So excited mode on, I rushed to my local Morrisons, only to realise when I got there, I had no idea what ingredients I needed. Creative cap on, I thought, ahhh I know, BOOK SECTION! They must have a recipe section there… and guess what, they did!

I pick up some random cookery book and hunt for the Chocolate Cake recipe page…FOUND! I take a picture of the ingredients on my phone and away I go.

I thought it would be a simple case of perhaps, egg, flour, sugar, chocolate/coca powder, sugar BUT within this ingredient list were such items as: ‘light muscovado sugar’, ‘bicarbonate of soda’, ‘ground almonds’, ‘double cream’… Looking at the price of these items I decided I would stick to the basics and hope for the best.

Arriving home with the standard ingredients, it then dawned on me I had no idea what I was doing, so I started searching the internet for recipes. Never did I know there were so many variations of making a chocolate cake! (Some with even more additional ingredients!)

In the end I used a combination of two recipes, one for the cake, another for the buttercream, and I have to give credit to these simple sites, they were:

Sponge http://www.secretsauce.co.uk/cakes-desserts/cake-recipes/chocolate-cake-with-buttercream-filling/

Buttercream http://www.cookuk.co.uk/cake/ChocolateCake.htm

So now I reveal the moment of truth, the final article, well here it is:

I have to say it tasted as good as it looked, but it did get dry very quickly which was a shame. Nevertheless, it provided entertainment on a rainy day, and a tasty treat for my lunch at work for the week!

Well, in any case, the new year has bought me another opportunity to make a resolution that will be long forgotten in due course – to do more housework, more regularly! Having trawled the net for tips and inspirational sayings (“my house may be full of dust, but it’s also full of love” is a highlight!), I have discovered that people  have cleaning schedules pinned to their fridges! And there’s even a schedule creating app by all accounts! Wow.

Of course, there’s a steep hill to climb – I have created a household much the same as the one I grew up in which was Peter Pan like in its quest for fun and creative play, where we’re relaxed and not possession focussed (who can be with a five year old on the loose!) and where children can play not tidy up. Consequently, said five year old’s bedroom constantly looks like a toy and Disney Princess outfit bomb has exploded all over the carpet (no need to worry about state of this particular pink carpet as one can infrequently see it). To my astonishment I have found tips on how to encourage your kids to clean up – this is a whole other world! Ooooh but I do get to shop with my new hobby – rubber gloves, cloths, aprons, steam mops – perhaps this can be fun after all…..

This has triggered multiple debates about what is the best Christmas movie ever! We’ve tended to opt for classics like Home Alone,  The Snowman, The Muppet Christmas Carol, Scrooged and of course, “Smiling’s my favourite” Elf!

There’s so many to choose from, for all the family, and even a nice chick flick or two to indulge in, like The Holiday! A great excuse for getting the duvets down and gathering the family together for some festive fun too!

Everyone seems to have an opinion on the best Christmas movies, with It’s a Wonderful Life regularly topping the polls – I’m sure you’re reading this and thinking of a movie I haven’t mentioned too!

What a wonderful season it is! Of course, movies are a great diversion for me from the big Christmas clean up of our house, ready for the seemingly endless stream of visitors we shall be welcoming this year – I suppose I’d better get started… mind you, is that Love Actually on the TV? I’ll just watch that first and then I’ll start….

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year!

However, did you know that when it comes to Christmas puddings, tradition says they should be made this weekend?!

The last Sunday before Advent is the traditional time to make your Christmas pudding and Christmas cake, but a little known fact is that in times gone by, all the family took a turn to sir the pudding and make a secret wish whilst they stirred. The pudding was always stirred from East to West to represent the journey made by the Three Wise Men. This activity became known as ‘Stir Up Sunday’.

The chances of me being that organised to bake a Christmas pud a whole month beforehand are pretty slim, but I may give it go this year – what a lovely idea to involve the whole family and everyone loves a secret wish!  You are also supposed to add a coin (probably wrapped in foil or greaseproof paper these days) or two at this point and whoever finds it in their slice of pud on Christmas day is said to have wealth and happiness for the coming year, and who wouldn’t mind a bit of that!

