Thrifty Gifty - Organised for Christmas and all ocassions 2009- Santas Challenges

Shevs

rufusd!!!2 wrote: »

Wow I would like to do cake decorating but think I would be too heavy handed to make a decent job of it. Will stick with my kniting sewing I think.

Bought set of 3 smallish excercise boks in Tesco yesterday for about 32p and have just covered them all with pics of a certain Twilight person who my youngest is mad on. Then covered over the top with clear sticky back plastic left over from her drawer sets I did (same kind of thing). The plastic can be a bu$$er to get on but only got a small crease in one of them. Sure she wont mind.

Rufusdog, go for the cake decorating course, my instructor was the same when she started it out. She told us that she put off doing the course for years cos she thought she was heavy handed and her hands were too fat (codswollop in my opinion) bbut there she is nearly 20 years later with a flurishing business and also teaching it for a leaving. So I'd say deffo give it a go xXx

cdsmiler

Oh I'd love to do a cake decorationg course, but no time at the moment, plus most courses seem to be during the day and I work full time. One day though, for sure!!!

Clare x

cdsmiler

Oooooooooo just wondered, does anyone know of a gluten free christmas cake recipe? SIL is gluten intolerant, so could come in useful....

Thanks!

Clare x

jamtart6

ooh rufus please make me an edward cullen notebook!!! actually i am so team jacob these days!

however i shouldnt be on mse so i am going now! xx

mum2one

Shevs wrote: »

Thanks Jammy!!! How are you hun? Have you finished doing your house up? I've been a bit busy to be honest, I did a course a month or so ago and I am now a qualified gym and studio instructor and on monday I am starting a part time hairdressing course. After being made redundant I have decided to give everything I ever wanted to do a go and if I dont like then no harm no foul at least I can say I tried it and it didnt work out but so far I have loved everything. I did a cake decorating course aswell which was a lot of fun and I am looking forward to halloween to decorate a halloween cake and christmas aswell........ Sorry for rambling:D xXx

Hi shevs

Welcome back to the mad house!!
Sorry to hear about the redundancy, but good for you grabbing it the B*lls and turning it into a positive aspect.
Congratulations on the qualfied gym aspect (mum2one slowly hides away at this point!), and gd luck for the hairdressing, are u sure you not near to me I'd be your model.
cake decorting, is their no ends to your talent.
Dont apologise for rambling, thats what we here for.

Actually you've given me a brilliant idea for mini santas challenge.
xx

mum2one

Reading Shevs post, I had a lightbulb moment!! the brain doesnt come into action to much unless its studying time..... Will go back to in a min!

Bit of fun were have a mini santas challenge - dont worry no cleaning....!!

1.What have you done or achieved, that no one would really know unless you told them.

2. What would you like to do if you if you could, nothing for anyone else, just you!.

Here goes -

1. I have a Level One in Reki healing.

2. Fly over Las Vegas strip in a helicopter.

xx

SugarSpun

Hmm.

The people at work know, but I'm not sure how many people in my not-work life know that I have a doctorate in philosophy. I rarely talk about it outside work because it just isn't relevant.

And just for me, I'd like to see Machu Picchu.


I came back into the thread because I don't have enough eyes to roll - apparently I'm in charge of buying all Husband's Christmas gifts for other people too. I've just done my dad and brother, Dad's getting a make your own internal combustion engine and a book about sheds, brother's getting a book about flying and some baseball caps. Still to go are my mother (we're buying glittery garden gnomes), his nephews and new not-yet-born niece, none of whom I have ever met so I've no idea what to buy them. He's being good enough to buy my Christmas present himself :rolleyes:

paddingtondoo

Had trouble thinking what I would do for just me lol!

1. I was one of the little girls who tap danced with Roy Castle round the fountain at the BBC centre all those years ago.

2. Sing with a jazz band

sarahf191979

Serves 12
Takes 4 hours to make, plus chilling


Nutritional Information

Per serving:
575kcals
26.7g fat (4.5g saturated)
6.7g protein
79.3g carbs
63.9g sugar
0.5g salt

Ingredients

• 450g luxury mixed dried fruit
• 250g dried figs, quartered
• 175g glac! cherries
• 150ml ruby port or dark rum
• Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
• 225g dairy-free sunflower margarine
• 175g light muscovado sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 225g gluten-free plain white flour
• 2 tsp ground mixed spice
• 50g ground almonds
• 100g pecan nuts

Method: How to make christmas cake


1. Grease and line the base and sides of a 20cm loose-bottomed deep round cake tin with baking paper.
Tip

Decorate this cake with glac! fruits and nuts or marzipan and icing. If you need to avoid wheat sources of sugar check labels carefully and make sure the dried fruits have no added sugar.

2. Put the dried fruit, cherries, port or rum and orange zest and juice into a large saucepan. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool.
3. Preheat the oven to 150°C/fan130°C/gas 2. Beat the margarine and sugar together until pale. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Fold in the flour with a pinch of salt, then add the mixed spice and ground almonds until well combined. Stir in the fruit and pecan nuts and spoon into the prepared tin. Level the surface and bake for 3½ hours until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
4. Cool in the tin for 30 minutes, then take out and cool on a rack. Discard the baking paper and re-wrap in baking paper and foil. Keep in an airtight tin for up to 2 months.
For the cake decoration
Mixed nuts and glace fruit
1. Warm 3 tablespoons of apricot jam with 1 tablespoon of water and brush half over the surface of the cake. Arrange 100g mixed nuts, 550g mixed glac! fruit (such as cherries, pears, melon, orange, lemon) on top and brush with the remaining apricot mixture to glaze.
For a traditional cake
Take your time when decorating the cake to ensure a smooth finish.
1. Warm 3 tablespoons apricot jam with 1 tablespoon water in a small saucepan, then push through a sieve. Turn the cake over and place on a 25cm round cake board. Brush all over with the sieved apricot jam.
2. On a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar, roll out 600g almond marzipan to a 25cm circle. Lift over the cake and press down lightly, using cupped hands to shape the sides. Trim off any excess.
3. On a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar, lightly knead 250g ready-to-roll white fondant icing until softened. Brush the marzipan with a tiny bit of water to make the marzipan 'tacky'. On a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar and a tiny bit of cornflour, roll out the fondant icing to a 25cm round. Lift over the cake and shape, as with the marzipan.
4. Dust your hands with icing sugar and cornflour and 'polish' the cake. Trim the edges with a knife to finish.

© delicious. magazine

Courtesy of: http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/baking/cakes

Anglea

mum2one wrote: »

Reading Shevs post, I had a lightbulb moment!! the brain doesnt come into action to much unless its studying time..... Will go back to in a min!

Bit of fun were have a mini santas challenge - dont worry no cleaning....!!

1.What have you done or achieved, that no one would really know unless you told them.

2. What would you like to do if you if you could, nothing for anyone else, just you!.

Here goes -

1. I have a Level One in Reki healing.

2. Fly over Las Vegas strip in a helicopter.

xx

Me -

I used to play the piano well enough to get asked to play in a special concert dedicated to Chopin. However, I didn't actually do it, I was too scared.

2. Get a chauffeur to drive me to all the places I wanted to go in England, but can't get to due to a travel phobia. So they would be very patient with me stopping the car every 5 mins to find a toilet! :rotfl: