The Festive Food To Make Now

Peel, core and finely chop the apples, chop the plums and mix everything together apart from the sherry. Leave overnight.

Bake at around 150°C covered with foil for one hour and then stir and bake for another hour.

Leave to cool and stir every now and then.

When cold, stir through the sherry.

Store in a cool dry place for around 2-3 months for the best flavour.

Mix together all your ingredients apart from the self-raising flour and let it sit overnight in a covered bowl.

The next day, line two 700g pudding basins with ceramic or plastic and then brush them with melted butter.

Stir the self-raising flour through your pudding mix and then split evenly between your lined pudding basins.

Cut a greaseproof disc to cover the top of your basin and place it on top of your pudding mix. Then make a lid out of foil, crimping it around the edges of your pudding basin to make sure no liquid can get in. Wrap some string around the foil and make a handle to make it easier to lift from the steaming pot.

To cook your pudding, fill a pan with a few inches of simmering water and place your pudding basins inside, cover your pan with a lid and steam on a low heat for 4 hours, occasionally checking to make sure the water doesn’t boil dry.

Leave this to mature until Christmas Day, then either re-steam for an hour and a half or else microwave. Serve with plenty of brandy butter and double cream.

Mix the raisins, lemon peel and almonds with the rum and vanilla extract and keep aside.

If using a food mixer, mix the flour, sugar, salt, crumbled yeast and lemon zest and pour in the milk and the egg. Start kneading using a low to medium speed until it starts to come together as a dough.

Add the softened butter and the marzipan a little at a time until it is fully incorporated and increase the speed until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Add the dried fruits and the chopped almonds and mix in the dough. Transfer the dough to a bowl, cover with cling film and allow to prove until it doubles in size (you can either do this by placing the bowl in a steam oven at 40°C or in a warming drawer using the lowest setting).

Turn the dough out onto the work surface and shape it into a large oval. Fold the dough in half lengthwise and press the folded side slightly to help the loaf keep its shape. Carefully lift and place onto a baking tray.

Slide the tray into the oven and cook at 160°C Fan for 30 minutes.

Remove the stollen from the oven, place on a wire rack and brush all around with melted butter. Finish with a dusting of icing sugar.

Beat together the butter and icing sugar.

Slowly add the water, mixing until well combined.

Lastly, add the brandy. Continue to mix until your butter is a smooth consistency.

For quick and easy serving, place into baking parchment and roll into a small sausage. Chill and ensure the mix has set before cutting into slices and placing on top of your favourite desserts. Alternatively, place into a small jar and store in the fridge.

In a large bowl combine the icing sugar and coconut.

Slowly pour in the condensed milk and bind the mixture. This is where you can add a little water to help the mixture along.

When the mixture becomes firm, divide in half and set aside one part.

Colour one half of the mixture with a few drops of the pink food colouring and mix in the cranberries, chocolate pieces etc.

Using a metal spoon, press the pink mixture into a lined traybake tin, making sure it is evenly spread.

Take the white mixture and press over the top of the pink. Smooth over with a palette knife.

Cover with cling film and place in the fridge for around an hour to set, or preferably overnight.

When set, cut into small squares. Try scattering some cranberries or chocolate pieces on top for decoration.

Add the apples, onions, cranberries and dates into a pan.

Add the zest of the satsumas then squeeze in the juice and pulp.

Add the maple sugar, maple syrup, spices and salt. Pour over the red wine vinegar and stir together.

Bring to the boil, then turn down to simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat, place lid onto the pan and leave to stand for 1-2 hours.

Once completely cool, serve or store in a sterilised jar or a plastic tub and refrigerate.

Begin with the pastry by rubbing the flour and cold butter into crumbs.

Stir the sugar through. Add the egg yolk and cut the mixture with metal knife until incorporated. Add a little cold water at a time to bring just bring dough together.

Wrap and store the pastry in a fridge overnight.

For the filling, slice pears and add zest, cinnamon, cloves, thyme and vanilla seeds plus pod and leave to infuse overnight.

When ready the next day, preheat oven to 180°C /Gas mark 4 and grease a muffin tin.

Roll the pastry onto a floured surface, reserving a small chunk to make pastry stars later.

Cut 9 discs of pastry and line muffin tin. Cut 9 pastry stars from remaining pastry.

Blind bake for 8 minutes. You can use baking beans or protect your pastry with greaseproof paper and use clean, spare coins.

Meanwhile, remove and discard the cloves and vanilla pod from the pear mixture and stir in toasted pine nuts.

Fill the tarts and add a pastry star to each, brushing with a little cold milk to help browning in the oven.

Bake for 10-14 minutes, checking to see how they brown.

Remove from oven and to sit for a few minutes before turning out on a rack to cool.

Drizzle with the melted chocolate.

Serve plain, or with brandy cream (and don’t forget to dip any other fruit to hand in the spare melted chocolate).

To make the cake, heat the oven to 170°C/150°C Fan/Gas mark 3. Line a 20cm round, 10cm deep cake tin with baking parchment.

With an electric whisk, beat together the sugar and conserve with the eggs and oil for 3-4 minutes.

Stir in all the remaining ingredients until evenly mixed and spoon into the prepared tin. Bake for about 1 ½ hours or until golden brown and firm to the touch. A skewer pushed into the centre should come out clean. Leave the cake to cool in the tin before turning out.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. Put the mascarpone in a bowl and gradually beat in the cream with a wooden spoon until thick and smooth. Now beat in the soft cheese and icing sugar. Chill the mixture for 15 minutes.

Cut the cold cake into three layers. Set aside the top of the cake and spread the bottom and middle layer generously with the apricot conserve. Lightly dollop about a third of the frosting onto the conserve and spread evenly. Layer up the cake again and lightly cover the top and sides with the remaining frosting. Some of the cake should show through. Decorate as you like.

Butter each slice of panettone on each side and cut into triangles. Layer the panettone in a greased ovenproof dish, sprinkling with mixed spice and some grated nutmeg in each later until you have used all the panettone. Leave to one side.

Warm the milk and cream in a sauce pan on a low heat until almost at boiling point.

In a mixing bowl break the eggs, 25g of the sugar and whisk until the mixture becomes pale. Then add the warm milk and cognac and whisk to combine.

Once well mixed, strain the mixture and pour over the buttered panettone. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar and some more grated nutmeg and leave to stand for about 45 minutes to allow the custard to soak into the panettone.

Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C for about 40 minutes or until golden brown and the custard has set.