Of course, the good old Christmas pud has gone through a few changes over the years with early versions known as Christmas porridge, first appearing in the 14^th century with a tasty mix and beef, mutton and wine. Pretty harmless you’d think, but this traditional dish faced a knock when Oliver Cromwell banned it in 1664 declaring the eating of it a ‘lewd’ and ‘inappropriate’ custom (of course, he went on to make the whole of Christmas illegal apparently – bah humbug indeed!).

Thankfully, King George I reintroduced Christmas pud in 1714 without the meat, with Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert’s love of the pud making it a fashionable Christmas tradition in Victorian times and it’s stayed pretty much the same ever since.

I’m sure we all have a recipe for the pud lurking somewhere, that has been passed down through the generations, and what better way to start the festive celebrations off by revisiting this lovely tradition and making some special Christmases wishes….  hope yours come true, you never know!

Ooops! Yes, a whole year has gone past since I made myself the solemn promise that next Christmas would be different. I would definitely be ready well in advance and avoid the mass hysteria and over-spending due to what I wanted to buy no longer being available, that I manage to put myself through every year!

If like me, you’re prone to a Festive Flip out, it’s not too late to put steps in place to avoid the panic this year – here are a few handy tips to help you have a calmer Christmas:

1. Set yourself a budget for all your present buying. Of course, you’ll probably overspend slightly (unless your personal hero is Scrooge) so allow a bit of leeway for this – but keep it real, if you can’t afford to stretch then you need to reassess your original budget.
2. Make a list of who you want to buy a gift for and what you’d like to buy them – this will help you work out how you are sharing your budget out. It also saves you that last minute stress of wrapping up a tin of chocolates or bottle of wine for Elsie next door who’d you’d forgotten all about!
3. Allocate your budget per person – this will ensure you stick to your set budget. If it starts to slip beyond your limits then you need to start over to spread your funds wisely. Make sure your budget is realistic and keep in mind that it really is the thought that counts!
4. All of these steps should help you avoid the frenzied festive shopping and being part of those scrambling around for gifts on Christmas Eve with nothing but sheer panic driving them. This leads to flustered buying which often equals spending more than you want. Don’t leave it all to the last minute!
5. Shopping online is an absolute saviour at Christmas. Not only does it help you get organised with what gifts to buy each person on your list, it also helps you price it all up. You can shop in a measured, calm way, in the comfort of your own home – Joy, indeed, to the world!
6. When shopping online, or needing to post parcels, make sure you know what the final Christmas postal deadlines are. The Royal Mail has this information online and international airmail deadlines are fast approaching, so check now if you need to send gifts overseas.  For the UK, Royal Mail advises that the last 2012 Christmas post date for First Class and Recorded Signed For™ is Thursday 20^th December and for Special Delivery™, it’s Saturday 22^nd December.

Hope these tips help you have a serene festive season this year – I’m going to get cracking right away! Ooooh is that Downton Abbey on repeat?! It is! Ah well, the list can wait for an hour or so….

Happy shopping!

Serves 2 adults and 2-3 children – prep time: 20 mins, cook time: two hours and 30 mins

Ingredients

• 500g braising steaks , cut into bite-sized chunks
• 2 tbsp plain flour , seasoned with pepper and a little salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion , finely chopped
• 450g carrots , cut into chunks
• 2 large parsnips , cut into chunks
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbsp sundried or regular tomato paste
• 300ml red wine or extra stock
• 450ml vegetable stock

• 225g plain flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 140g cheddar , coarsely grated
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 150ml milk

Method

Recipe from Good Food magazine, January 2006.

Enjoy!

