Christmas Cake

Well, having shared my recipe for Christmas Pudding, I think it would be unfair not to share my Christmas Cake recipe too!

I still use the recipe I was given 40-odd years ago at school, although I've tweaked it a bit over the years - in fact I tweak it a bit every time I make it, depending on what I've got in the house and the mood I'm in! 

I highly recommend steeping your dried fruit in alcohol overnight before making your cake.  It really helps to keep the fruit moist despite the long slow cooking.  This year I steeped my fruit for so long that my family swear its more pickled than steeped!!!

8oz (250g) salted butter (PLEASE use butter not margarine as the flavour is far superior)
8oz (250g) dark brown moscovado sugar
12oz (375g) plain (all-purpose) flour
3lb (1.5kg) mixed dried fruit
6oz (200g) glace cherries
6oz (200g) blanched almonds
2oz (50g) ground almonds
Tablespoon black treacle
5 eggs
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp salt
Grated rind of 1 lemon
Wineglass of sherry, brandy or whiskey* (to taste - or use orange juice)
* Use more or less alcohol to taste.  This year I rather over-added, ending up using about a quarter of a bottle each of sherry and brandy!  I didn't put all the left-over steeping liquid into the cake but saved it for 'feeding' the cake in the weeks leading up to Christmas

This recipe will make a good 8" square cake with enough left over to make another small cake as a gift, or as a 'taster'

1. Heat your oven to 120C
2. Grease & line your cake tin then wrap tin in a thick layer of newspaper, tying tightly around with string.  This will prevent the cake from burning during the long cooking.
3. Wash & halve cherries, dry on kitchen paper and then put in a bowl and mix with ground almonds (this will stop them sinking as the cake cooks)
4. Roughly chop almonds (I prefer to cut them in half and have chunky pieces)
5. Wash & dry mixed fruit.  Put into a bowl with a couple of tablespoons of flour to coat
6. Mix together flour, lemon rind, salt & spices
7. Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 
8. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, adding a tablespoon of flour each time to prevent curdling.
9. Beat in the treacle
10. Fold in the flour, followed by the nuts and cherries
11. Stir in the steeped fruit and alcohol
12. Spoon half the mixture into the tin and level off.  Spoon remaining mixture in and level off again, making a slightly hollowed centre to allow the cake to rise without 'doming'
13. Bake on a low shelf for 4 - 4 1/2 hours, giving a quarter turn every hour.  If the cake is browning too quickly put a double piece of baking paper over the top.
14. To test if the cake is done, insert a skewer into the centre of the cake - it should come out clean
15. Immediately the cake comes out of the oven spoon over a couple of tablespoons of your chosen spirit (or leftover steeping liquid if you overdid it!) and then leave the cake to cool for an hour in the tin.  Then turn out and leave to cool completely.
16. Once cool wrap the cake in baking paper and then foil and store in a tightly sealed tin until you are ready to decorate it, 'feeding' every week with a couple more tablespoons of brandy.

Decorating Your Cake
Whether you decorate your cake - or not - is purely a matter of preference.  This year I've not been at all well so I decided to  decorate the cake all over with glace cherries before baking.  I shall brush with apricot jam and just drizzle glace icing over a couple of days before Christmas.

In previous years I've marzipanned my cake then used either Royal Icing and Fondant Icing to decorate.  For preference I prefer the taste of Royal Icing but the ease of use makes Fondant a good alternative.

BUT:  However you decorate your cake, I thoroughly recommend you try eating it with some Wensleydale cheese.  The sweet, salty taste and crumbly texture of the cheese takes the cake to a whole new level!

Christmas Pudding!

Next Sunday - 25th November - is 'Stir-Up' Sunday. 

Stir-Up Sunday is the last Sunday before Advent, traditionally the day that housewives would make their Christmas Puddings (giving them a chance to mature before the big day itself) and everyone in the family would have a chance to give it a stir and make a Christmas wish.
For my American friends a traditional Christmas Pudding is a rich fruit & nut pudding that is steamed for several hours and reheated & served on Christmas Day.

The origin of 'stir up' actually comes from the Collect (a special prayer) for that particular Sunday in the Church of England Book of Common Prayer- the Sunday before Advent which says:-
"Stir up we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people,
That they, plenteously beinging forth the fruit of good works,
May of thee be plenteously rewarded.
Through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Amen."


Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_happens_on_stir_up_Sunday#ixzz2CaTbi1Xx

This is the Sundy before Advent Sunday, and is traditionally the day on which, in the UK, Christmas puddings are made (for those in the USA - Christmas pudding is a rich fruit cake full of nuts, fruit and so on, eaten with cream or brandy butter on Christmas Day ). The 'stir up' refers to stirring the puddings (making a wish too) before cooking so that after cooking they have enough time to mature before Christmas day.

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_happens_on_stir_up_Sunday#ixzz2CaRzqhbj

My Christmas Pudding recipe is the recipe I inherited from my mum.  Its the one she made when we were growing up and, for me epitomises THE taste of Christmas.  I actually prefer to make a huge batch of puddings, cooking them in an old laundry boiler and either giving them as gifts or keeping them to eat in following years.
Believe me, a 3 year-old Christmas pudding is so fantastic my eyes are watering at the thought!!!!!


Makes 1 large pudding
3lb (1.5kg) dried mixed fruit
1/2lb (250g) plain (all-purpose) flour
1lb (500g) white breadcrumbs (from a loaf of bread)
1lb (500g) beef (or vegetarian) suet (shredded)
1lb (500g) dark brown sugar
1tsp ground mixed spice
Pinch salt
2ox (50g) ground almonds
Grated rind of 2 lemons
Half a grated nutmeg (or 1 tsp ground nutmeg if you can't get a fresh one)
8 eggs
Can of Guinness or Murphys Stout to mix.

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, stirring well to combine everything evenly together.
2. Beat eggs together in a jug
3. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the eggs and half the stout.
4. Stir well, adding more stout as required to make a soft mixture
5. Get everyone in the family to give the mixture a stir and make their Christmas wish
6. Spoon into a greased heatproof pudding bowl and smooth over the top.  Leave a good inch/couple of cm space at the top to allow for the pudding to rise in the cooking
7. Now to prepare the top of the pudding - this is very important!  Take a double thickness square of greaseproof or baking paper and make a pleat across the middle.  Do the same with a double thickness square of baking foil.
8. Put the square of greaseproof on the top of the pudding.  Put a good tablespoon of plain flour in the centre then put the square of foil on top (making sure the pleats lie on top of each other).
9. You might need some help for this bit!  Take a doubled length of string, put it round the pudding bowl over the top of the paper/flour/foil sandwich, tying it tightly to make a good seal (don't let the pleats spread open) and trimming the string to a neat length.
10. Trim around the edge of the paper LEAVING A GOOD COUPLE OF INCHES BELOW THE STRING.  Fold the foil back up over the string.
11. Take a large saucepan and invert a saucer on the bottom and stand the pudding bowl on it.  Add boiling water until it is about an inch below the level of the string.  Bring the water back to the boil then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for a good 4 -5 hours, remembering to top up with extra boiling water regularly. 
12. CAREFULLY retrieve the pudding from the saucepan and leave to cool.  If you've made a string handle it can be much safer to use the handle of a wooden spoon to lift the pudding.
13. Once the pudding is completely cool clean the pudding basin and remove the paper/foil lid; re-cover with a fresh one (you won't need to put the flour in the middle this time).
14. Store in a cool dark place - you don't need to 'feed' your pudding like you would a Christmas cake.
15. On Christmas Day reheat the pudding by steaming it gently, as above, for about an hour before serving.  You can warm a little brandy, pour it over and light it if you wish, although I don't bother.  Serve with whipped cream, brandy butter, brandy sauce or custard as you prefer.
16. Try it on Boxing Day in a sandwich!!!!!

Keeping on Keeping on!

So, the first news is that I've FINALLY got my DLA claim off to DWP - 66 questions covered by 13 pages of answers prepared on the computer.  I'm aiming to bore them into re-allowing my claim, LOL. I'm making light of it but I'm terrified that now they're being so hard on claims they'll stop mine and I have no idea how we'll cope without it - especially my Motability car.

Of course the next problem is the 'Fit for Work' assessment I've just received now they're changing Incapacity Benefit over to either ESA or Income Support.  It never rains but when it bloody well pours, does it?  Oh well, hopefully I can use some of the stuff I've used on the DLA claim to complete this one.

Then its just a case of sitting, waiting and worrying while the Powers that Be make their decisions.

BUT . . . .

On a positive note, this week I've taken delivery of my new Scooter:

           A Quingo Vitess, 8mph, 30 mile charge about 22p!









This is going to make such a difference to my life - when we did the test drive we went round the Park, taking Taia (our Standard Poodle) with us.  Being able to take her for a walk was such a buzz - its the first time I've been able to walk the dog in 10 years and I was so excited!

