Cover
About the Book
About the Author
List of Recipes
Title Page
Introduction
Sweet
Stained Glass Biscuits with a Touch of Spice
Candy Cane Biscuits
Cranberry and Rum Star Christmas Tree
Spiced Cheesecake Shots
Pear, Mincemeat and Pecan Crackers
Snowball Truffles
Coconut Bark Cake
Santa Hats
Healthy Fruit Plate
Gingerbread Chocolate Puddings
Christmas Cake Parcels
Chocolate Robins
Reindeer Donuts
Meringue Baubles
Arctic Scene
Snowy Hot Chocolate
White Chocolate Bombe
Cherry Pandoro Star
Orange Snowflake Cakes
Choux Pastry Wreaths
Savoury
Santa’s Savoury Sleigh
Pork, Thyme and Apricot Christmas Pies
Olive and Tomato Stars
Mini Baked Potato Baubles
Spicy Duchesse Potato Christmas Trees
Canapé Wreath
Spiced Popcorn Hangings
Camembert Parcel
Cheese and Charcuterie Jingle Bell
Tear-and-Share Christmas Rolls
Copyright
Arctic Scene
Candy Cane Biscuits
Cranberry and Rum Star Christmas Tree
Coconut Bark Cake
Christmas Cake Parcels
Chocolate Robins
Cherry Pandoro Star
Choux Pastry Wreaths
Canapé Wreath
Camembert Parcel
Cheese and Charcuterie Jingle Bell
Gingerbread Chocolate Puddings
Healthy Fruit Plate
Meringue Baubles
Mini Baked Potato Baubles
Orange Snowflake Cakes
Olive and Tomato Stars
Pear, Mincemeat and Pecan Crackers
Pork, Thyme and Apricot Christmas Pies
Reindeer Donuts
Stained Glass Biscuits with a Touch of Spice
Spiced Cheesecake Shots
Snowball Truffles
Santa Hats
Snowy Hot Chocolate
Santa’s Savoury Sleigh
Spicy Duchesse Potato Christmas Trees
Spiced Popcorn Hangings
Tear-and-Share Christmas Rolls
White Chocolate Bombe
In the same series: Emma Marsden
HEART ON A PLATE
These quick and easy festive recipes will fill your home with Christmas sparkle
Make your own edible gifts - from Red Robin Lollypops to Snowball Truffles
Create simple party canapés and snacks
Bake Snowflake Cupcakes for a Christmas tea
Whip up home-made hot chocolate with a touch of spice
Everything you need for a delicious and decorative festive season!
Emma Marsden is a food writer and stylist who studied at Leiths School of Food & Wine. She was Cookery Editor at Good Housekeeping magazine and has written a number of books including Heart on a Plate, Fortnum & Mason’s Afternoon Tea and Honey & Preserves, Weight Watchers’ The Smart Cook and Sainsbury’s Kitchen Know-How. She contributes regularly to Harrods’ magazine and has worked on a number of advertising and packaging campaigns for companies including Lakeland, British Eggs, Kikkoman, Linda McCartney and Tropicana.
These simple biscuits are seasoned with a heady mix of rich spices. Hang them at the window to let the winter light flood through the middle.
MAKES ABOUT 12
a little oil, for greasing
110g unsalted butter, softened
40g golden caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
1 tbsp golden syrup
200g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp mixed spice
½ tsp ground cloves
a pinch of salt
1 bag of coloured boiled sweets
edible glue
You will need
a set of Christmas-shaped biscuit cutters
Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. Oil a baking sheet well.
Beat together the butter, sugar and golden syrup until smooth. Sift over the flour, bicarbonate of soda and all the spices with the salt. Mix well again until all the dry ingredients are incorporated into the butter mixture. At this stage you may need to bring the mixture together with your hands. Knead lightly to make a smooth dough. Shape into a disc then wrap in cling film and chill for 15 minutes.
Roll out half the dough between two sheets of cling film until 3mm thick. Stamp out the shapes using the biscuit cutters, rerolling the dough as necessary. Cut out holes from the middle, leaving at least a 1.5cm border. Transfer to the baking sheet, then push a skewer into the top to make a hole. Do the same with the remaining dough.
Bash each sweet, still in its wrapper, using a pestle and mortar, until it’s finely crushed. Sprinkle one crushed sweet inside each hole and bake for 15–20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
If you want to decorate the biscuits, brush a little edible glue all over each one and sprinkle with caster sugar. Allow to set before hanging.
Twisting two different-coloured biscuit doughs together and shaping one end gently into a hook creates these pretty biscuits. If you want to get ahead they’ll keep in an airtight container for up to a week.
MAKES 6
For the vanilla dough
30g butter, at room temperature
30g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
60g plain flour
For the red dough
½ tsp red food paste, such as claret
½ tsp vanilla extract