For something a bit different, over the weekend I got my kids to cook some biscuits that reindeer and boomers will like – we will make them again on Christmas Eve but we HAD to test them first of course!

Make your favourite biscuit dough

roll out the dough then cut into carrot shapes (I found a carrot cutter in a local homewards store but you could do it by hand…)

put carrots onto greased trays and into the fridge

after about 20 minutes, put tray in oven to cook (15 minutes at 180 is usually enough but check your recipe)

cool then remove from tray

make some green icing and cover the carrot tops

make some orange icing and put into an icing pipe (or a ziplock bag and cut the corner off)

zigzag the orange icing over the carrots

let the icing set then store in an airtight container (if they last that long – my kids have never eaten carrots so willingly!!!)

For icing I mixed 1/2 cup icing sugar with 2 teaspoons of water and 2 – 3 drops of food colour. Add a little more water if needed but make sure it is thick rather than runny.

Santa understands that it can take a very long time for Christmas Eve to actually arrive when you’re little so after he signs his letters Love Santa he turns the page over and writes a bit more.

Back in 2009, this is part of what Santa wrote on the back of some letters:

I travel a lot on Christmas Eve and it is really special when I arrive to find something made by children just for me. These apricot balls are very yummy – and if you make enough, you could wrap some in cellophane to give as gifts as well as leaving some for me!

You will need: 400g condensed milk, 250g Marie biscuits, 3 tablespoons fresh orange juice, 1 cup desiccated coconut, 1 cup chopped dried apricots, ¾ cup chopped pecan or cashew nuts (optional)

What to do:

Mix everything together.

Roll into balls

Roll the balls in extra coconut, sprinkles or sesame seeds if you want

Put the balls in the fridge to set – you can even freeze them!

These apricot balls are very yummy so why not try them while you’re waiting for Santa and his letter to arrive? If you have made anything Santa has suggested, let us know how it turned out!

Mulled wine just has such a beautiful flavour and a warm, happy feeling that I can’t resist this recipe each Christmas although it does seem to fit a cold Christmas more (by name that is, it tastes great in summer, to!)

You need:

125g butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup plain flour
1 cup wholemeal plain flour
450g sultanas (or 400g plus 50g dates, chopped)
250g dried cranberries
450g crushed pineapple
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons mulled wine

Put the mulled wine, butter, suagr, dried fruit & pineapple in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add baking soda then simmer & stir for about 5 minutes.

Allow to cool before mixing in everything else.

Pour into a cake tin (silicon one works well I’ve found) then bake at 180C for about 60minutes. Cook for up to another hour at 150C when it is firm to touch.

If it gets too brown as it cooks, cover with foil.

Cool in tin then enjoy. Serves about 24 people at a party or about two serves each in my family if we have it for dessert…

* Mulled wine can be bought in some places apaprently, but it’s easy to make, If you need some quickly for this recipe, just heat some red wine gently with cinamon, cardamom, cloves and (preferably) lemon rind. what ever’s left over is lovely to drink under a Christmas Tree

Ok, they aren’t part of an Aussie Christmas, but snowflakes do have a traditional Xmas feel and these ones are quite yummy

To make 60 snowflakes…
2 cup icing sugar
5.5 cups plain flour
250 g butter
2 eggs
2.5 tsp vanilla essence

get eggs to room temperature
Cube butter and put back in fridge
mix flour and 1.5 cup sugar together then add butter. Blend until you get a mixture looking like fine breadcrumbs.
Mix in eggs and vanilla essence until a dough forms.
Knead dough until lower surface is smooth.
Push dough into two circles about 20 cm across and wrap in grease-proof paper. Put in fridge for an hour or so – should be firm to touch.
roll out dough until about 5mm thick – sticks less if you put it between sheets of baking paper.
If you can find a snowflake cutter, now is when to use it! If not, use a star cutter and a knife to adjust it or try a Christmas tree cutter (instead of snowflakes or join two together for a snowflake-ish look).
put trays of biscuits into fridge for 30 minutes.
pre-heat over to 180 celsius and prepare baking trays (grease or use baking paper).
bake for about 10 minutes
cool completely on trays then dust with icing sugar to enhance the snow feeling.

These are a traditional Xmas treat in Germany and they quite pretty in a nice bowl on the Xmas table or wrapped up as a small gift. They keep for at least a month (so you can make them before Christmas Eve!) & go well with coffee.

This recipe makes about 200 of them – halve it if you’re not making gifts as well.

Peppernuts
120g butter
1 tsp bicarb soda
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup golden syrup
1/2 cup water
2.5 tsp finely grated lemon rind
4 1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp allspice or cinnamon
Icing sugar

Combine sugar, syrup & water in pan but don’t let it boil until sugar dissolved . Then boil. Remove from heat & add butter & soda.

Cool to lukewarm. Stir in egg, lemon rind, flour & spice. Put dough in fridge for a few hours or overnight.

On lightly floured board, roll dough into sausages about 3mm thick. Cut into 3mm slices. Place on lightly greased oven trays. Bake at 180C for about 12 minutes.

Cool on wire rack, dust with sifted icing sugar.

Store in air tight container.