• It may sound silly but, wear warm clothes. It may have become a habit to stroll around the house in shorts and a t-shirt but a jumper, some thick socks and fluffy slippers will make you feel cosy and stop you reaching for the thermostat.
• Turn off the heating when you’re not at home, and when it is on, having it a couple of degrees lower than usual will shave money off the final bill. Also try turning it off an hour earlier than usual.
• Close all the doors, especially to rooms which you’re not using, to keep heat in.
• If you’re confined to just one room in the house, a portable heater may be a better bet to heat one room, rather than a bunch of empty rooms.
• Switch off lights and lamps in rooms you’re not in, and anything you thought you’d shut down which is actually on standby – switch them off completely at the mains.
• Turn off the tap when you’re not using it. For example, don’t leave it running when brushing your teeth. Consider a shower instead of a bath, which uses more water. And, similarly, only boil what you need in the kettle, rather than filling it to the top every time.
• Close your curtains to keep from draughts coming in through the windows, and make sure they’re thick and lined for extra warmth, rather than flimsy materials.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• Pinch ground cayenne pepper (optional)
• 3 (15 oz) cans 100 percent pumpkin or 6 cups of chopped roasted pumpkin*
• 5 cups of chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)**
• 2 cups of milk
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

*To make pumpkin purée, cut a sugar pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff, lie face down on a tin-foil lined baking pan. Bake at 350°F until soft, about 45 min to an hour. Cool, scoop out the flesh. Freeze whatever you don’t use for future use.

**If cooking gluten-free, use gluten-free broth.

METHOD

1 Melt butter in a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add spices and stir for a minute more.

2 Add pumpkin and 5 cups of chicken broth; blend well. Bring to a boil and reduce heat, simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.

3 Transfer soup, in batches, to a blender or food processor. Cover tightly and blend until smooth. Return soup to saucepan.

4 With the soup on low heat, add brown sugar and mix. Slowly add milk while stirring to incorporate. Add cream. Adjust seasonings to taste. If a little too spicy, add more cream to cool it down. You might want to add a teaspoon of salt.

Serve in individual bowls. Sprinkle the top of each with toasted pumpkin seeds.

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/spicy_pumpkin_soup/

My favourite tradition is not the dressing up, or the endless sweets, it’s the pumpkin carving! It allows me to get a bit messy and see what sort of creative faces I can think up to carve in this orange vegetable.

Pumpkin carving comes from a tradition based around the ancient legend of a man called Jack (hence ‘Jack O’ Lantern’) who liked to play tricks on anyone, including on the devil himself. Jack once tricked him to climb up a tree, once he did, Jack placed crosses around it so the devil was unable to climb down. Jack allowed him to come down on the promise that he wouldn’t take Jack’s soul away when he passed away.

When Jack did pass, he was forced to wander the earth with only a glowing ember to light the way, due to the tricks he played throughout life. He kept the light in a hollowed out turnip. For many years, people would carve out this vegetable to ward off Jack until they discovered pumpkins much easier to carve.

This has lasted until present day where it has become a fun activity to do, more than anything else. I like to pencil what I’ll carve and then carefully cut into the pumpkin, after spooning out the sludgy insides! Place a candle in the middle and put it in your porch and let everyone know you’re celebrating Halloween.

However, come Spring time, I know I will be disappointed when I put on last summer’s clothes and realise it doesn’t fit as well as it should. So I am proposing a change this year. Here are a few tips and tricks I will be following:

1. Exercise! It might not be ideal to carry on running outside but join a gym and meet other people in the warmth of an exercise class or do a home workout in the shelter of your own home
2. It’s party season – there’ll be canapés everywhere you look. Why don’t you eat dinner before you arrive at the party and you won’t be tempted to fill up on unhealthy snacks at the party.
3. Plan. There are a great variety of winter veggies which come into their own during winter. Plan your meals, for example, make enough soup for a few days and take it into work. It will save you from reaching for a quick and easy calorie stuffed pizza when there aren’t other options.
4. Mentally prepare. The same rules apply despite the season – exercise, and healthily and everything in moderation. So if you tell yourself you won’t be allowing yourself to go into hibernation/baggy jumper mode, and it will help get you in the right frame of mind to be well for winter.