Xmas !! Going to mother in laws for christmas dinner .. i have to bring dessert !! any ideas ??

Answer 1

The traditional Christmas pudding and also something for those who may not like it - Trifle for example.

Answer 2

Want to try something totally different?

This is a Scandinavian Christmas dessert, easy to make and easy to transport:

You mix half and half rice porridge and whipped cream, add some blanched, chopped almonds. Bring with you a tin (or more, depending on how many you'll serve) of cherries, and heat it gently (including the juice) before you eat. The warm, red sauce over the cold, white dessert is divine. You could put a little brandy in the cherry sauce if u like.

Also, you can put a whole blanched almond in the dessert. The person that gets the almond must not eat it, but hide it until everybody is finished eating. Then he/she get's a price, usually a marzipan pig ;-)

Ingredients

3/4 cup white rice (rice for porridge)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla powder/extract
2 cups cream, whipped
1/2 cup almonds, blanched and finely chopped
1 whole almond, blanced
(2-3 tins whole cherries)

Cook the rice, salt, and milk together. It usually takes 60 to 90 minutes for the rice to soften and for the mixture to thicken. Stir often, so the porridge doesn't stick to the pan.
Add sugar and vanilla. Pop this mixture into the fridge to chill.
Mix in the chopped almonds and the one whole almond.
Stir in the whipped cream.
Serves 8 - 10.

Answer 3

Christmas Pudding that's been on the shelf for a year
my favorite

Ingredients
l lb of each: raisins, currants, golden raisins, breadcrumbs, brown sugar
8oz Suet
4oz each: Mixed peel, glace cherries chopped, almonds chopped
1 each: Lemon - grate rind, orange - grate rind, carrot - grated, apple - grated
1 tbs Flour
1 tsp mixed spice
Pinch salt
6-8 Eggs
10oz stout (bottle) or dark beer (Guiness is good)
OR 5 ozs each brandy & milk.


Preparation
Mix dry ingredients first then mix with lightly beaten eggs & liquid. Grease the bottom of a bowl large enough to hold pudding and press mixture into it. Place wax paper over the top and then foil over that, crimping it around the edges to keep firm. Either cook for 2 hours in pressure cooker with about 2 inches water or put in pan with water on stove for 4 hours. Keep checking water in pan to prevent burning. Store well wrapped for as long as possible for better flavor. Some people make them one year to eat the next.

Why steam for so long? Christmas puddings are quite dense because of all the fruit, nuts, etc. they contain. Steaming is the best method of cooking because it allows a slow cooking which ensures a moist and palatable result (cakes being less dense can cook for less time and still remain moist, so baking is the best method). If you used a faster cooking method for a Christmas pudding you would get a crusty pudding. A pudding steamed for 2 hours, rather than 4, would probably still have some uncooked mixture in the center. So, while the cooking time obviously depends on the size of the pudding. (This is when it is cooked on the stove - not the pressure cooker)

Answer 4

If there's already going to be desserts, maybe bring a really nice fruit platter (try to make it as exciting as possible) because it might be a relief for the people that are feeling overwhelmed by all the rich Christmas food.

Otherwise, a really nice thing to make is pain au chocolat bread and butter pudding! If you buy about 5 pain au chocolats from the supermarket and wait until they are a bit stale they are the best then.

Preheat your oven to 180c/350f. Get a bowl and mix the yolk of 4 eggs with 115g of icing sugar, and add in 2 teaspoons of vanilla essence, 450ml of milk and 750ml of double cream. Whisk it all together.

Then slice the pain au chocolats into pieces and layer your buttered serving dish with some of the slices. Pour your mix over the layers, and then put down more slices, then more mix, then more slices, etc. Finish with a layer of slices and press them down gently. You can bake it until golden brown (about 30 mins). It's lovely served with chocolate sauce!

Answer 5

Thanksgiving is pies, Christmas is cookies. A variety of cookies will give guest an opportunity to try numerous desserts with just a little taste when desserts are small. In the bakery I worked at growing up, the boss always said more cookies per pound, so the customer gets a better value, more cookies more variety.

