With the merry festive season suddenly upon us, there are going to be many Christmas parties, office parties and kid’s parties that will involve a fair amount of effort on your part. So give the endless (and merciless) hours of shopping a shove, and take to the kitchen! Baking is a cost effective solution and is a fun way of getting into the Christmas spirit. To celebrate the very first day of December, we have compiled three deliciously fun treats you can make to impress your friends and family over the Christmas season. Hi Ho, its off to the kitchen we go!

Snowflake Cookies

• 200g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 150g caster sugar
• 2tsp vanilla essence
• 1 egg
• 300g cake flour, sifted
• 1 egg white or icing
• Silver balls
• Edible Glitter
• Christmas shaped cookie cutters

Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer. Beat in the vanilla essence and the egg. Add the flour and beat the mixture until smooth. Remove from the bowl and wrap with cling film. Refrigerate until chilled (about 40 minutes). Preheat the oven to 160˚C.

Dust your worktop with flour and roll one portion of the dough out to around 3mm in thickness. Cut the dough with a snowflake shaped cookie cutter (or any other Christmas shape such as stars, trees, and Santa’s).  Line the baking trays with baking paper or grease the trays with butter or Spray ‘n Cook. Lay the cookies along the trays, remembering to leave enough space around each one so it can expand. Refrigerate for about 10 minutes and then bake for 10 – 12 minutes (or until golden). Cool on a wire rack.

When cool, brush lightly with egg whites, or ice in blue and white icing. Decorate with silver balls and edible glitter. The mixture will make around 40 small cookies.

Santa Hat Muffins

• 1 ½ cups cake flour
• ½ cup cocoa
• 2 tsp. instant coffee (optional)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• ¾ cup milk
• ½ cup oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla essence
• 2 tsp. white vinegar

Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Line 36 mini muffin cups with paper liners or in greased baking trays. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, instant coffee, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, vanilla essence, and vinegar. Pour the dry ingredients into the liquids and stir until no flour remains. Distribute the batter evenly into the muffin trays, filling them to about ¾ full. Bake in the oven for 10 – 12 minutes or until you can insert a knife into the centre and it comes out clean. Place muffins onto a wire rack to cool completely before icing.

Vanilla Buttercream Icing:

• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• ½ tsp. vanilla essence
• Pinch of salt
• 36 strawberries, hulled

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter on high until light and fluffy (should take about 3-5 minutes). Reduce the mixer to a slow speed and gradually add the sugar, then the vanilla, and salt. Beat until the mixture is smooth. Pour the mixture into a piping bag and pipe the mixture into a circle on the top of each mini muffin. Place a strawberry in the centre of each circle, with the pointy side facing up. Pipe a small drop of icing onto the top of each strawberry to form the “pom-pom” of the Santa hat. This recipe makes around 36 mini muffins.

Mince Pies

• Frozen short-crust pastry (bought from the supermarket)
• Fruit mincemeat
• Icing sugar
• Milk
• Star or round cookie cutters

Roll out a little over half the pastry on a flour-dusted surface to a thickness of about 2mm. Stamp out circles with a cookie cutter to line the holes of a 12-hole muffin tray (8cm cutter should do the trick).

Spoon a little mincemeat into each hole, then roll out the remaining pastry with a little more flour. Use a 6cm fluted or star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out 12 lids. Cover the mincemeat with the pastry lids and push around the edges to seal. Poke 1 -2 small holes in each to allow steam to escape. Preheat the oven to 180˚C, wrap the entire tray in cling film and refrigerate.

Once the oven is ready, brush the mince pies with a little milk and bake for 20 – 22 minutes (or until golden and crisp). Set the mince pies on a wire rack to cool, and then dust with icing sugar. Makes 12 mince pies, but if you need more, the recipe is easily doubled.

Tip: They will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer should you want to prepare in advance!

What are you favourite treats to spoil your family with at Christmas?

Main Image Courtesy of Bentonbetterlunches