Sweet making for Yule

Better late than never.
I did make sweets for Yule.
I made fudge, both white chocolate fudge and peanut butter fudge.
I also made coconut ice and some melt in the middle truffles.
Oh! and some peppermint creams.

We had our usual Yule feast with home made pork pie and sausage rolls made from scratch.  I've learnt how to make puff pastry, and as it takes so little time to make, (Rough Puff Pastry,) I made the pastry for the sausage rolls, the meat was the very tasty sweet chilli sausagemeat from Kennedy's butchers of Morecambe. 
At some point between Xmas and New year, I also made cheese gougeres.  These are lovely cheesy bites made with cheese choux pastry.  They vanished almost as soon as they came out of the oven.

To me Yule is a time of getting together with family, having a good time with great company, and tasty food.  It can a really smashing time, if you concentrate on togetherness of the family, rather than the gift giving.

Next "sweet" first I plan is a batch of Scottish Tablet.

Latest knits

 I love this pinwheel cardigan.  I made it because I wanted to make one, and then gave it to a work colleague for her daughter

 Shadow had to have her toe amputated because of a growth on it. I love the bandage they put on it.

Above are photos of Robyn and Lily designs by Anniken Allis.  I enjoyed making them, and learnt new techniques in the process.  They are a Yule gift for a family member.

 This is also a Yule gift for a family member

 These two baby jacket were made just because I wanted to, again.  The blue one is my first ever crocheted item crocheted other than in a square or triangle.

And  a last look at that pinwheel cardigan.  I should make myself one seeing as I like it so much.
Sorry some of the photos are a little blurry, not sure why.
I've also been making chutneys for presents.  I've made carrot and coriander chutney, sweet courgette relish, rosemary jelly, chilli jelly, piccalilli and tomato and roasted pepper chutney.  Next weekend I think I'll make some sweets as well.  Fudge always goes down really well and I enjoy making it.  I've also made two small cakes to be given as gifts, but have yet to ice them.

Weekly cooking "self" challenge

Back in late March or early April I "self" challenged myself to try out a never before tried recipe.
This week has been Chicken Liver Pate, it smelt, and tasted ok when I had finished making...it is now in the fridge .
Last week I made panacotta with a homemade raspberry jelly.  I liked it, and colleagues said it was good.

Well, how did they go down?

I asked for feedback about the chocolate scones, and I got it.
You see, I shouldn't eat chocolate as it gives me a migraine.
The general opinion was although they were good scones, they were dry.  (Cocoa powder does tend to dry a mixture.)  Also, one person said the walnuts did not "go".  If I make chocolate scones again I think I will use hazelnuts as they are a "wetter" nut, and possibly raspberries or blueberries in place of the chocolate chips.
But, unless you try new things out you don't know whether they work or not.

Baking "experiment"

I'm not 100% sure why I decided that I would try to bake chocolate scones, but I did.  I have never seen, or heard, of chocolate scones before and wondered why.
I'll not say what changes I made to the recipe, only that they were logical changes, if you bake.
They are just about ready to be put into boxes to keep them fresh, but they smell great and look like normal scones, only they are brown, due to the chocolate.
After they have been sampled by my "guinea pigs", I'll add feedback to this post.
For the record, I made chocolate scones that have chocolate chips and walnut in them.  And....isn't experimenting how people create new recipes?

Passing the sundress

I have been busy knitting, crocheting, but had a problem which meant I was without my pc for several weeks.  And it's been very warm here, so sitting in front of a pc has not been top of my priority list, not with the warm weather beckoning.
Anyway, the projects I currently have on the go are granny squares for a bedcover and a four ply jumper for Edwin.  The jumper is dark blue so I have only been knitting after work and until the light started to fade, then I have been changing to crocheting granny squares.  I don't really need to watch what I'm doing with those.
I had also knitted a sundress for my great niece, but the edgings are crocheted and I couldn't get them to sit right, so I've asked Mum to finish it off as she is much more proficient at crocheting.

Search for needles for Mum

Mum has heard about some birch needles that are decorated, so my current mission is to find out who sells them, and she'll probably get at least one pair for her birthday.
I've just seen a gadget to put your ball of wool onto so that it unwinds as you knit.  I think it cost around £30.  That's a little expensive, so if you want to use one of those gadgets but are on a budget there's a simple answer.  You know those things designed to put kitchen roll on?  Well, they fit the bill perfectly.  I bought myself one when knitting with some "doughnut" balls of wool.  (you know the ones, they make the wool look lovely and squishy, but get in a tangle if you aren't careful, it was just perfect for those.
I have been knitting etc, just have been without my pc for the best part of four weeks.