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5 Little Treat Recipes That Will Make You Win The Christmas Food Wars

5 Little Treat Recipes That Will Make You Win The Christmas Food Wars
Carly Jacobs

This post is sponsored by Woolworths

I come from a family of major foodies. Every Christmas we all trot out our old faithful recipes when we all get together to celebrate. My mum’s Crunchy Nut Salad, my uncle’s amazing BBQ breakfasts, my cousin’s leathal cocktails. I thought it would be a lovely idea to share my favourite famous recipes from my family and friends to inspire everyone in their own Christmas food wars. Any of these recipes are perfect to take to work morning teas, Christmas get togethers or picnics.

Carly’s Ginger Nut Wagon Wheels

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I made these a few years ago and they still get requests. They’re very rich but super delicious and perfect for a dessert with a scoop of ice cream on the side. Naughty.

Ingredients

(makes 8)

1 packet of Macro gluten free ginger biscuits

16 white marshmallows, thinly sliced

Strawberry jam

1 packet of milk chocolate melts

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Method 

1. Place sliced marshmallow on 8 ginger nut biscuits (I made mine gluten free with Macro ginger biscuits) on an oven tray and bake in a 180C oven until slightly melted. Spread another 8 ginger nuts with strawberry jam. Gently place jam ginger biscuits on marshmallow biscuits.

2. Melt chocolate in the microwave or on the stove. Using two spoons coat sandwiched ginger biscuits and place on a sheet of baking paper. Put in the fridge to cool and then enjoy!

Sally’s Tomato Salsa

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This is a beautiful salsa that my sister-in-law made a few years ago on her first ever Christmas with my family. We devoured it in minutes and chased her around when she presented a second bowl. Delicious.

Ingredients

3 tomatoes, finely chopped

1/2 spanish onion

4 finely chopped slices of tinned jalapeno

1/2 bunch finely chopped coriander

Method

Simply mix all ingredients together and serve with crackers or chips. We ate this batch with Macro veggie chips.

GeddyMatt’s Salted Caramels

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This is the most devine salted caramel candy recipe from my beautiful friends Matt and Ged. They send me a bag of these for my birthday every year and I can never leave their house without them tucking a little goody bag into my hands on the way out. They’re dead easy to make, seriously sinful and if you take them to an event people will be talking about them for years.

Ingredients

200gms honey

25gms vanilla paste

400gms sugar

125gms unsalted butter cut into eight pieces

1.5 teaspoons of sea salt (plus more for sprinkling)

3oomls pure pouring cream

Note: You will need a candy thermometer for this recipe

Method 

1. Line a square cake tin with baking paper making sure the paper reaches up the sides of the tin. Fill the sink with hot soapy water ready to soak your dirty dishes. Combine honey, vanilla and sugar in a large saucepan. Place on medium heat stiring until sugar and honey have melted. Once the sugar is melted let the mixture come to a boil. Boil without stiring until the mixture becomes a dark caramel brown colour. Place the cream in the microwave for 60 seconds until it’s just warm.

2. When the caramel is dark brown remove it from the heat and whisk in butter pieces one at a time. Whisk in salt. Slowly pour in warmed cream and whisk until smooth. Return to heat, insert a candy thermometer and boil caramel until it reaches 260F (hard ball). Be careful as the mixture will bubble and spit during this phase.

3. Carefully pour hot caramel into the lined cake tin and let it cool for 10 minutes. Once the caramel has cooled, sprinkle liberally with coarse sea salt. When the caramel reaches room tempterature cut into sticks or squares and wrapped in baking paper wrappers.

Mama Smaggle’s Champagne Cocktail

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We like a sip of the old tipple in my family and Mama Smaggle makes this every Christmas morning. We’ll have brioche or croissants with jam and an elegant glass of Mama Smaggle’s Champagne Cocktail to get the festive party started. What can I say? The woman knows how to do Christmas day glamour.

Ingredients

3 punnets of strawberries

2/3 cup icing sugar

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

1/3 cup of cointreau

2 bottles of white or pink bubbly

Method

Simply blend together all ingredients and then add chilled champagne!

Steph’s Potato Pizza

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My bestie is one of the crazies who does things likes makes her own pizza dough and casually roasts chickens. She’ll literally whip this up at midnight for a snack when we’ve just got home from a show.

