Poncetastic Christmas 2024

[StiffyByngsDogBartholomew]

@vivajen hasn't posted on MN for a year so I've taken the bull by the horns. I can't wait any longer !
Wherever you are, Fellatio, here's to you. I hope you're brining a turkey and had crafting authentic organic woven tinsel somewhere.
"OK, first of all, I know it's still September by we need to start this thread now because as you all know, having a truly Poncetastic Christmas involves precision planning, strategy, bravery, heroics, and frequently martyrdom.
So, if you, like me, actually want to make the next twelve weeks of your life a misery by hand-crafting your cards, finding a huge bucket for Nigella's turkey in brine, pickling pears, shrivelling oranges in a low oven for those rustic au naturel decorations, dragging half a holly bush back from the woods, and just generally being a smug annoying jobs worth ponce, join me on this thread.
Feel free to post photos of previous tree-trimming, cake icing or table centrepiece triumphs, discuss this year's bauble colour themes, debate the merits of Delia versus Gordon, road-test a selection of canapés and cocktails, (all in the line of duty) and link to lovely inspirational photos/craft ideas for a truly Poncetastic Christmas.
Warning: If your idea of a good Christmas involves Pizza, ITV, gravy granules or anything with 'Aunt Bessie’s' on the packet, this is not the thread for you".

🎄🎄🎄🎄

Try a scrap and see?

@StiffyByngsDogBartholomew royal icing is a genius suggestion!

Seasons greetings all!

I've lurked on these threads for years and am finally joining in!
I'm working my way through the thread but already so inspired seeing and hearing about everyone's plans. Thank you to the poster who shared the cracker recipes. We're taking the family to an event as a Christmas present this year so essentially will be giving them a piece of paper. So I'm planning to make everyone a little hamper of homemade goodies so they have a physical gift to open too.
So far I'm thinking, mini Christmas cakes, marmalade, crackers (thank you MN) bath melts/salts, biscuits. Not sure what else yet!

Home ponce-wise I'll be making miles of paper chains. I like to use sugar paper for this as I love the colour and texture.
Homemade crackers for the table, last year I used some reproduction Victorian newspaper print which was lovely.
We invested in a faux tree last year too so I'll be putting mine up in November and being one of those people, haha

Right, I've bitten the bullet and bought some felt from the UK on Etsy. They're not the exact colours I was going for but I think they will work. I'm on holiday in a week so will have more time to ponce then.
I'm about to sit down and make a shopping list to make my Xmas puds, I was hoping to start soaking the fruit tonight but I have so many papers to mark I think it's going to have to wait until the holidays too. 😩

Cake is in the oven! Smells fantastic 😋
Got enough for an 8 inch and a mini 4 inch one too.
I have reserved the bit of liquid that was in the bottom of the bowl where I soaked the fruit, and will use it for feeding the cake.
Is it better to once cool keep it in a tin or a plastic container? Also do I use cling film or just baking paper?
(Scared of mold!)

@Lalanbaba I'd boil that to kill any bacteria and then mix some more alcohol into it to preserve, before feeding the cake with it.

(sorry, just to be clear, simmer for a while now, then add a bit of alcohol, then save. After that you can safely use it to feed your cake and mold won't be an issue)

Thanks for the tip!

(sterilise your jar too, and use it all in your first feed, depending on how much You've got - you don't want to make your cake too sloshy - otherwise you'll need to boil again and store in a freshly sterilised jar. Someone will probably come along and say I'm being OTT but I have a thing about mold and it'd be so disappointing to open a lovely cake and find it all ruined!)

I have never had a moldy cake and I have always wrapped with baking paper, silver foil then in either a tin or a plastic tub.

Fun fact, a tub of celebrations costs less than a plastic cake box and fits a wrapped 12” cake very snugly.

The container doesn't matter AFAIK as long as it's airtight. The alcohol will kill what shouldn't be there (which is why I'm being OTT above). I'd just be so annoyed if I somehow managed to accidentally contaminate the cake. It's different when you're feeding with straight alcohol.

Thanks for the advice. I have simmered the liquid and is pure syrup 😀
I will find another use for it and use brandy for the cakes

Ohhh that sounds yummy! I'm not gonna lie I'd be getting some ice cream in, or maybe make some kind of ginger cake or pudding and I'd be drizzling that syrup right over it!

Well, the term “gratinated marzipan” is new to me. But, I have had for many years Darina Allen’s Simply Christmas and she does a whole cake in the stuff.

I haven't got a tin or container for my cake. It's just wrapped in baking paper then tin foil. Should I buy one to put it in?

I've always put it into a container. But maybe you don't need to! I'm not a keen enough baker to know these things for certain. 🙂

This weekend flew by for some reason and I got none of my proposed poncing done.

Did a gingerbread house cross-stitch and wasn’t sure what to do with it so will sew it onto a red sweatshirt and wear it over Christmas time.

That's lovely @Trumpton

@Trumpton that's super cute. And what a great idea to put it on a swear shirt.

Do some more @Trumpton You could sell swear shirts. Poncing mumsnetters could tell their families that if they are wearing their swear shirt, they are swearing and all families should keep away.

@TheSandgroper
You know me so well!

A couple of people have mentioned making chili jam. Does anyone have a recipe they could recommend? Thanks!

@TheSandgroper I use Nigella's recipe for quantities but find it needs a bit longer on the boil (maybe 15-20 minutes) and I pour it into the jars straight away as it's the cooling action that seals the jars.

I will confess that I rarely make the same batch twice - I'll re boil it if it's too runny (I try not to let this happen as it's a pain in the neck washing and sterilising the jars again) but I have on occasion made it so thick you could cut it with a knife 😂

I prefer this one to Nigella's as I think it sets more reliably!