Recipes

Mulled wine (Glühwein)

Ingredients

• 1 bottle dry red wine
• 125g dark soft brown sugar
• 2 small cinnamon sticks
• 2 lemons
• 12 whole cloves
• 300 ml brandy (optional)
• orange slices, halved, to serve

To prepare

1. Put the wine, sugar and cinnamon into a large saucepan. Press the lemons with the cloves and add to the pan.
2. Heat very gently, stirring until the sugar has dissolved, then heat for a further 5 minutes without boiling.
3. Remove from the heat and check for sweetness and add the brandy, if using.
4. Strain into a warm bowl or jug and serve straightaway in heatproof glasses with slices of orange to decorate.
   

Non-Alcoholic Fruit Punch (Kinderpunsch)

Ingredients

• 5000 ml fruits tea (berry mix or similar)
• 500 ml apple juice
• juice of one lemon
• 3 tsp honey

To prepare

1. Brew tea and leave to infuse for 10 minutes.
2. Stir in the apple juice, fresh lemon juice and honey. Reheat, until the honey has dissolved completely.
   
   

Lemon Marzipan Hearts

Surprise your loved ones with these delicious cookies. These are romantic, tasty and especially scrumptious with a hot chocolate.

Ingredients

• 3 egg yolks
• 125g caster sugar
• finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
• 250g ground almonds
• icing sugar
• egg, beaten, to glaze

For the decoration

• 150g fondant icing sugar
• water or lemon juice to mix
• M&M’s™

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas 4.
2. Put the egg yolks and sugar into a bowl and whisk with an electric whisk for 1 minute until the mixture is light and fluffy. Stir in the lemon zest and ground almonds to make a stiff paste.
3. Generously sprinkle a sheet of non-stick baking parchment with icing sugar and roll out the mixture. Using a heart-shaped pastry cutter, stamp-out as many shapes as you can (re-rolling the trimmings to make more biscuits) and place on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking parchment.
4. Mark the outside edge of each heart with the prongs of a fork.
5. Brush with beaten egg and bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes until golden-brown. Cool on a wire rack.
6. Mix the fondant icing sugar with enough water or lemon juice to make a thick coating consistency. Ice the centre of each heart and sprinkle with the M&M’s™ and leave to set.
   

Gingerbread Biscuits (Lebkuchen Plätzchen)

These biscuits make great personalised presents for friends and family – try putting them in a decorative jar, or wrapping them in pretty tissue paper and boxing them. Why not finish with a co-ordinating ribbon as a final touch...

Ingredients

• 380g plain flour, plus extra to dust
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 125g unsalted butter
• 175g dark muscovado sugar
• 1 medium egg, beaten
• 4 tbsp maple syrup
• decorations

To prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C, gas 5.
2. Sift the flour, ginger and mixed spice into a bowl. Rub in the butter and sugar, making sure to remove all the lumps from the sugar. (This can also be done by whizzing the mixture in a food processor for 2-3 minutes.)
3. Stir in the egg and maple syrup, then mix until combined. Tip out onto a floured surface and roll out to 5mm thickness.
4. Using a Christmas tree cookie cutter (or other festive shaped cutters), cut out shapes and carefully lift them onto a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes then place on a wire rack to cool.
6. Be creative and decorate to your own taste!

Gingerbread (Lebkuchen)

Honey-sweet, richly spiced ginger Lebkuchen is often coated in chocolate and cut into different shapes. It is simply irresistible and will be enjoyed by all the family as a special Christmas treat.

