Dukkah in The Thermomix

I am coming to the end of my Christmas gift list with just another one or two things to make.
I have made a lot of presents and gifts this year.  Of course the kids are easy as they are getting Creative Wishes toys and games.

Some of the adults are getting homemade Dukkah with a lovely bottle of olive oil. I'll tie it with a string and add a cute tag and vioila, a quick and easy pressie (and yummy one too).

Thermomix Dukkah

Ingredients

• 150g Sesame Seeds
• 100g Hazelnuts
• 30g Cumin Seeds
• 50g Coriander Seeds
• 1tsp Salt
• 1/2tsp Black Peppercorns
• 1tsp Dried Thyme

Instructions

1. Place Sesame seeds, hazelnuts, cumin and coriander seeds into TM Bowl and dry roast for 8 minutes at 100degrees C on speed 1.
2. Remove lid and allow to cool
3. When all ingredients are cool, add salt, peppercorns and dried mint or thyme and set dial to lose lid position and pulse a couple of times with Turbo button to form a coarse powder
4. Keep in an airtight container in fridge until ready to use

If you don't have a thermomix then try this recipe HERE

When I make Dukkah I tend to deviate from the recipe and experiment with extra herbs and spices and seeds.  I made a deliciously spicy mix with some dried chilli and paprika and it is divine!

Homemade Baileys Irish Cream

Every Christmas for years now I have been making homemade Irish Cream. 
The recipe I have used is over 20 years old and uses eggs.

Irish Creme3 eggs
1 tin condensed milk
300ml thickened cream
1 cup whisky
1 1/2 tsp chocolate topping
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1/4 tsp coconut essence

Blend/beat

This is my original recipe but over the years I have adapted it.  I found it was too eggy with 3 eggs so usually use 1 or 2 at the very most. The original recipe tastes more like an eggnog than a Baileys.  I also use more whisky.  It stores well in the fridge and is great served over crushed ice.  I blend mine up in the thermomix for 20 seconds or less (don't blend too much or the cream will whip and become really thick.

I just searched online and came up with loads more recipes not using eggs.  Tomorrow I am going to try this one out using coffee and no eggs.

Handmade Baileys Irish Creme makes a great homemade present too.  Pour into some lovely glass bottles, label and tie with some festive coloured ribbons.

YUM!

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Reindeer Cupcakes

I came across the cutest photo of reindeer cupcakes yesterday at Hoosier Handmade.
Since we had a Christmas party to go to last night I decided to make a batch.

I used my favourite chocolate cake recipe for the chocolate muffins. It is a Nigella Lawson recipe called Old fashioned Chocolate Cake.  The beauty of this recipe is that it is so simple and never fails.  I simply bung all the ingredients into the thermomix and a less than a minute later it is mixed and ready to spoon into the cupcake holders.
I used pretzels for the antennas,Chicko lollies for the ears, milk chocolate buds for the eyes, a vegetable chip for the snout (yes weird but the only thing I could find the right size), red, brown and one blue M&M for the noses and black icing in a tube for the mouth and eye balls.

We ended up with a lot of brown nosed reindeers and rudolph red nosed reindeers and one lonely and sad blue nosed one.
I never got to taste one but the kids all loved them  and all that was left was a few crumbs.

Creative Wishes Newsletter

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Japan Part 2

Oh, boy, I have been so busy since being back from holidays!  While away I had both my Etsy and Made It shop on holiday mode.  So for two weeks mid November the shops were closed and here I was thinking that I would miss out on heaps of Christmas sales.
But since reopening both shops I have had order after order and couldn't be happier!
It still gives me a thrill when people love my items enough to buy them.  And I love being busy sewing and creating gorgeous things.

So back to Japan and the gorgeous crafts there.

Japanese Craft Books
How could I resist!

Yes, I came home with a few.  I really couldn't resist.  The pictures are adorable and even though the instructions are all in Japanese I do have a son who can read Japanese and they are all so well illustrated I think I will be able to nut them out.

Since being home I have come across a wonderful Japanese craft book by Kumiko Sudo, Omiyage Handmade Gifts from fabric in the Japanese Tradition.  It has me biting at the bit to sew something from it and it is in English.  I have promised myself that after Christmas and when things have slowed down I will make something from here.  I will do some sewing just for me!

ORIGAMI
The other thing I came home with was some gorgeous origami papers and books. Another thing I will play with once Christmas is over.