What goes down well for dessert after Christmas dinner?

Katgoddess

We made Christmas Dinner for some clients at work yesterday. (Young mums) We had Christmas Pudding, fresh fruit salad, and a lime and ginger cheesecake. With the option of thick greek yoghurt, or cream on the side.

The cheesecake recipe is:

Marscarpone and lime torte (it's posh name!)

200g pack ginger biscuits, crushed
50g butter, melted
2 x 250g tubs mascarpone cheese
40g icing sugar, sifted
finely grated zest and juice of 2 limes
To decorate
50g dark chocolate, melted and made into curls, or shredded lime zest

Method
1. Mix together the crushed biscuits and the butter and press it into the base of a 18cm springform cake tin.
2. Beat together the mascarpone cheese, icing sugar and lime zest and juice, and spread over the biscuit base.
3. Chill for 30 minutes.
4. Decorate the top with chocolate leaves, chocolate curls or shredded lime zest.

All the desserts were decorated with frosted fresh fruit. Our token gesture to healthy eating.

sandy2_2

TillyTrippit wrote: »

Hi, thank you all for your amazing recipes. We have something called Festive Pudding - lighter than Xmas pud - got it in a Safeway magazine over ten years ago.

Could you PM me the recipe please, Thanx

Olliebeak

TillyTrippit - could you post the recipe for the Festive Pudding please - sounds good :T . Many thanks.

cobbingstones

Well this year is all change.....we decided that we will have ice cream with melted diary milk on top. Yummy yummy

MM

oldMcDonald

TillyTrippit wrote: »

We also have something that has no name in our house - probably someone out there knows what it is called - very simple, very boozy.
Get a couple of packs of decent chocolate chip cookies - DIP them into sherry for a couple of seconds and then pile into a log shape.
Whip some fresh cream with creme fraiche and just spread over it.
Crumble a flake or two and then warn your guests that they should only start small and stay there if they have to drive home - have had people have to stay on the couch till Boxing Day!!

TBH, I don't care what it's called, all I care about is trying it:)

Thanks for shareing this, I am defitely going to make this up at some point over Christmas / New Year

liz545

sandy2 wrote: »

this sounded quite a grown up pudding.
Here in Spain, I don't expect I'll be able to get lebkuchen spices or cake unless they sell it in Lidl, what would you suggest a a close alternative please

Also is it cherry conserve at the bottom, amaretti then flavoured whipped cream, just one layer of each or two

Thanx

Hi Sandy - you could use gingerbread or cinnamon flavoured biscuits/cookies if they're easier to find. Mixed christmas spice or pumpkin pie spice powder would give a similar flavour, but I like the blend of spices in lebkuchen mix. I think I'll only do one layer of each, but it's really up to you, I think multiple layers would be delicious too!

TillyTrippit

Sorry about the delay had a work Christmas do and recovery day!!
OK the recipe is:

250g pkt dried dates - roughly chopped
1tsp bicarb of soda
300ml (10fl oz) boiling water
115g (4oz) softened butter
115g (4oz) soft brown sugar
2 large eggs beaten
115 (4oz) self raising flour
75g (3oz) pecan nuts - chopped - I leave these out as OH has an allergy
115 (4oz) glace cherries halved
25g (1oz) cut mixed peel

Brandy syrup
115g (4oz) soft brown sugar
90ml (6tbsp) water
150ml (5floz) brandy

Preheat the oven to 180 C/350f/gas mark4. Line the base of a deep non stick loaf tin with greaseproof or parchment - I use a 8" square cake tin , about 2 inches deep so everyone can have a square- doesn't matter really
Place the dates in a bowl and the bicarb and boiling water and set aside.
Cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then gradually beat in the eggs.
Gently stir in the flour, nuts, cherries and mixed peel.
Stir in the dates and the liquid they've been soaking in.
Pour into the tin and bake for about 1 hour until firm (like a cake really)
Meanwhile make the syrup: gently heat the sugar, water and brandy until the sugar has melted and it has gone syrupy. Pour over the pudding and then allow to cool.
Then turn out and slice.
This is a simple and fabulous recipe - tastes a bit like Christmas pudding but is lighter.
It can be abused - freeze before putting the syrup on - I freeze it then take out Christmas morning defrost and then heat in either microwave or oven, then pour the syrup on and light!!
I make it in double or treble quantities - depending on how many people have ingratiated themselves for lunch.
It reheats the next day and can be added to ice cream for another day.

I have been making it for over 10 years and even when we go elsewhere for Christmas dinner, the hostesses have looked at me sheepishly and asked if I would bring it. It is lighter than the traditional pudding and the bicarb aids the digestion!!!
Merry Christmas
Tilly

competitionscafe

Think I have finally decided what I am going to do this year: Frozen mocha and ginger meringue cake with pomegranate sauce, from Sarah Ravens Garden Cookbook (which by the way is a wonderful book of seasonal fruit and veg recipes which I got from thebookpeople for £10 (it's £30 at amazon!) just in case anyone is still looking for Xmas present ideas for themselves or others...).

It sounds and looks fairly 'Chrismassy', and best of all as it's frozen it can all be prepared well in advance, apart from the pomegranate and redcurrant sauce which can be made the day before and kept in the fridge (the sauce is served cold). Very easy to make too, basically folding broken meringues, tia maria, chopped stem ginger, coffee and a tablespoon of caster sugar into whipped double cream, then freezing this in a loaf/cake tin. Sauce is pomegranate juice + seeds, redcurrant jelly, and lime juice thickened with arrowroot. Anyone got this book and tried the recipe (pg 415)?

budicca

I like Xmas pudding, but it's toooo heavy on the day after lunch...

I'm gonna try a Xmas pudding trifle - and that will stretch an ickle xmas pudding between 6!

(Bear in mind I'm making this up as I type...)

layers from bottom up:

broken up bits of xmas pud
soaked in orange juice
layer of red jelly made with a light touch of cinnamon
layer of sliced apple or satuma segments
thin layer of flaked almonds
layer of tinned custard
layer of whipped brandy-flavoured cream
decorated with red and green glace cherries
sprig of holly

hmmm... what do we think, guys? 'spect I should do a trial run!