Ingredients

• 450g sugar
• 6 eggs
• 1 sachet vanilla sugar
• 240g chopped hazelnuts
• 240 g finely ground hazelnuts
• 50 g chopped walnuts
• 100g finely sliced candied lemon peel
• 100g finely sliced candied orange peel
• rated lemon and orange zest
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg,
• coriander, cardamom, cloves and mace
• 2 packets of rice paper
  

Sugar glaze

• 130 g icing sugar
• 3 tbsp water

Chocolate glaze

• 200g cooking chocolate

For the decoration

• almonds and candied peel for decoration

To prepare

1. Whisk sugar, eggs and vanilla sugar until the sugar has resolved. Add the nuts, candied lemon and orange peel and add the spices. Leave to rest in a cool place for 24 hours.
2. Form dough balls weighing about 20g each. Place them onto the rice paper and spread them out evenly. Line the baking tray with parchment paper and place the Lebkuchen onto it.
3. Preheat oven and bake the Lebkuchen at 200 °C for 15 minutes.
4. Leave to cool on a grid
5. Mix the icing sugar with water and stir to a smooth paste. Glaze one third of the Lebkuchen. Melt the chocolate and glaze the second third of the Lebkuchen. Leave the rest plain.
6. Decorate the gingerbread with almonds and candied peel.

Dipped Butter Biscuits (Butterkekse mit Schokolade)

Delicious butter biscuits - once baked and cooled, they are threaded onto colourful festive ribbon and hung on the Christmas tree.

Ingredients

• 120g unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 50g caster sugar
• 50g icing sugar
• 1 medium egg plus one yolk, at room temperature
• zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
• 150g plain flour
• 30g cornflour
• 2 tbsp milk
• 200g milk chocolate

To prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas 4.
2. Cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy.
3. Beat the whole egg and egg yolk together and add gradually to the mixture, then carefully mix in the lemon zest, fl our, cornflour and milk.
4. Place heaped teaspoons of the mixture on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. If you want to hang them on the tree, make a hole in the middle of each cookie before you put them in the oven.
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
6. Meanwhile, break the chocolate into pieces, place in a heatproof bowl and melt in the microwave or over a pan of simmering water.
7. Once the cookies have cooled, dip each one halfway into the chocolate mixture. Place on a tray lined with greaseproof paper and leave in a cool place for the chocolate to set.
   

Baked Bramley Apples with Marzipan and Cranberry (Bratapfel)

Bramley apples are perfect bakers. The flesh becomes creamy and smooth and the flavour intense, while the attractive skin keeps its colour.

Ingredients

• Bramley apples
• 3 tbsp redcurrant jelly
• 75g fresh or frozen cranberries, thawed
• 100g pack marzipan, chopped

To serve

• 125 g Quark
• 142 ml whipping cream
• 1 tbsp caster sugar
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon

To prepare

1. Using an apple corer, remove the core from each apple. Insert the core three or four times more to make a wider hole. Using the tip of a small sharp knife, score round the middle of each apple, to help the apples keep their shape.
2. Heat the oven to 170°C, gas 3. Lightly warm the redcurrant jelly in a small pan until runny and heat the cranberries for a minute or two in it. Don’t cook them.
3. Cool the mixture for a few minutes – you’ll find it becomes firm. Stand the apples upright in a small baking dish.
4. Press a little marzipan into the hollow of each apple. Spoon over some cranberry mixture. Add more marzipan, then more cranberry and so on, finishing by glazing the top of each apple with some cranberry mixture. Repeat with the other apples.
5. Bake for 45-50 minutes, basting each apple with the juices about three times. Pierce the centres to check when they are cooked, but don’t let the apples collapse. They should have lightly wrinkled skins with just-softened flesh.
6. Remove and cool, spooning the glaze over once or twice. Mix the Quark, cream, sugar and cinnamon and serve alongside the apples.
   

Stollen

A very special Christmas treat. Stollen is a rich, sweet cake filled with fruits and nuts. Stollen from Dresden are particularly well-known. A masterpiece of baking, treasured around the world.

