Cooking for the festive season.

I have never had mincemeat before. I have had friends that have wanted me to try it, but I always manage to chicken out! You really seem to go to town in the kitchen. I am not that much of an accomplished cooker or baker. I do bake cookies with the kids around Christmas time...well now the only one interested anymore is my daughter, but the boys sure do love to eat them. We try to make a variety of cookies so we have them to pass around during the season. I have had a Yule Log before, and they are yummy! I am unsure what you are talking about with the Christmas Pudding, you put coins in it?? I am assuming they are candy coins or something like that. That sounds very interesting to me, do you mind explaining that a bit more...or maybe I misread something. On Thanksgiving I made cranberry sauce (for the first time) and it was wonderful. I have never had it before I was shocked that I actually liked it. I have had fruit cake, which I guess sounds like your Christmas cake...I think I like that because of the brandy in it...lol I have also had some with whiskey as well. Some fruit cakes seemed to be soaked in it!! Not that I am complaining or anything like that...

you didn't post a pix of the yule log! **sniff** Mom would make apple and pumpkin pies, and a mince pie, that only she and my brother would eat. My sister tried to make pecan pies, but didn't have 100% success with them, I wouldn't eat those either. Mom made cookies when we were young and we decorated them (and ate the broken ones) but I don't do any of those things...

I'd like to make a Christmas cake one year and I have never done it before, I don't really like Christmas pudding so I'm not to bothered about making one of those. I don't really like mince pies either so I've never made them (I think I might have primary school). I did make some biscuits one year that I put a boiled sweet in the middle of, the sweet melts in the oven and you get a stained glass effect so you could hang them on the tree and light would shine through.

It sounds like you do some fabulous cooking. I usually find that at this time of the year we do bake a lot more cookies and stuff. I try to make some candies and cookies each year and I may be doing that for gifts this year. I really like to bake but find that I do not have as much time as I would like too. We will bake sugar cookies and I would like to make cream cheese mints this year as well. My daughter and I intend to do a lot of baking this year.

I'm surprised that we didn't keep the tradition of mince meat pies when our ancestors came here from the UK. I've never heard of anyone over here making it. I don't know if anything we make is traditional to this country only but we always make pumpkin pies. Some make sweet potato pies, which taste a lot like pumpkin pies, probably because the same spices are used. Naturally, whipped cream goes on top of these pies.... oh, so yummy!!! Hmmm, maybe the candied sweet potato casserole with marshmallows on top is an American tradition. I've never made it like that, personally, but most people do, I think. Just the candied sweet potato casserole is plenty and, with all the other food, we certainly don't need the added sugar or calories of the marshmallows! Then, we have the traditional fruit cake, made with candied fruit bits. I actually don't know anyone personally who likes them. For me, they're just too sweet. Maybe that's the problem with them and why so many people don't like them. Still, they're found everywhere here on sale so it's obvious that there are many people who do like them. I guess I just don't like "cake" that makes a THUD when it's dropped. (It's VERY heavy!) I prefer the light, fluffy cakes with the sweet stuff on top (icing). I just got out all my cookie/candy/cake making ingredients last night. I'm gearing up now to get busy because I make a lot of these things to give to my friends and family each year. This year, I'm going to try to make enough for my sons to give to some of their friends or anyone they may know who is having financial troubles. I love putting smiles on people's faces, especially during the holidays because, if things aren't going very well, people tend to be even more depressed around the holidays and I like the idea of making it a little better for them.

hello, i am a chinese. In china, christmas is not a formal festival. we only have some personal parties,with friends or lovers.the food we eating is the same as normal,such as meat...aha!

Hi, Oh...you must be a great cook. For me, I never cook before for any festive season. I don't celebrate Christmas. For chinese people, we do have special occasion for celebration like chinese new year, mooncake festival,etc..So we will cook those delicious dishes for those celebration. When I was at my hometown, the cooking was done by my mother and I am just little helper for her. And now, I am staying with my in-law,so the cooking is done by my mother in law. and I just helped her with the cutting part. Maybe once I have move out and have my own house,then I would need to cook myself during the festive season celebration.

I have never been a Christmas cook. I take on all the foreign cooking in the year and my partner takes the Sunday roast and Christmas. I don't think that she has that bad a deal. I'm an ultra tidy cook where as she is grab the next pan and use it (but there is one due for washing up!) We aren't into rich food so all the desserts are simple. But I do look for a way to contribute: I'll do veg/ cheese terrines and some fiddly buffet parts. Here is something I recently picked up from the BBC Good Food newsletter. Spinach, walnut, and feta parcels Ingredients * 400g spinach , washed * butter * ½ tsp cinnamon * 1 ½ tsp cumin seeds , toasted * 200g feta cheese , crumbled * 50g walnuts , chopped * 1 egg , beaten * 9 sheets filo pastry * 200ml Greek yogurt * ½ garlic clove , crushed * baby salad leaves , to serve * pomegranate molasses , to serve (optional) Method 1. Heat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Wilt the spinach in a little butter, then cool, squeeze out any water and chop. Put in a bowl with the cinnamon, 1 tsp of the cumin, feta and walnuts and season really well. 2. Melt 50g butter in a small pan. Cut the filo sheets in half so you have 18 squareish pieces. Butter 3 sheets on both sides, then lay on top of each other with each one at an angle to make a rough star shape. Put 1/6 of the filling in the middle. Bring up the sides and gather together at the top, squeeze or twist to seal firmly. Repeat with the other 5. 3. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and crisp. Mix the yogurt and garlic with the other ½ tsp cumin seeds. Serve with a dollop of yogurt and a few salad leaves. Drizzle over a little pomegranate molasses to finish, if you like. Nutritional information, per serving 364 kcalories, protein 14.5g, carbohydrate 20.1g, fat 25.6 g, saturated fat 11.9g, fibre 2.4g, salt 1.61 g Something to try....