Christmas Recipes
German Apple Torte
Irish Boiled Fruitcake
Irish Christmas Cookies
Irish Christmas Pudding with Guinness
Irish White Fruitcake
Rum Balls
White Fruitcake
Guinness Ginger Fruitcake
Christmas Notes
© Laura Harper
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Black Bush Irish Whiskey
1/4 cup candied citron, chopped
1/4 cup golden raisins, blanched and chopped
1/4 cup almonds, chopped
Preheat oven to 375. Line two cookie sheets with parchment; set aside.
In a small mixing bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar. Beat in eggs until well blended. Add flour and whiskey and beat the dough until smooth. Add the fruit and nuts and mix well. Drop cookie dough from a tablespoon onto the prepared cookie sheets. Bake each sheet of cookies for 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove cookies from the baking sheets with a spatula while still warm. Place on wire rack to partially cool. Store the cookies in an airtight container with a slice of white bread to maintain their soft, fruity texture.
NOTE: Christmas 2003
Irish Christmas Pudding with Guinness
5 ounces seedless raisins, chopped
1 ounce mixed peel, chopped
5 ounces fresh breadcrumbs
4 ounces soft brown sugar
4 ounces currants
4 ounces sultanas
5 ounces softened butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon
mixed spice
Grated rind 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 large egg
2 ounces milk
5 ounces Guinness
Place all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
Add the lemon juice, eggs, milk and Guinness and mix well with a wooden spoon until thoroughly incorporated.
Turn into a greased 2-pint mold or pan, cover with greaseproof paper and secure with string. Leave to stand overnight.
The next day, place the pudding in a pan with sufficient boiling water to come just below the rim of the mold/pan. Steam for 3 hours, adding more boiling water as necessary.
Serving: In a saucepan heat 1/2 cup Black Bush Irish Whiskey or a good cognac until boiling. Ignite and pour over pudding while still flaming. Serve with dollops of whipped cream.
NOTE: Christmas 2003
1 large (20 ounces) can crushed pineapple
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 cups sultanas or golden raisins
4 ounces candied cherries
4 ounces mixed peel
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon mixed spice
2 eggs, beaten
2 or more tablespoons Irish whiskey
In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the pineapple, butter, brown sugar, and fruit. Bring to a boil and stir continually for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool completely.
Preheat the oven to 325° F. Generously grease one 8-inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine flours, soda, and mixed spice. Stir in the beaten eggs. Add to fruit mixture and blend thoroughly. Spoon mixure into pan and smooth top with a wet spatula. Bake 8-inch cake 60 to 75 minutes (test with a toothpick after 60 minutes). When the cake is done, remove and cool on rack. Prick the top with a skewer, and drizzle with the whiskey while cake is still warm.
Cool completely, wrap in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil. Unwrap and drizzle with more Irish whiskey as desired. Cake can be kept at room temperature for several days, refrigerated for a week, or it can be kept in freezer.
NOTE: Christmas 2003
4 ounces whole candied red cherries
4 ounces whole candied green cherries
4 ounces golden raisins
4 ounces candied pineapple
4 ounces chopped walnuts
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
5 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Generously grease and flour a 10-inch tube or bundt pan.
In a large bowl, combine cherries, raisins, pineapple, and walnuts. Stir in 1/4 cup of the flour. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well and scraping the bowl after each addition. Combine remaining flour, baking soda, salt, and allspice. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture. Fold into the fruit mixture. Spoon into prepared pan and bake for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Invert pan onto a serving plate and cool completely. Slice and serve immediately, or wrap in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil and refrigerate for 2 to 6 weeks. Serves 12 to 14.
NOTE: Christmas 2003
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup rum
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 cups crushed vanilla wafers (must be crushed very, very fine)
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
Sift cocoa and sugar into a bowl. Stir in rum which has been combined with syrup. Mix well; add crumbs and nuts and mix well again. Roll into small balls about 3/4 inch in diameter. Drop into a bowl of powdered sugar, roll around to coat on all sides, and allow to dry on racks several hours before using. Makes about 36 cookies.
1 pound diced mixed fruit and peels
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1/2 cup seedless raisins
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 eggs
1/2 cup orange juice or milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 ounce rum or brandy
Cream shortening and sugar, add unbeaten eggs slowly, mixing well. Add fruit mix, nuts and orange juice. Sift together flour, baking powder, spices and salt and fold into first mixture. Mix thoroughly. Pour into a greased, wax-paper lined tube pan. Bake in 275 degree oven 3 hours or until done. After baking cake sprinkle rum or brandy over it.
1/2 pound butter
2 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons dark molassess
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
10 ounces Guinness Stout, at room temperature
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 eggs
4 cups all-purpose flour
10 ounces Sun-Maid Tropical Trio - papaya, mango, and pineapple
10 ounces Mariana tropical fruit mix
6 ounces crystallized ginger, minced
Preheat oven to 340 degrees. Grease and line 9-inch tube cake pan or two loaf pans
Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the grated fresh ginger and the molasses; beat again until incorporated. Combine the Guinness with the soda and beat in the eggs. Sift the flour and fold into the creamed butter and sugar alternately with the Guinness mixture, ending with flour. Stir in the dried fruit and crystallized ginger; mix well. Spoon into prepared cake pan. Bake in a 340 degree oven for 1 hour, reduce oven to 250 degrees and cook for 1 1/2 hours or until a wood skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cover loosely with a towel and cool in pan. Wrap in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil and store in a cool place. (This cake is best stored for at least 1 week before eating.)
------Almond Pastry------
1 package almond paste, softened
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Dash rum extract
------Cake------
3 tablespoons butter, melted
5 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons dry white wine
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 teaspoons tapioca, quick-cooking
Whipped Cream, optional
PASTRY: Combine first 5 ingredients; cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg, lemon juice, and rum flavoring; stir with a fork until dry ingredients are moistened. Shape into a ball; chill.
Yield: Pastry for one double-crust 9-inch pie.
CAKE: Press two-thirds of almond pastry into bottom and 2 inches up side of a 9-inch springform pan.
Combine butter and next 3 ingredients in a Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat until apples are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in walnuts, raisins, and tapioca. Spoon mixture evenly into prepared pastry shell.
Roll remaining pastry to 1/8-inch thickness; transfer to top of pie. Trim excess pastry along edges; seal and flute. Use extra pastry to shape decorative apple cutouts. Cut slits in top crust for steam to escape.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or until cake is golden brown. Serve with whipped cream, if desired.