Ingredients

• 350g strong plain flour
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground mixed spice
• 50g unsalted butter
• 7g sachet fast-action dried yeast
• 25g caster sugar
• 180g luxury mixed dried fruit
• 50g whole candied peel, chopped
• 50g chopped almonds
• 1 egg, beaten
• about 150ml warm milk
• 150g natural almond paste
• sieved icing sugar, to serve

To prepare

1. Sieve the flour, salt and spices into a bowl. Rub in the butter. Add the rest of the ingredients (except the almond paste), adding just enough milk to mix to a soft, but not sticky, dough. Turn out onto a lightly-floured work surface and knead for about 5 minutes, then shape into a ball. Put into an oiled bowl, cover tightly with cling film and leave in a warm place for about 2 hours or until doubled in size.
2. Turn the dough out onto the work surface and kneed lightly, then shape into a long oval about 1cm thick. Shape the almond paste into a roll a little shorter than the length of the dough. Make a slight dent along the centre of the dough and place the almond paste in this groove. Fold the dough over to enclose it and press the edges together.
3. Place on a non-stick baking tray, cover with a clean tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 190°C, gas 5.
4. Remove the tea towel and bake the Stollen for about 40 minutes until deep golden brown. Allow to cool. Serve liberally dusted with icing sugar.

Vanilla Crescents (Vanille Kipferl)

These biscuits are perfect served warm, dusted with icing-sugar and accompanied by a delicious glass of spiced mulled wine.

Ingredients

• 100g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• 100 g plain flour
• 25g cornflour
• 65g ground almonds
• 50g icing sugar
• 1 medium egg yolk
  
• 1 vanilla pod
• 100g caster sugar

To prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas 6.
2. Rub the butter into the flour and cornflour until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the almonds, icing sugar and egg yolk and mix until it forms a dough. Shape into a log, then wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge for an hour.
3. Meanwhile split the vanilla pod in half lengthwise. Scrape the black seeds out and mix them well with the caster sugar.
   
4. Remove the clingfilm from the dough and cut the log into 25 even sized pieces. Roll each piece into a log shape, then pinch each end and bend into a crescent shape.
5. Place the biscuits on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
6. Coat the warm cookies liberally with the vanilla sugar, serve and enjoy!
   

Stollen Bread & Butter Pudding (Süsser Stollenauflauf)

If you just can’t get enough of Germany’s tempting Stollen fruit breads during the Christmas season then this recipe is for you! Use any Stollen, but the Edel-Marzipan filled one is particularly delicious.

Ingredients

• 500 g Stollen
• 50 g butter, softened for spreading
• about 100 g canned cherries in syrup, drained (optional)
• some demerara sugar to sprinkle

For the custard

• 2 medium free-range eggs & 2 egg yolks
• 284 ml double cream
• 400 ml milk
• 3-4 tablespoons caster sugar
• a few drops of almond essence

To prepare

1. Slice the Stollen thinly and spread one side with butter. Stack in slightly angled layers in a large lightly buttered ovenproof dish. Scatter cherries in between, if used.
2. Beat the eggs and yolks with the cream, milk, caster sugar and essence. Slowly pour over the Stollen slices, pressing them down into the liquid so they are well soaked. Set aside for a good hour to allow the custard to be absorbed.
3. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180°C, gas 4. Place the dish in a roasting pan and when ready to bake pour in boiling water to come halfway up the dishes.
4. Carefully place in the oven and bake for about 35 minutes until the top is light golden brown and crisp. Cool for 10-15 minutes before serving, sprinkled with demerara sugar.
   

Cinnamon Stars (Zimtsterne)

These crisp, spicy cookies make a perfect snack after a day of sledding or ice skating. Serve them with big pitchers of mulled wine and hot chocolate.

Ingredients

• 400g unpeeled almonds
• 3 egg whites
• 250g sieved icing sugar, plus extra
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

To prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 140°C, gas 2.
2. Put the almonds into a food processor and blitz until finely
   chopped. Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl until stiff. Gradually whisk in the sieved icing sugar.
3. Put 2 heaped tablespoons of this mixture into a small bowl and put aside. Stir in the ground almonds into the egg mixture. The mixture should be slightly soft, but not too sticky. Add a little icing sugar if necessary.
4. Dredge the work surface liberally with icing sugar and roll out the mixture to about 5 mm thick. Using a star cutter, stamp out shapes and place them on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking parchment. Dip the cutter in icing sugar from time to time to stop the mixture sticking to it.
5. Brush each star with a little of the reserved egg mixture and bake for about 30 minutes until crisp on the outside but a little soft in the centre.

 

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