Spaghetti pies

My Mum has made these for as long as I can remember, she made them for cake stalls for our schools - and they always sold out first - everyone loves them.

I'm not sure how they evolved into a Christmas staple - I think because when the girls were little these were a good finger food for them...anyway now they are a compulsory part of the Christmas dinner - my kids are nostalgia freaks!

(these are not healthy , we use low fat bacon and cheese - but thats about it - low fat puff pastry is an abomination)

ready rolled puff pastry sheets (a pack of 5 will make around 30 pies)

3 medium cans of spaghetti (regular sized cans)

1 large onion diced small

6 rashers of bacon chopped small

grated cheese to top

pre-heat oven

cut out circles of pastry to fit normal muffin pans (nothing bigger - but mini muffin pans are good too)

mix the spaghetti, bacon and onion really well

spoon mixture in pastry lined cases (I try for 3/4 full)

top with grated cheese and bake until pastry is golden and cheese has bubbled

these are good hot or cold, and freeze well.

As for the glaze on my ham?

Peach vodka and manuka honey - melted together and used liberally over a clove studded ham - magic!

Excellent!

I love having a uni student in the house - she has nothing to do all day except clean house and bake!

Blaise made this from scratch, as well as 200 cake balls dipped in chocolate and crushed peppermint canes, I loved this time of year when they were little, but now that they are almost grown up there is a wonderful added dimension in that I can ask them to make something and then go off and leave them too it - knowing that fingers won't be in peril and there's not much danger of the sink overflowing!

My girls love the traditions and rhythms of the holiday season - they are very conservative with the menu - there must be baked ham, there must be dry stuffing made by Nana and (I'm going to regret this) "up the b*m" stuffing made by Mum (wet stuffing - the kind you used to put inside the turkey until the authorities told us it caused food poisoning...now I bake it in a cast iron casserole) there must be tiny little spaghetti pies, fresh peas, fresh cherries and a huge pavlova made by Big Nana (great grandma), I'm allowed to add to this menu - but the basics must always be there, this year I'm adding River cottage baked red onions...I hope they make it onto the permanent menu.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone, I hope that you find joy in the season, peace of mind and time with loved ones.

dye another day

I've been on a rollercoaster ride over the past few weeks - dyeing like a wild thing - the kits went even better than expected and now I have no yarn left! I have learnt SO much;

• dyeing to order is the best policy - but in rainy, humid weather you need a drying system


• dealing with questions about errors in the pattern when it is late at night and you are tired is not a good idea...because you go and correct errors that didn't exist in the first place!


• 60% of people will buy the pattern you advertise most in the colour you have advertised it in (great tip for future planning)


• always order too much yarn (then increase your order by 20%)


• you will enjoy the process and feedback more than you ever imagined.

I can't get any more yarn until February next year - so am hunkering down to design the next series of patterns - these will be slightly more complex than the last series.

I've made up 10 kits using the various one off shades and samples - these will be available from my ETSY store in a few days time.

As for our home life - we have a lot going on;

• planning Holly's wedding is still underway, 1 year and 1 week to go!


• I've finally got a medical diagnosis to explain my "year of blinking furiously" and will have an op in early january which will hopefully go a long way to sorting me out.


• My step-daughter Maria and her partner will be making us Grandparents in May next year - I've started with a baby blanket and plan to be knitting constantly for the next 6 months, all Superwash of course - I'm under no illusions! I can't wait to have my own wee model and inspiration.


• and of course - Christmas - we have already started with the round of social engagements, which will culminate in Christmas dinner at our house again instead of Mum's - it's becoming a regular thing and I don't mind at all!

Christmas baking has commenced - those are Christmas muffins - raisins and currants soaked in brandy, cointreau and spices mixed into muffin batter, filled with custard flavoured cream cheese and iced with water icing, we also have speculaas, stained glass cookies and mince pies...now to get my act together and dress Frasier up in an elf costume for the Christmas cards....