Advent: Festive German Bakes to Celebrate the Coming of Christmas

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Available as just an ebook, and a short, sharp read, is Enjoying a Self-Care Christmas: Easy Ways to keep the Joy of Christmas, and your Sanity, intact. It’s an easy read, with ideas and hints to keep you sane through the season. The self-care advent calendar is one I’ve followed for a few years now, and it really is a small daily dose of calm in a manic month.

Advent: Festive German Bakes to Celebrate the Coming of Advent: Festive German Bakes to Celebrate the Coming of

They’re the kind of biscuits that most families make because they’re so easy,” says Dunk of Lebkuchenherzen. “The dough is sturdy so children can roll it out nicely and cut shapes out without worrying too much that they will break.”Put the butter and sugar into a large bowl and beat with a hand-held electric whisk until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks and whisk again until combined. Add the grated marzipan, flour, ground almonds, cinnamon and baking powder, then stir until well mixed. A slightly less obvious but equally symbolic sign of festivities is the oven –constantly aglow in our home during this period, scenting the house with cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, clove and anise as tray upon tray of mouth-watering biscuits bake.

Advent: Festive German bakes to celebrate the coming of Advent: Festive German bakes to celebrate the coming of

These little sweets came about one autumn when we found the ground on our usual path to school scattered with walnuts. After dropping the boys off I rushed home, scooping up as many nuts along the way as I could carry. I couldn’t find any ground hazelnuts, star anise or cloves, so I had to ‘grind’ them myself, and with only a hand-held blender to help, it took ages. And then, instead of being able to just bung everything in a processor, there was rubbing the butter into the flour, and kneading (for another age, it seemed) to get the mixture together and pliable.

As we hunker and snuggle around the stove each day, we are entertained, warmed and comforted by it. If ever there was a time for the oven to prove its worth as the real hearth of our home, advent is it. I hope you enjoy making these festive German bakes, which are made to share with friends and family for years – together or as presents. Almond domes recipe Form the marzipan into a rectangle 1cm deep and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Put the chocolate and coconut oil into a heatproof bowl and place the bowl over a small saucepan with 1cm of water in the bottom. Turn the heat on low and wait for the chocolate to melt. Once it starts melting, stir so that the coconut oil is evenly dispersed. Take off the heat once the chocolate is glossy and fluid. Advent is an edible countdown in 24 chapters inspired by the idea of traditional paper advent calendars, where you open up a window to reveal an image of winter on the 24 days leading up to Christmas. It is a real gem that I know will be used for very many Christmases to come in my house. Put all the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir with a wooden spoon. Add the butter and mix it into the flour using your fingertips until it has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs. Put the flour, sugar, salt and citrus zests into a large bowl and mix together with a wooden spoon, then add the melted butter and egg.