Old style christmas hamper challenge

Quackers

earthmother wrote: »

. If I filled them as near as possible to when they'll be given, I could possibly get away without a proper lid too (clingfilm/cellophane and an elastic band, with a fancy cover over the top), which means I can reuse some old jars - will do a couple of trial runs beforehand though, just to make sure the ingredients won't go stale too quickly.

You could always use the proper lid but still put the fancy cover on top of that.

earthmother

I seem to have an excess of lidless jars - that's why I was thinking that way, but if it doesn't work, then I will, as you say, cover proper lids

midlandsfairy

oooh dear, that means that I'll have to take a trip to Ikea
I can spend hours in our local independent kitchen shop, drooling over it all but sadly they are quite expensive (hence why I drool but don't buy!!)

Earthmother- lakeland sell the lids by themselves, I got a pack of 12 that fit 'standard' jam jar type jars and they were only a couple of pounds I think. The ones I got had a gingham pattern but they may do them in other patterns/plain lids??

Anyone making a start this weekend? I'm doing a couple of xmas cakes this weekend and wanted to try 3 cookies/brownies in a jar recipes that i've narrowed it down to before deciding which 2 to use later for presents. Will let everyone know if there are any runaway successes. Going to be stealing the crepe paper 'bomb' wrapping style at the start of the thread I think.

kethry

I made a bottle of chilli vodka last night.. gonna make some bread and butter pickles this weekend, along with chilli jam, onion marmalade, sloe gin, toblerone vodka, limoncello, a large and a small christmas cake, and a large and a small christmas pudding, and probably a batch of mincemeat as well. my parents in law are visiting at the end of Oct and parts of all this is going into a large hamper for them for christmas, they're dutch so they don't do things like christmas pudding/cake/mince pies, but do love them. I was going to get all the ingredients for this today but other things have intervened so it'll be tomorrow now. oh well!

keth
xx

Polly_Pod

i'm' doing some hampers this year.... the first one i'm one i've put an italian theme on. So i've bought pasta, olive oil & some pasta sauces so far. i've been getting them whils't they are on offer BOGOF's etc

made some spiced plum chutney which is all jarred up - does anyone know where i can find some pretty labels?

would love your apple chees recipe sounds lush

kethry

Polly_Pod wrote: »

made some spiced plum chutney which is all jarred up - does anyone know where i can find some pretty labels?

your italian hamper sounds lovely.. maybe you could add some flavoured oils/vinegars as well?

re: labels, you could do what i've done and that's to paint blackboard paint onto the jars, then write the label on with chalk. it works well, and looks wonderfully homemade and rustic, somehow. you can see some examples here, but i would leave doing labels till *after* the jars are all sealed and bottled up. Also not good if you're giving the jars to someone with children, as someone told me they did this with their jars but the kids like to handle them and the chalk gets rubbed off.. LOL.

HTH

keth
xx

Tuttifruitty_Theresa

hi everyone, how are we all doing with our hampers? i'm not doing very well lol, i've got a secret santa and the budget is £5.00 so i thought about our thread. I did think about mince pies, mini cakes etc but need some more ideas, and you ladies were the first people i thought of lol



xxx

haylibo

I'm doing a small food hamper and would love to put more in but apart from the alcohol and jams/chutneys I have no idea how long everything keeps. Anyone any idea on fudge? Choc truffles? How far ahead do people make biscuits and baked goods? I believe shortbread can be frozen but anything else? Any help appreciated as so far I have only toffee vodka (the new scent of christmas lol), two chutneys and some walnut shortbread.
TY

Sallys_Savings

How about pickle onions..really easy...could make chilli pickle onions by just adding a couple of whole chillis and dried chillis to give it more kick in time for christmas. (I have mine made over a month ago and only put in whole chillis)

I've made marzipan fruits 3 weeks before christmas and they were just fine.

MoneyGypsy

Dear All,

this is a great idea - here are some recipes i have found so far. Haven't tried them yet. All found here and more besides: http://www.ivillage.co.uk/homegarden/homemade_christmas

Christmas pudding vodka

Prep time: 15 minutes
Makes 1 bottle

Ingredients:
1-litre bottle vodka
1 tbsp dark muscovado sugar
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 cinnamon sticks
1 star anise
50g raisins
50g almonds, roughly chopped
Peel from one large orange, scrubbed
Peel from one large lemon, scrubbed
8 cloves

Preparation:
Combine all the ingredients in a suitably large bottle or containers. Ensure all containers are sterilised by running through a dishwasher cycle or washing thoroughly then warming in a low oven. Shake or turn the containers once a week for about two months. About two weeks before drinking, strain through a fine sieve and/or coffee filter paper. Once the two weeks are up, decant to pretty bottles and either offer them as Christmas gifts or keep them all to yourself.


Cranberry and raspberry vodka

Ingredients:
1 litre vodka
600g fresh cranberries, roughly chopped (if you can't get fresh cranberries, use frozen, or substitute with any other seasonal berry)
600g fresh raspberries
900g sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice

Preparation:
Put everything into a glass container and stir gently until the sugar dissolves. Cover tightly and store in a cupboard for 3 weeks. After three weeks, sieve the liqueur into a clean, sterilised container, pressing the fruits through with the back of a wooden spoon. Strain this sieved liquid through double muslin, squeezing the juice from the pulp. Leave for a couple of hours to allow sediment to settle, then filter again, this time through a coffee filter. This could take several hours, so top up the level whenever you pass by. You may need more than one filter. All this is necessary to avoid cloudy liquid. Pour into clean bottles.


Ginger wine

What better to warm up your Christmas or New Year celebrations than a slug of spicy ginger wine?

Ingredients:
4½ litres water
1400g granulated sugar
juice and zest of 1 lemon
40g fresh ginger, peeled and bruised
1 tsp fresh yeast
110g raisins, chopped
75ml brandy

Preparation:
In a clean saucepan, bring the water, sugar, lemon zest and bruised ginger to a boil. Then simmer for one hour. Skim off any scum and pour into large bowl. Allow to cool briefly. When tepid, add the yeast, cover with a cloth and leave overnight. Add lemon juice and raisins and pour into a large lidded container. (If using more than one container, distribute the hard ingredients evenly). Place the lid over the container loosely. Stir every day for two weeks. After two weeks, add the brandy. Over a couple of weeks, gradually screw down the lid. Strain and bottle just before serving.


:T :T :T