I love being at uni, but one of the things I miss most is being able to bake on a regular basis. Of course, I could bake if I really wanted to, but A) buying ingredients is expensive, and B) I don’t have any of the equipment I need (scales, a whisk etc.). So, when I do go home, I  like to take advantage of the kitchen and bake as much as I can. Last Saturday, I did exactly that. After suffering from major baking withdrawal symptoms, I decided to have a whole day of Christmas baking. These were my results…

1-Cranberry and Orange Chelsea Bun Tree

This recipe was from the November issue of the BBC Good Food magazine. I have never made Chelsea buns before, but, although they were time consuming, they were also relatively easy to make. I didn’t have a baking tray big enough to make one big tree, hence the two different photos above, but this didn’t really make much of a difference. They still tasted amazing, and the cranberry and orange flavours are really festive.

2-Mini Mince Pie Crumbles

These are a Waitrose recipe. I made them last year for the first time, and they went down a real treat with my family (especially with my sister’s boyfriend, who ate 4 in one sitting). They are essentially a normal mince pie, except that the pastry top is replaced with an orange crumble mix. They are much lighter than normal mince pies, and are perfect to have with a cup of tea.

3-Mincemeat Tart

This is my own recipe. After making 24 mince pie crumbles, I still had a lot of pastry left over, so I decided to improvise and make a mince meat tart. It is basically a big mince pie crumble- a shortcrust pastry base, filled with mince meat, and topped with the same crumble mix. This tastes best warm (but is still good cold!), and I served it with vanilla custard.

 

I finished off my day of Christmas baking by watching The Holiday and wrapping Christmas presents, so it is safe to say that I am now officially in the Christmas spirit! I literally cannot wait for the weekend now- just 3 5am starts to get through and then I can relax!!!

I probably won’t get round to writing another post before Christmas now, so I just want to say a massive thank you to everyone who reads my blog- I am not sure why as they are all completely random things which come in to my head, but while people read them Ill keep writing.

Wishing you a very merry Christmas- full of lots of food, games, laughs, and lots and lots of love.

Megan x