Our Favourite Christmas Recipes

Christmas is coming and here at Eat Marketing, that means Christmas recipes! We’re getting in the festive mood by indulging in one of our favourite pastimes… Yes, you guessed it – sampling new recipes!

We may be whizzes at creating fab food websites and branding, but did you know we’re pretty good at cooking too? And now it’s the festive season, it’s the perfect time to don a frilly apron, a Christmassy hat and pick our favourite Christmas recipes for 2014. Take a look – which is your festive favourite?

Maria’s pick: Mulled Wine

Image and recipe sourced from BBC Good Food

Maria’s Christmas recipes pick is mulled wine… Close the door to chilly nights with a glass of this wonderfully spiced and decadent liquid, brimming with the scent of Christmas and a dash of sloe gin for a cheeky kick!

Ingredients:

1 bottle red wine
60g/2oz demerara sugar
1 cinnamon stick
Grated nutmeg
1 orange, halved
1 dried bay leaf
60ml/2fl oz sloe or damson gin (optional)

How to prepare:

1. Pour your wine into a saucepan with the orange, sugar, bay leaf and the spices.
2. Heat the mixture over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Do not boil the liquid, the aim is to gently heat the ingredients together.
3. Taste to see if you want the wine sweeter, and add more sugar to taste if you prefer.
4. Move the mixture away from the heat and stir in the sloe or damson gin if you are using it.
5. Strain into heatproof glasses and serve at once.

Thalia’s pick: Turkey Bites

Image and recipe sourced from BBC Good Food

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without turkey, unless you are vegetarian that is… But if you are a fan of Turkey, you’ll love Thalia’s favourite Christmas recipe, as it’s not only tasty, it’s economical too! Using turkey left over from Christmas, these tasty little pies are easy to make and give you the perfect festive mouthful!

Ingredients

500g pack short crust pastry
Plain flour, for dusting
250g/9oz shredded leftover turkey
8 tbsp double cream or crème fraîche
8 tsp cranberry sauce
1 egg, beaten

How to prepare:

1. Roll your pastry out onto a floured surface. As a guide, it should just be slightly thinner than a £1 coin.
2. Cut out 8 x 10 cm circles using a pastry cutter or small saucer, then cut 8 x 9 cm circles for the lids – you may need to re-roll the trimmings.
3. Push the larger circles into 8 holes of a muffin tin, then divide the turkey, cream and cranberry sauce between them.
4. Season well and brush the edges with a little egg. Place a lid on top of each and pinch the sides together to seal.
5. Chill for 15-20 minutes.
6. Heat your oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
7. Brush the tops with a little more egg, then bake for 25 minutes until the pastry is crisp and golden.

These dinky little pies can be served warm or cooled and enjoyed cold.

Emily’s pick: Eggnog

Image and recipe sourced from BBC Food

Fancy a Christmas tipple? Why not try Emily’s cherished Christmas recipe? Until now, Emily has kept this delicious concoction a closely guarded secret, but now, she has agreed to share her recipe that adds a little twist with the addition of cherries…

Ingredients:

1140ml/2 pints whole milk
6 free-range eggs
50g/2oz caster sugar
1 vanilla pod, split
20 fresh cherries, stones removed and halved
200ml/7fl oz brandy
Cocoa powder, for dusting

Preparation method:

1. Place the milk, eggs, sugar and vanilla pod into a medium pan and heat gently. Do not boil the mixture – simply stir on a very low heat until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
2. Once the ingredients have mixed together, the eggnog can be served warm or, once it has cooled, you can chill it and serve cold.
3. To serve, try Emily’s secret addition – scatter the cherries in the bottom of each serving glass. Then, divide the brandy between the glasses and pour the eggnog over. Dust with cocoa powder and serve.

Alison’s pick: Angel Cakes

Alison has served up a sweet Christmas treat with her recipe for cupcakes topped with pretty festive angels! Kids and adults alike will love them and they look amazing too!