Yesterday Mike and I 'walked' down into town together and went for a coffee - it was so lovely to be able to go through the Park holding hands and seeing all the trees in leaf.  I spotted squirrels just sitting on the grass watching the people go by, and was totally transfixed by them.  Of course Mike has seen them many times before and takes them for granted now but its the first time I have and it was just magical!

Of course, having Tessie (yes, I DO name my vehicles, spinning wheel etc!) isn't going to make me any better, but it does mean that on the days I'm able to do things I'm going to be able to go out under my own steam rather than having to drive the car to one shop, walk in and out and then have to come home to sleep to get over the walking.  We were out for an hour and a half yesterday and yes, I was shattered when we got in (and had to sleep for  several hours to get over it, but just being able to do something that most people take for granted let me feel almost normal for a while.

DLA Alert!

So, there's a HUGE elephant in the room . . . . I have my latest DLA claim sitting under the coffee table awaiting completion.  Its lurking, mouldering, glaring at me under its eyelashes; every so often it creeps out to remind me its there.

I know I've got to complete it and get it sent off - how I'd cope without my DLA I hate to imagine - and I've done half of it, but that was the easy half.  Now I've got to the questions that really get to the heart of my disability; I've got to put in words the struggles I face daily - the simple things like just getting out of bed, getting in and out of the bath, getting myself something to eat.  All those things most people take for granted - the things I used to take for granted - and now I struggle to do for myself.

I've got to put into writing how my lovely husband - now retired, who should be thinking about himself, not looking after his younger wife - has to look after me throughout the day.  How he does most of the cooking, ironing, helps me get up from bed, the sofa, in & out of the bath, etc.

My health has been so low for the last couple of months and I'm wondering if this is part of the problem - I know the government has to make cuts but the worry about losing this - and my Incapacity Benefit - is stressing me out so much.  I paid into the system all my working life yet now I live in fear that my only source of income is going to be taken away from me.  I have friends who have had this happen and the thought of it makes me so scared.  Without my money we can't manage on my husband's pension (we're barely managing now).

I know I HAVE to get this completed this weekend and posted on Tuesday but every time I psych myself up to do it the gremlins kick in and I'm too afraid to open the paperwork.

Wish me luck - tomorrow's THE day.

Honest

Update 9th May:  
Slightly late but all the questions are completed.  Just waiting for my supporting statements to come in and we're ready to go!

Spring has Sprung!

Well, I've just realised how long it is since I wrote anything here and thought it was about time I did something about it!

My spinning has come along great guns and I've managed to produce some lovely yarn - I'm currently spinning a Charrolais fleece in the grease, making an Aran weight yarn to knit a sweater for Mike.  I've promised it for winter this year, but of course I've still got to finish spinning the yarn before I can actually knit it and there is SO much pretty commercially prepared fluff to play with as well I keep on getting sidetracked!

I've also started using a drop-spindle and have found I can spin a really fine laceweight single with it and so I'm spinning some beautiful natural Blue Faced Leicester to make a shawl for myself.

So far this year I've been on a bit of a sock-knitting mission - I generally use my Universal Sock Pattern and make up the pattern as I feel the urge.  At the moment Mike is getting a few pairs made with variegated yarns but as he's pretty boring in the colour stakes I've been giving him outrageous colours for the toes, heels and ribbing.  I don't know if he's particularly keen on these little quirks but he loves his handmade socks and wears them so they can't be that bad.  For myself I've stuck to plain colours for now and using stitch patterns to pretty them up, and I was particularly pleased with my Fibonacci Socks (based on the Fibonacci numerical sequence) that can be worn scrunched down or pulled up - they're really cosy.

 I'm currently knitting a pair of socks for someone else as part of a Sock Swap - I'm making them in my favourite Blue Faced Leicester but as they're pure wool with no nylon for strength I'm making them on much smaller needles than I would usually (2mm) so they are hard-wearing and will hopefully not only fit (!) but will give the recipient a lot of pleasure to wear.  I'll post photos of these when they're finished (and I've worked out how to post photos - I'm new to blogging and still need to learn a lot).

Actually, thinking of posting photos reminds me that up until now I've been photographing my socks (for my Ravelry Project Page) by laying them on the hearth and, to be honest the photos have been pretty dire (I never claimed to be a good photographer!).  But last week I bought myself a clear plastic display leg so that I can at least get a half-decent picture of my finished items.  I'm now wondering whether to get a boatload of glitter to fill the leg - I'm never satisfied!

Well, enough for today - lets see if I can manage to do more regular updates!