.
Time to get my shower now and to wake up Erik. I’m so thrilled that I’ve begun my quest for new and mouthwatering dishes to help celebrate Christmas with our family. I do hope that, like me, you don’t think that it is ever too early for Christmas recipes, and maybe you will have a go at these unusual delights. Before long, I will put a post on with all the basic Christmas dishes that I am going to freeze for the festive season – preparations that will help me to enjoy that extra special time surrounded by my family. See you soon.
I love Donna Hay recipes and that particular one looks SO tempting. I’ll be trying thst one soon enough. This really is my favourite of the year, the harvest is in, the cupboards are bulging, lots of time to experiment. My husband has been getting stuck in this year and is in charge of soups. Today he’s doing something with a butternut squash and sweet potato.
More please Astrid
That cake look great.
Cake!!’
Thanks Bryn, I hope it tastes as good as it looks. Regards Astrid.
Hi Ophelia, Yes, Donna Hay hits just the right note for me too. One of my favourite chefs at the moment. Lots more to come. Oh yes – are you any relation to the great Peter O’Toole? Regards Astrid.