INGREDIENTS

150 g butter, softened
150 g caster sugar
1 orange, grated zest only
3 eggs, beaten
100 g self-raising flour, sifted
50 g ground almond powder
½ tsp vanilla extract

For the angels

300 g marzipan
24 silver balls
12 jelly orange slice sweets
1 tbsp icing sugar

For the frosting:

200 g butter, at room temperature
250 g icing sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

To decorate:

Edible glitter (optional)

How to prepare:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar with the orange zest until light, fluffy and pale.
3. Gradually mix in the beaten egg. A great tip is to alternate this process with the flour and ground almonds to stop the mix from curdling. Finally, stir through the vanilla extract.
4. Place 12 paper cupcake cases into a muffin tin and evenly divide the mixture between the cases.
5. The cupcakes should take between 12-18 minutes to cook. They will golden and springy to the touch when ready. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
6. For the angels, shape a third of the marzipan into 12 balls and press 2 silver balls into each for eyes. Shape the remaining marzipan into 24 wings.
7. Pull the centre sections of the orange jelly slices out, and then cut the semi circular central parts in half so that you have two triangles. These are the angel’s hands; the curved parts are the halos.
8. Mix the icing sugar with a drop of water to make a thick, sticky paste and use this to attach the curved halos to the angel’s heads.
9. For the frosting, use a mixing bowl to beat the butter with a spoon or spatula until smooth, then, start to sift in the icing sugar, stirring regularly. Add the vanilla extract and orange juice. The frosting should be light and creamy.
9. Once the cupcakes are totally cool, pipe the icing onto them starting from the outside of the cake and working into the centre to create tall peaks. Place a head on the top of each, push the wings into the back and push the orange segment hands into place.
10. Sprinkle with a little edible glitter, if desired.

Sophie’s pick: Stolllen

Recipe sourced from allrecipes and image sourced from gritsandgroceries.blogspot.co.uk

Sophie is a traditional lass and she just loves a piece of that Christmas classic, Stollen, once December arrives. Even though Stollen is everywhere in the build up to Xmas, not many of us here at Eat Marketing had tried it, but as soon as we sampled Sophie’s Christmas recipe, we were blown away!

Try it for yourself and see, it’s easier to make than you may think!

Ingredients (serves 15):

2 teaspoons dried active baking yeast
175ml (6 fl oz) warm milk (45 C)
1 large egg
75g (3 oz) caster sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
75g (3 oz) unsalted butter, softened
350g (12 oz) bread flour
50g (2 oz) currants
50g (2 oz) sultanas
50g (2 oz) red glace cherries, quartered
175g (6 oz) diced mixed citrus peel
200g (7 oz) marzipan
1 heaped teaspoon icing sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
toasted flaked almonds for sprinkling on top

How to prepare:

(Prep:2hr › Cook:40min › Ready in:2hr/40min)
1. In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm milk. Let the mixture stand until creamy, (for about 10 minutes).
2. In a large bowl, combine the yeast mixture with the egg, caster sugar, salt, butter, and 3/4 of the bread flour; beat well. Add the remaining flour, a little at a time, stirring well after each addition.
4. When the dough has begun to pull together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead in the currants, sultanas, dried cherries and mixed peel. Continue kneading until smooth, about 8 minutes.
5. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn it so that it is coated with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, (this takes about an hour).
6. Lightly grease a baking tray. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the marzipan into a rope and place it in the centre of the dough. Fold the dough over to cover it; pinch the seams together to seal.
7. Place the loaf, seam side down, on the prepared baking tray. Cover with a clean, damp tea towel and let it rise until it has doubled in volume, (for about 40 minutes). Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180 C / Gas mark 4.
8. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 150 C / Gas mark 2 and bake for a further 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown.
9. Allow the loaf to cool on a wire cooling rack. Dust the cooled loaf with icing sugar, sprinkle with cinnamon and finish with toasted flaked almonds.

Feeling hungry? We hope you have enjoyed our Christmas recipes picks and that we have inspired you to try a few for yourself. We’ve enjoyed road-testing them all and we can’t wait to make them again during the festive holidays!