Edible Christmas presents - recipes please

[franch]

Forward planning Especially looking for things I can make well in advance and store or freeze.

Truffles, chocolates, cakes, ...

My sister used to do crystallised pineapple for Christmas presents, in tiny paper cases (petits fours cases?) in small boxes covered beautifully with pretty paper (she's good at that sort of thing - I'd have to buy the boxes as I am kackhanded which would eliminate the financial saving, although I could imagine doing boxes covered in ds's drawings for grandparents.

TBH I think I would probably do fudge as it's bog easy, but crystallised fruit is more Christmassy for those who like it.

The basic principle is to keep fruit in sugar syrup for days i think, although there's lots of very different recipes. I was typing one out for you but it involves reboiling the sugar and doing stuff for 10 days!!!

Here's the Limoncello one:

5 unwaxed lemons
1 litre bottle vodka
750g/1lb 10oz castor sugar
700ml/1¼ pints boiling water

1.Pare zest from lemons. Put in clean jar/bottle and pour over vodka. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and leave for a week, shaking every day
2.Put sugar into heatproof bowl and pour over boiling water, stir to dissolve. Add vodka mixture and leave for another week, shaking regularly
3.Strain into pretty bottles and add few strips of zest.

We usually make half quantities and do it all in a litre vodka bottle reserved for the purpose