Give your traditional meal a little rizz and dazzle by baking these desserts to spice up your festive meal.
Here are 3 dessert ideas to try out this Christmas;
FRUIT CAKE
INGREDIENTS
250 grams Plain Flour
250 grams Butter
4 Eggs
170 grams Sugar
11⁄4 tablespoonful Baking powder
1 tablespoonful flavor (vanilla or butterscotch)
½ cup Brandy or Rum
1⁄4 cup Browning
1 handful mixed Dry fruits (raisins,sultanas,currants,cherries)
1 teaspoon citrus peels(orange, lemon or grapefruit peel)
½ teaspoon Ground Nutmeg & Cinnamon (for extra flavor)
METHOD
Adjust an oven rack to center position, and preheat oven to 350°. To a large baking sheet, add dry fruits, bake until golden and tossing often, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars, citrus peels, add eggs and vanilla, and beat to combine. In another bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, nutmeg & cinnamon..
Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients,. Add toasted nuts and dry fruit. Transfer to bundt pan and bake until golden and toothpick comes out clean, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool 10 minute, then invert onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
CHERRY AND COCONUT SLICE
INGREDIENTS
300g glace cherries, chopped, plus extra to serve
375g desiccated coconut, plus extra to serve
395g can sweetened condensed milk
1 pinch of sea salt
200g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), roughly chopped
2 tablespoons coconut oil
METHOD
Line a 20 cm square slice tray with baking paper.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cherries, coconut, condensed milk and salt. Press evenly into the prepared tray and pop in the freezer for 30 minutes to set.
Melt the chocolate and coconut oil in a heatproof bowl in the microwave for 30-second bursts, stirring between each burst.
Pour the chocolate over the top of the cherry mixture, sprinkle with the extra cherries and coconut and put in the fridge to set for at least 30 minutes.
cut into pieces and serve.
SANTA HAT CUPCAKE
1/2 c baked cupcakes
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter
2 8 oz packages cream cheese, softened
3 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Red food coloring
Red sanding sugar
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin tin with liners. Make chocolate cupcakes according to package directions. Let cool completely.
Make cream cheese frosting: In a large bowl, beat together butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy.
Transfer about one third of the frosting to a smaller bowl. Dye the rest of the frosting (in the large bowl) red.
Pipe red frosting onto cupcakes in a conical shape to mimic a Santa hat. Sprinkle with red sanding sugar. Use a smaller star tip to pipe the white frosting around the edges.