I love Christmas, I love cooking and even more, I love looking at recipes! I came across this one recently – I haven’t yet tried it but I’m sure any chocoholics (like me!) will love this version of the traditional yummy mince tart…

700 g fruit mince (buy it or make your own)
300g dark chocolate, chopped
shortcrust pastry (See below)
120g white or milk chocolate, for decoration

Cut out 48 circles form the pastry

preheat over to 190

Push circles into greased patty tins (or use the bottom of muffin trays)

Sprinkle chocolate pieces on top until about half full

Spoon in the fruit mince

Bake for about 20 minutes – until pastry is golden

Once cooled, drizzle melted chocolate over the top

Shortcrust pastry

400g plain flour
80g caster sugar
250g unsalted butter
140g ground almonds
1 egg, beaten

Mix dry ingredients
add butter and rub into flour mixture
mix egg with 1 Tbs chilled water
blend in egg until forms a ball of dough – add more egg if necessary
knead dough until lower surface is smooth
ideally, cover and leave in fridge for 2 or 3 hours before use

Includes 10.3g total fat (6.1g saturated fat) apparently but it IS for Christmas…

Preheat oven to 180 C
Cream 185g butter & 220g caster sugar
Add 2 eggs, beating in each before adding next
Stir in 200ml milk & .5 tsp lemon essence
Add cardamon flavouring to taste*
Add 345g plain flour mixed with 2 tsp baking powder
Gently mix in 100g sultanas (a few glace cherries of dried cranberries add colour and a nice surprise but isn’t traditional!)
Pour mixture into a 28 cm greased loaf pan
Bake for about an hour

* Cardamon flavour can be about 0.5 tsp of essence or 0.45 ground cardamon – add more if you like it spicier…

This mixes two of my loves – Christmas and cheesecake! Ok it is a cooked cheesecake so it looses points there but still – yummo!

Anyway, this is lovely on a summer day with fresh fruit so I often take it to BBQs and other Christmas get togethers.

Base:

Mix together…

2 cups of crumbed Marie biscuits
125g butter
0.25 tsp cinnamon
0.25 tsp nutmeg

and put into a greased 20cm springform pan. Place in fridge while you make the filling.

Filling

Preheat oven to 160 C
Beat 500g cream cheese with 180g (0.75 cup) white sugar
When smooth, add 3 eggs one at a time
Stir in 250g dried fruit and 1.5 Tbsp dark rum
Pour into base
Bake until firm (about 1 hour)
Leave door ajar but cool cake in oven
refrigerate overnight then serve & enjoy

You could leave a slice of this out for Santa, too, and it’s easy enough for kids to make.

Another yummy treat we make as inexpensive gifts (put it with the Chrissie caramels in celophane packages – pretty & decadent!) Enjoy!

3 egg whites
3.75 cups white sugar
0.75 cups light corn syrup
150g glace cherries (mix of red & green is ideal for a Christmas look & feel)
2 tsp essence (I love vanilla but my husband prefers peppermint – take your pick!)

Line 2 baking trays with non stick baking paper

Chop up the glace cherries (a very sticky job, but hey!)

Put sugar, corn syrup & water in jug (no lid or cover). Cook in microwave on high for 5 minutes or a bit longer – stirring every minute – til mixture is boiling & sugar has completely dissolved.

Cook for another 5 minutes then check every 30 seconds (take it out of microwave & use a warm sugar thermometer) until syrup reaches 125 C .

Beat egg whites to soft peaks (Did you know this is easier with free range. fresh eggs than horrid cage eggs from shops?)

Slowly pour syrup onto eggs, beating continuously.

Mix in the cherries & essence, and beat until nougat looses shine.

Drop  onto tray by the teaspoonful. Leave to set.

leave your thermometer in warm water to keep  it warm between tests. If you don’t have a thermomoeter (or you manage to break it like I did last Christmas)  drop a little syrup into very cold water as a test – its ready when it forms a firm supple ball.

Add pistachios or slivered almonds for a nutty addition.

These are yummy – I have to admit I make double batch now as we ‘test’ so many of them we don’t have a lot left to package as gifts let alone leave out for Santa…

45g butter (or marg if you must)

750g soft caramels

3 tablespoons low fat milk

2 cups of unsalted cashews

1 cup unsalted walnuts or almonds

Put the caramels, butter & milk in the microwave (well in a bowl then in the microwave!) and heat on high for 1 minute then stir.

Heat for another minute & stir.

Heat for another minute & stir (see the pattern yet?!)

Mixture should now be smooth – if not, heat for another 30 – 6 seconds and stir.

Stir in the nuts until they’re covered in caramel.

Line a baking tray (foil, baking paper, whatever) then drop teaspoonful of the mix onto the tray.

Once it’s set, drizzle some melted chocolate over the top. If I have time, I use white & brown chocolate for an even nicer effect, but one chocolate or none works well too.

Store in an airtight container if you can resist eating them! Oh, and you can use other sorts of nuts or even mixed nuts if you prefer (mixed nuts makes it a bit cheaper if you’re on a budget but it’s a pretty cheap gift anyway.)

Santa’s sleigh is packed, the reindeer and boomers are rested, Santa has checked his list twice, the elves are checking the load is secure – Santa is almost ready to leave the North Pole and head Down Under!!!!!!!

How about you – are you ready for Santa’s visit? Have you prepared a snack and drink for him, and put out something for the boomers?

Santa is VERY BUSY tonight, after months of preparing, so he really appreciates you leaving a snack near your stockings. And I believe that by making it yourself, you help build up Santa’s magic supply so he can get down (and up) small chimneys and find the right stocking for all his gifts.

If you need ideas for making a snack for Santa, try our recipes , article or look at any letters you have received from Santa. Or share your favourite ideas and recipes with us.

I hope you’ve been good and are excited, because Santa arrives in only a few hours!!!!!!!!!!!

We had some delicious Christmas pudding latst night, made by our friend’s Mum. She made it ‘properly’ – soaking the fruit for weeks beforehand (in Port in this case).

This pudding was mostly fruit and was about the moistest and yummiest pudding I’ve ever tasted. If I can get the recipe and am allowed, I will share it here too.

Anybody else had some good pudding yet this year?