Onesie Festive Favourites

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

One of the best things about Christmas is definitely the food!

We have some yummy recipes from Pippa Middleton's Celebrate book!

Chocolate Yule Log

Pre heat the oven to 190°c/gas 5. Grease and line a 33cm x 23cm Swiss roll tin. Separate 4 eggs. Beat the egg whites with an electric whisk until stiff, then gradually add 50g caster sugar while whisking continuously. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolk with 75g caster sugar, add 80g self raising flour and 2 tablespoons cocoa powder, then fold in the egg whites. Pour the sponge mixture into the tin. Use a spatula to spread the mixture evenly, then bake for about ten minutes, until the top is springy. Remove from the oven, place a damp tea towel over the top of the tray and set aside to cool. Whip 200ml double cream to stiff peaks, then add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Remove the cooled sponge from the tin and turn it upside down on a plate. Soak the sponge with 8 tablespoons of cherry liqueur (optional), then turn it back over on to the baking parchment and spread the whipped cream on top. If not using liqueur, simply spread the cream all over the sponge. Holding the baking parchment with the longer side towards you, roll the sponge up, keeping it nice and tight. To make the icing, beat 120g softened, unsalted butter until smooth and then gradually beat in 160g icing sugar and 100g cocoa powder. I fusing, add another splash of cherry liqueur, and mix well. If the icing needs thinning, add 4 tablespoons whole milk a little at a time, then spread it over the entire cake with a palette knife, making markings to resemble bark, Sift icing sugar over the cake, then decorate with chocolate shavings and Christmas cake decorations.

Chocolate Truffles

Break 150g good-quality dark or milk chocolate into small pieces and place in a heat proof bowl. Put 150ml double cream and 75g light brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and simmer for 1 minute, then cool for about 30 seconds. Pour the cream on to the chocolate a little at a time and mix well, working quickly until smooth and glossy. Don't over-mix. Allow the ganache to cool, then put it, covered, in the fridge for at least 1 hour or until fully set. Remove from the fridge and allow to come up to room temperature - this will make it easier to handle. Sprinkle your hands with a little cocoa powder, then scoop out teaspoonfuls of the ganache and roll in your hands to make balls. Don't take to long over this, as the ganache will begin to melt. Turn them into Christmas puddings by dusting them with cocoa powder and decorating them using white fondant icing shaped to look like snow. Use an icing pen to stick the fondant to the truffle. Finish with mini red Smarties for the berries and a green icing pen to draw on holly.

Gingerbread Stars

Preheat the oven to 170°c/ gas 3 and line 2 baking trays with parchment. Melt 130g butter, 100g dark muscovado sugar and 6 tablespoons golden syrup in a medium saucepan, stirring occasionally. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from the heat. Sift 350g plain flour into a bowl with 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda, 2 heaped teaspoons ground ginger and a good pinch of mixed spice. Pour the melted ingredients over the dry ingredients stirring together to make a dough. Cover in cling film and pace in the fridge to cool for 20-30 mintutes.

Turn out the dough on to a lightly floured surface and roll to a thickness of about 0.5cm. Dip star-shaped biscuit cutters into flour before cutting the dough. Place the shapes on the baking sheets and bake for 12-14 minutes until light golden brown, then remove from the oven. (If hanging them from your tree, use a skewer or cocktail stick to make holes in the warm biscuits to thread ribbon through) When completely cool and hardened, finish with glacé icing and decorate. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Peppermint creams

Whisk 1 large egg white in a clean bowl until it forms stiff peaks. Add a few drops of peppermint essence and 400g icing sugar (and a few drops of green food colouring if you like), and mix well until it combines to form a stiff paste. Dust your work surface, your hands and a rolling pin with icing sugar and roll out the paste to 0.5cm thick. Use small cutters to cut our shapes, place them on a tray or plate and refrigerate for 3-4 hours until set.