I had christmas dinner for 8, cooked and on the table for 2pm and thanks to Emily peeling the vegetables we even squeezed in a quick 5 mile walk too.

The christmas cake and pudding were truly delicious and even though I am not a vegetarian the Nut loaf was very tasty….

Cooking the Turkey was made easy by using a meat thermometer, I think every kitchen should have one as it makes doing a roast so much easier, you never over cook the meat, so you always get perfect results.

The Joulutorttu ended the day nicely, so we had a multicultural Christmas

Joulutorttu

Only 2 things missing were my boys 🙁

After 3 family days tomorrow is a day for us and we are off……..   walking 🙂

Wishing everyone that knows me a very Happy Christmas !

My Christmas pudding looks perfect and smells even better, lets hope it tastes as good as it looks

well worth the 3 hours steaming time…

I was able too…

Take the week off work before Christmas, not to shop not to rest BUT to cook.

I dream of having time to bake all our lovely Christmas food , it takes time and money though , neither which I have !

I always make a Christmas cake and this year for the first time I am making a Christmas pudding, its steaming away at this moment.

Usually I am put off by the 8 hours steaming time, but my friend Caity told me about a Jamie Oliver Recipe that only takes 3 hours to steam.

Christmas eve I shall make Christmas muffins, Ginger biscuits and a Nut Loaf  while listening to the Carols from Kings College

Not quite sure when I will ice the cake !

Over the past few months I have developed an interest in Crystals, a bit of harmless fun for me and they look so nice too.

I have also discovered Salt Lamps,not sure I believe in their so called health benefits, but I do love the warm relaxing glow that they provide.

They are perfect for in your massage room as they create a calming environment 🙂

In 2008 I had a real obsession with wellington boots

Its been a long time since I added some new photos of wellington boots, but these ones we saw in Turkey really took my eye..

This year, for many reasons I was not going to bother with an Advent Calendar.

One reason being , I thought the Boys were now far too old for one.

But then I decided your never too old for an Advent Calendar !

So when they come home from work tonight they are in for a surprise and  I have included Laura too 🙂

How do you count the days down to Christmas ??

I like our Avon Santa Christmas countdown, everyday you remove a peg and Santa slips further down the chimney.

I have one of these for Geoff’s Granddaughter….  but sadly she wont get it till Saturday 🙁

I am not usually a biscuit baker, I much prefer to bake cakes, but its always nice to try something new, especially when you come across a recipe that takes your fancy.

I have been discovering some great new foodie web sites through twitter and have tried a couple of recipes from Best Recipes UK.

First I tried the Feta and Herb falafel, it was quick and easy to make and tasted very good, I choose not to fry mine,so oven baked them instead, they did dry out a little but next time I will spray them with oil before baking.

Next I came across a recipe for Orange Gingernut Biscuits, that I thought I must try as Geoff  loves ginger.

These were also quick and easy to make, with great results,but next time I will use crystallized Ginger instead of the orange.

Home made biscuits are quite special and I don’t think these will be around too long,so I may be trying more biscuit baking in the future

You can follow Best Recipes UK on twitter too.