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Ingredients

(makes 2 pizzas)

1 packet of Macro gluten free pizza dough

3 to 4 small washed potatoes, thinly sliced

2 white onions

1 tablespoon of brown sugar

2 tablespoons of rosemary leaves

3 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Salt

1. Pre-heat oven to 180C. Prepare pizza dough according to instructions on the box and press into two pizza dough pans.

2. Slice and caramalize onion over low heat, adding brown sugar and water as needed. Spread caramlized onion over pizza base. Place potato on pizza. Mix olive oil and garlic and spread evenly over potato. Sprinkle with rosemary and salt. Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Cut into pieces and serve warm.

Is there a recipe from your family that you absolutely love? Or are you famous amongst your friends for doing the best brownie or pear tart?

The first ten commenters will be sent a few of GeddyMatt’s salted caramels (made by me!) to try. Just email me with your address once you’ve left a comment. Be quick!

This post was cordinated by The Remarkables Group

38 Comments

  1. Gayel @ Modern Mummy Mayhem 10 years ago

    Salted caramels?!! Let me just go for a run to even out the naughtiness…

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      You’re in! Number 1 baby! Send me your email address!

      • Author
        Smaggle 10 years ago

        Or your postal address because I can’t send them through email. Der.

        • Gayel @ Modern Mummy Mayhem 10 years ago

          yes I was wondering that but my arse would probably prefer just looking at the pics of them …
          will email you my postal addy.

      • Gayel @ Modern Mummy Mayhem 10 years ago
  2. Jack Lloyd 10 years ago

    Please fire them at great speed towards my face!

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Send me your postal address! Number 3!

  3. Mrsceeeceee 10 years ago

    PICK ME LADY SMAGGLE! I needz the salted caramels!!

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Send me your postal address! Number 4!

  4. Beck 10 years ago

    Too tempting, handmade treats made by someone else are my favourite!! Will be giving the ginger wagons wheels a go myself 🙂

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Number 5! Send me your postal address!

  5. Yum! I’m going to have to make these

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Number 6! Send me your postal address!

  6. Sins and Candy 10 years ago

    OH ME OH MY. I love all things salted caramel. I hope you’re having a great Festive Season, Carly!

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Number 7! Send me your postal address!

  7. Cass 10 years ago

    Omg they sound amaze!!

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Number 8! Send me your postal address!

  8. Maddi 10 years ago

    Oh my god.

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      They are a world of amazing!

  9. Cass 10 years ago

    Omg they sound amaze! In our famy every Christmas we make a honeycomb cheesecake slice, yummo! Delicious but very, very rich

  10. disqus_p7UPkt3Ex5 10 years ago

    Yum, I can’t wait to make these

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      You’re in! Send me your postal address?

  11. Aprilahh 10 years ago

    Oh well. If I cannot win ze caramels I will make them. Huzzah!

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      I think you just made it in! Send me your postal address?

  12. Deb4268 10 years ago

    I would love to try these, they look yummy
    . Could you tell me how much cream?

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      So sorry about that! 300ml pouring cream! WordPress is being mean to me and won’t let me log in and my admin guy is travelling so I can’t fix it! Boo!

  13. Victoria Devine 10 years ago

    how good is anything salty + caramely – best invention ever in my opinon!

  14. Nessbow 10 years ago

    I love potato pizza but I haven’t made one in ages. I reckon I’ll be pulling this one out on Christmas eve!

  15. Darren Cullerne 10 years ago

    DAMN! Too slow… Those salted caramels look AWESOME! Going to have a crack tonight and add them to the Christmas Loot…

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Ha! This is hilarious. I was giving away a $500 voucher a few weeks ago and no one gave shit but a few salted caramels??? Everyone goes MENTAL!

  16. Luc 10 years ago

    Oh My! Loving them all especially the champagne cocktail which I will be trialling soon!
    I’m wondering if marshmallows might have gluten in them? I think some brands have wheat bases glucose?

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      the champagne cocktail is divine!

  17. Amafi 10 years ago

    What quantity of cream is in the caramels? I NEED TO MAKE THESE NOW

    • Author
      Smaggle 10 years ago

      Argh! I’m so sorry. 300ml pouring cream! I’ll update the recipe as soon as WordPress stops being a dick. #can’tsignin

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  1. […] this recipe as part of a round up of Christmas treats last year and it went ligit bonkers on the interwebs. This recipe comes courtesy of my gay husbands Matt and […]

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