Thursday 13 December 2012

It's the most wonderful time of the year!


I love Christmas - I adore it!

It really is the most wonderful time of the year.  I love the festive atmosphere - the Christmas kitsch, the sparkling decorations and all the fabulously fun times spent with friends and family.  Its also a great excuse for baking and cooking addicts like me to spend cherished moments in the kitchen, whipping up delicious treats for all the parties and special visits with friends or family.

However, I can get rather frazzled and am prone to having a moment or two when I need things to calm down and the pace to relax a bit.  Therefore I like to have a few tricks up my sleeve to help with this endeavour.  One of the best things has to be recipes that are 'easy peasy' but still gorgeous.  Like these gorgeous little marshmallow puff Xmas puddings that I discovered via my lovely friend Leah over at whydidntanyonetellme.blogspot.com



Lots of friends have asked me for the recipe for these darling little treats, but I feel like such a fraud as there isn't really a 'recipe' per se...its more of an assembly job!

Marshmallow Puff Xmas Puddings:

1.  Take a packet (or two!) of Griffin's marshmallow puffs (I have no idea what you would use in countries that do not sell these, but any thing that is round and chocolaty would do)





2.  Melt some white chocolate for the 'custard' look - I used the following:


3.  Finally (and this is surely the best part of all) pop a little jaffa, chocolate orange ball, on top!  If you cant buy these you could simply use a cherry.



See what I mean about being a fraud - its not really baking or cooking at all - but everyone loves them!

We finally have the tree up and the house decorated.  My son is over the moon with joy and loves each and every one of the Christmas rituals, like decorating the tree.  Each year we have a ritual of visiting a special department store in Wellington (kirkaldie and stains) to visit the Xmas shop and choose a new decoration.  We always pop into the tea rooms for a wee treat too.

My son still believes in the magic that is Xmas and is simply filled with excitement as we count down the days till the jolly man in red pays us a visit.  It took my husband and I eight years to finally become parents when we adopted our beautiful son in England.  There isn't a moment of each and every day when I am not thankful for having him to love and cherish, but at Christmas it seems especially poignant.  It may sound cheesy but I do feel like we are blessed to have our little boy.  As such each of his home-made decorations are absolute treasures to me and I adore displaying them in the house each year.

A coke bottle Santa Claus made by my wee boy when he was only 5 years old



My son made this fabulous Xmas picture for me when he was 6 years old and it takes pride of place on the bookcase every Christmas.

 
 
 Every year I think I might make my own Christmas cards like some of my talented friends do, but alas I have never quite achieved that goal.  One very talented friend of mine (thanks Shelley!) made this Xmas card with a teeny tiny crochet hat on it - amazing!
 
 
 


Right, I think it is time to call it a day and curl up on the sofa with a cup of tea and a gingerbread reindeer.
 
Becks xxx
 

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful."
 - Norman Vincent Peale