FN's Ponstastic Christmas Thread part Trois....

[FellatioNelson]

....will be officially open for business on September 24th. I am just firing up the engines and dusting down the control room ready for action in case I forget to do it on the 24th

Do not post yet. Do not. Sit on your hands, ladies.

On your marks........................

It's Delia cake and Nigella Ultimate pudding for me Some0ne.

i do delia's pud and cake (will make them in Oct/Nov) and i made mincemeat last weekend...

re the raspberry gin - do you drink it neat or add a mixer. Is it nice with tonic?

I tried Rachel Allen's pudding. It was very pale and not very alluring.

I wouldn't recommend it

I made the Nigella chocolate christmas cake two years ago - it has lots of prunes in it and no nuts and barely any flour. Recipe The chocolate is an undertone rahter than the main thing and I used the poncey-est cocoa that I could find in waitrose - I had to GRATE it myself, people, cos it came in a raw block. Also didn't bother with the coffee and added booze instead.

I am not really a fan of traditional fruit cake but this was really lovely and dense and fruity. DH is the Chrimbo cake fiend and he loved it.

bezzyk that cordial looks luverly. Thanks. Will add to my shopping list

I still have 3/4 of my bottle of amaretto I bought last Christmas. But I need new amaretti biscuits I'm afraid (DH and DD both hate almonds so this was truly something for myself that I tried and really enjoyed as a special treat).

OOh, like the sound of the Coffee-free chocolate cake. I did Nigella's "Spruced Up Vanilla Cake" last year after getting the proper tin as a birthday present (it's too late by Christmas day after all) and that went down really well with the Fruitcake haters as well as looking really good on the table.

Massively saves on decorating faff too. I stuck coloured chocolate beans on mine (we boycott Nestle so no Smarties allowed) and dusted with icing sugar so it looked like a ring of lit christmas trees.

Oh Blather I do love the look of that fancy cake tin cake but how does it keep once cut? I am conscious that I will have people around over christmas but not everyone at once. So not sure a madeira style cake will keep. Not sure I will be able to reach the oven either though!

Oh god, I need to have the conversation about where we are spending Christmas. My folks will be okay (we went to Ireland last year and I won't be allowed to fly at Christmas this year) but DH's parents are owed a Christmas and are apparently plotting to come to us for the day (heard through the grapevine). Might have to arrange a pre-emptive "Sunday before Christmas" family meal instead with BIL too to appease the masses. I just don't think I could cope with them on Christmas day in our tiny flat at 34wks PG with twins. I would go insane and I HATE other people using my kitchen. Plus MIL doesn't believe in butter or salt and a bad Christmas lunch will ruin my day entirely.

in terms of cutting corners though (if poncers were ever to do such a thing), what would you recommend? I don't think I will be able to manage the full oysters followed by goose Christmas lunch of 2010 (for 2 people ). And DH is a competent every day cook - ie pasta/curry using a jar of paste/grilled chops. But a big roast is beyond him. I can do some bits in advance (dauphinoise potatoes/red cabbage/stuffing) but will need to enlist Waitrose/M&S for some of the donkey work. Please help!

Blatherskite I got a load of green buttons off eBay last year to make some of those button trees

It didn't last long enough for us to test FreeButtonBee It was good for the couple of days it lasted though. The recipe is mostly yoghurt so it stayed moist.

At the risk of being kicked off the thread - the year DD was born, I did most of Christmas lunch at home 8 days post c-section. I do not recommend it. Buy it pre-prepared from Waitrose/M&S/artisan butcher and give yourself a break. I managed to do turkey, Nigella's ham in cherry coke and spuds in goose fat OK but was ready for a sit down by the time it came to do the veg. Precise timing very tough while feeding a newborn every 5 minutes.

planting my hyacinths ready for xmas presents and decorating the house at xmas tomorrow.

christmas pudding voka - is it really nice or just another jar of something homemade that will end up in the bin?

Freebuttonbee, could you entertain the ILS before Christmas day, make vague murmurings about needing the rest DR's orders, babies might come early? (I'm not trying to frighten you, more trying to get you to frighten the ILS) This means that you don't need to do the fancy lunch, make a posh casserole the day before and do some veg and potatoes and serve a bought or made in advance pud.

Get dh on board to persuade them that this will be the only option and that you will be resting for the forseeable after that!

Girly yes, I think that is the only sensible option. Might even make it a meal out, rather than me cooking. I do feel bad but I just can't cope with them on Christmas Day this year. Once we have a bigger house, then it will be totally fine and they can come when they like but my bed is approx 15 ft from the bed in the spare room which is just TOOOOO CLOOOOOOSE.

Don't want to spoil yourplans givemeclue but is it not a bit late for hyacinths?

californiaburrito, wise men loaves? Do these things really exist?

Lordy! Is that the time already? I join this thread every year but never really reach the poncey heights and fail. This year I'm not making a pud as I still have one from last year. No one really likes christmas cake or pud so it's coffee cake and sticky toffee pud here. I have a Delia box cake left over so am going to knock that up.

I have started with dotcomgiftshop shopping.

Hmm already I am failing at ponceyness but will hang around like a bad smell in the hope some of your fragrant ponceyness will rub off.

Hello Al0uiseg, I haven't seen you around here for ages! I would love to do all the things you suggest but I would feel like a terrible fraud at the moment - I can only participate in half my own thread as it is. No holly gathering, no snow, no real tree, no open fire around which to have post-prandial parlour games, no long winter walks in expensive wellies, and no brace of pheasant for me any more. I barely deserve to be here. I am a let-down.

(I live in the middle east now and we have to be grateful for small mercies. It's fake trees and frozen turkeys all the way.)

But I still fly the flag of Ponce in my heart, if that helps at all.

I just misread your message givemeaclue - thought it said you were decorating the house for Christmas tomorrow!! I've calmed down a little now I've reread it and confirmed that you're planting hyacinths in preparation for decorating the house!

hyacinths

want

someone talk me through it?

Is there still time to plant something - hyacinths or something else for christmas presents? If so could some one tell me how? what? where? and when? please!

My CK organiser came today! I'm looking forward to preparing my ponce when DD has gone to bed.

I have a piccalilli recipe (Gary Rhodes) that is tried and tested. I'll find it and post when I'm not on my phone.

Can anyone point me towards any online templates for making small fabric Christmas tree decorations please? TY

Oooh, yes please to your tried and tested recipe teddy

This year I bought a copy of Delia Smith's Christmas in a sale for a really, really ridiculous price so along with my Nigella Christmas book and an old Darina Allen one I already have I hope to knock out a very British Isles-ey sort of culinary extravaganza.

I thought of the Poncetastic threads when I was at the book sale clutching Delia to my heart in the line to pay.

oreocrumbs whats the organiser like ? Is there headings / sections or is it basically a christmas patterend folder?!

It is a ring binder, with a pocket at the back for reciepts.

There are 4 main sections

To do - which has sheets of lined, grid and plain paper

Cards and presents - has sheets with name and address spaces, present table (name and present coloumn) and to buy sheets.

Food and drink - pocket to hold stuff, conversion tables, cooking times and tips, menu planner sheets, shopping list sheets, guest list table (coloumns for name, vegetarian, fish eater), scrapbook type pages to glue in recipes.

Notes - wad of sheets to write notes.

Has a sheet of stickers to use to personalise/make sub sections.

I'm quite happy with it. There is plenty of space to add other bits in with it being a ring binder so that is handy. Also you will be able to remove and replace pages that become redundant over the years.