Answer 6

Give this one a go:
Chocolate, Cranberry and Mandarin Trifle
Severs 12 - 16

½x 340g Pack fresh Cranberries
1x 200g Jar Cranberry Sauce
2 x 298g Mandarin segments in mandarin juice, drained and juice reserved
1 Double chocolate chunk Loaf, cut into cubes
2 x 425g Packs Low fat custard
1 x150g bar luxury plain chocolate
1 x 142ml carton Double cream, lightly whipped

Method

1.Place the cranberries in a saucepan with the cranberry sauce and about ¾ of the mandarin juice. Cook over a high heat for about 10 minutes until thickened, stirring occasionally. Leave to cool.
2.While the cranberry mixture is cooking and cooling, place the chocolate cake in a large trifle dish and moisten with the remaining mandarin juice. Sprinkle the mandarins on top.
3.Break half the bar of chocolate into a small saucepan and add a little of the custard from one carton. Warm gently, stirring occasionally until melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the rest of the carton of custard. Leave to cool.
4.Melt the remaining chocolate in a small bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water or put in the microwave on high about 2 minutes, be careful not to heat to much as it will start to clump. Leave to cool but not set. Line a baking tray with non stick baking parchment. Make a greaseproof paper piping bag and fill with the chocolate. Cut off the tip and pipe free hand stars onto the parchment. Leave in a cool place to set hard.
5.Spoon the cranberry mixture over the mandarin’s then top with the two custards using alternate large spoonfuls. Swirl it with a knife or skewer to give a rippled effect. Chill for at least 4 hours (but up to 48 hours)
6.To serve, pipe or spoon blobs of whipped cream on to the trifle. Carefully peel the stars from the parchment and set each one in a blob of cream.

That should stop 'em in thier tracks!!!

Answer 7

my favorite

Pistachio Cream Pie
Submitted by: Holly
Rated: 5 out of 5 by 13 members Yields: 8 servings

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose
flour
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 (16 ounce) package frozen whipped topping, thawed
2 (3 ounce) packages instant pistachio pudding mix
3 cups cold milk
1/4 cup maraschino cherries
1/8 cup chopped pistachio nuts
DIRECTIONS:
1. Mix flour, walnuts, and butter or margarine. Spread into the bottom
of a 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 20 to
30 minutes. Cool.
2. Mix together cream cheese, vanilla, confectioners' sugar and 1 cup
whipped topping. Beat well, and spread over cooled crust.
Refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Mix instant pudding with milk until thick. Spread over cream cheese
layer. Top with remaining whipped topping, sprinkle with nuts, and
decorate with maraschino cherries.

Answer 8

Chef Caprial Pence's book Caprials Desserts has lots of wonderful, easy to follow recipes and variations for each recipe. I've made more than half the stuff in the book and am confident enough in her recipes to try new things for important events.

There's one recipe for a poached pear and caramel tart (start making the day before because there are three separate processes) that is absolutley to die for. And I am famous among my family and friends for making her pear pie and the cinnamon caramel pull aparts.

You can get her books from Amazon, I have several and they are all fantastic.

Answer 9

I'm taking a desert to my mums for christmas dinner, I'm going to make a tiramisu - its very easy and absolutely delicious - and it looks really impressive to in a nice glass dish!

Here's the recipe I use...

200g spnge fingers
300ml strong black coffee
8tbsp tia maria
400g fresh custard
250g mascarpone cheese
150ml whipping cream lightly whipped
2 tbsp cocoa powder

Mix coffee & tia maria in a jug. Place 1/2 the sponge fingers in the dish, pour over 1/2 the liquid, leave for 10 mins. Mix mascarpone and custard & spread 1/2 over the sponge fingers. Repeat the process once more and chill for 2 - 3 hours. Lightly whip the cream, spread over the top, and dust with the cocoa powder, and keep chilled.

Answer 10

Mince Pies and Custard

Ingredients

2 grated apples
2 grated carrots
finely chopped walnut pieces
lemon
orange
vegan margarine
sultanas
mixed spice
pastry

To make the vegan mince meat for the pies combine 2 grated apples, 2 grated carrots, finely chopped walnuts (the same looking quantity as apple), lemon juice from 1 lemon plus grated rind, Orange juice from 1 orange plus grated rind, knob of vegan margarine, a generous handful sultanas (you cannot have too many) and lots of mixed spices to taste. Leave the ingredients in a covered bowl in the fridge for at least 24 hours for the flavours to come out. Use the pastry of your choice for the pies and place the mixture generously into each one.

These are delicious served warm with custard which I make from a vegan custard powder and sweetened soya milk or you can buy in the shops, and a large serving of vegan cream.

Answer 11

If you have to take some sort of a xmas pudding then nip into M&S or Waitrose and get a premade one. If you're ot fussed about a pudding, then why not take some good indulgent choc cake and special ice cream?