Due to the current and evolving circumstances of COVID-19, our restaurant will now sadly remain closed until after the New Year. We’ve made this decision with a heavy heart as our guests mean the world to us and we genuinely love what we do everyday, but we feel it’s the best option for all concerned right now. Although we cannot wait to have you all back in the dining room in 2021, it does give us the opportunity to spend a Christmas at home this year and, in the meantime we’re also offering an exciting online food delivery service for Mallorca over the next few months and beyond.
I love the aromas of the kitchen during Christmas time. It’s heavy with the scent of cloves, cinnamon, ginger, sweet wine, orange peel and chocolate. Its so good it should be bottled and sold!
For me, Christmas festivities would seem incomplete without the traditional offerings of sweet, cinnamon star cookies, biscotti and my favourite, the gingerbread cookie. They have a special place in my heart because I loved them as a kid. They’re simple, delicious and fun to make. But not every gingerbread cookie is created equal, so if you are looking for the perfect cookie, here’s a couple simple of tips. Firstly, the texture of the cookie needs to be fairly crispy along the outside with a semi-soft, cake-like inside, and like all “perfect” cut-out cookies, they definitely need to keep their shape when baked. Secondly, they must taste sweet but notably spicy, and have a rich molasses flavour. Essentially they should taste like Christmas.
In Spain, Christmas is flavoured with aniseed, cinnamon, sesame, almonds and sweet Malaga wine. Many of the cakes and breads have an almost Middle Eastern touch, the result of centuries of Moorish rule. However, Christmas would not be Christmas without the “turrones” which are served at the end of a meal with the cafe and liqueurs, or with “cava”, the Spanish sparkling wine (similar to champagne) when guests arrive. There are basically two types of turron and they revolve around two towns in the south of Spain: Jijona and Alicante. Their turrón is the best known in the country, even carrying the Denominacíon de Origen (Protected Geographical Indication). Alicante’s turrón is hard and crunchy, a white block of hardened sugar, honey and sometimes egg white interspersed with whole almonds, while Jijona’s turrón is soft and chewy, the almonds crushed to a paste and incorporated into the other ingredients. While these two are considered to be the classics, today’s turróns also come containing chocolate, dried fruits, peanuts, walnuts, pine nuts and sometimes-even whisky. Although it’s available all year round, a massive 60 percent of the nations total production will be consumed over the yuletide festivities. That’s a lot of nuts!
Weather you’re spending time in the kitchen or ordering from Fosh Food @Home, may the Christmas season fill your home with joy, your heart with love and your life with laughter! Feliz Navidad a todos!
CINNAMON STARS
Ingredients makes 20-30
250g butter
180g sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
½ tsp ground cinnamon
340g plain flour, sifted
To decorate
400g icing sugar
3-4 tbsp water
Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F).
Place the butter and sugar in a food processor and beat until pale and creamy. Add the vanilla, ground cinnamon and egg yolk and beat well to combine. Add the flour and beat until a smooth dough forms. Divide the dough into 2 portions and wrap each portion in plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes or until the dough is firm. Roll out each portion of dough between 2 sheets of non-stick baking paper until 3mm thick. Remove the baking paper and use a 7cm star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out cookies from each sheet. Place the cookies on baking trays lined with baking paper and bake for 8-9 minutes or until the cookies are light golden. Cool on wire racks.
For the icing, sift the icing sugar into a large mixing bowl and stir in enough water to create a smooth mixture. Carefully spread the icing onto the biscuits using a knife and set aside until the icing hardens.
CHRISTMAS GINGERBREAD COOKIES
Ingredients makes 8-10
130g unsalted butter, softened
100g dark brown sugar
230g golden syrup
340g plain flour, sifted
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
To decorate:
80g icing (confectioner’s) sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons water
Preheat oven to 190ºC.
Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 10–12 minutes or until pale and creamy. Add the golden syrup, flour, ginger and bicarbonate of soda and beat until a smooth dough forms. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll the dough out between 2 sheets of non-stick baking paper to 5mm-thick. Use heart and star shaped cookie cutters to cut out cookies and place on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper. Bake for 8–10 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on the trays.
Place the icing sugar and water in a bowl and stir to combine. Pipe out the icing to decorate and outline the edges. Allow to set for 10-15 minutes.
CHRISTMAS JAM COOKIES
Ingredients makes 20
250g unsalted butter, softened
165g caster (superfine) sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
335g plain flour, sifted
160g strawberry jam
Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F).
Place the butter and sugar in an electric mixer and beat until pale and creamy. Add the vanilla, egg yolk and lemon zest and beat to combine. Add the flour and beat until a smooth dough forms.
Cover the dough with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm.
Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and roll out to a thickness of about 0.5cm. Cut out shapes using a 4cm cutter. Using a 2cm cutter, make a hole in the middle of half of the biscuits and discard the dough. Place all the biscuits on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on the trays.
Using a teaspoon, place a small dollop of strawberry jam on a whole biscuit. Place a top (with a hole) over the whole biscuit and press them together. Repeat the process with the remaining biscuits and sprinkle with icing sugar.
