UK Foodblogger Xmas Party @ mine

Ah, what a great time we had! Yesterday afternoon, a merry round of foodbloggers came round to my house for a pre-xmas gathering involving some Austrian specialities - home-made pumpkin seed, liptauer and "potato cheese" spreads, sausages & sauerkraut and cheese fondue. Jeanne, Jenni, Celia, Joanna and Zabeena, Melissa and her friend Wampe (the latter three driving all the way from Birmingham to be with us!) and my friend Martina had the most wonderful time chatting the afternoon away, and sampled an incredible array of the most amazing cookies everybody had brought along - washed down with copious amounts of mulled wine, of course.
The evening ended with us swapping cookies and I think I got an unusually large share of them all - glad that my parents are coming over for Christmas, otherwise I'd probably have an incredible sugar-rush... and in the spirit of sharing recipes for what we produced, here is a link to the choco-mocca beans and a recipe for vanilla crescents (yesterday's were brought by Martina, but I published my Dad's recipe last year).
This year, I also made "Hausfreunde" - the word has a double meaning, it translates as "friend of the house", innocently enough, but has a rather wicked connotation, namely "the housewife's lover". I keep making these every year, realising only half-way through the recipe that I've made them the year before and they weren't what I expected. I seem to remember cookies by that name from my childhood, a shortbread-like base with some fruit spread (possibly only a jam, rather than a layer of dried fruit), topped with a nutty meringue mixture - and year after year I open up my recipe book and think I've found the recipe for them and... well, they're nice enough, even if they're not what I intended them to be. I'll have to invent my own recipe soon!
Unfortunately, I have no picture for them, nor for the Mandelboegen - they're similar to florentines, but consist of nothing more than caramelised almond slivers on rice paper... deliciously moreish! And I promise to post a recipe for the little surprise I had up my sleeve for the end of such a jolly afternoon - my choco-mocca liqueur - just so that the people who were driving yesterday might also appreciate it as well... so stay posted for the delicate taste of a home-made Bailey's!

Hausfreunde (Fruit, nut & chocolate cookies)
(yields a 30x40 cm tray)

130 g icing sugar
3 eggs
120 g self-raising flour
35 g pecan nuts (roughly chopped)
65 g walnuts (roughly chopped)
20 g raisins (roughly chopped)
30 g raisins (whole)
100 g chocolate (chopped - Valrhona)
50 g almonds (roughly chopped)
70 g prunes (roughly chopped)
70 g dried apricots (roughly chopped)

Preheat oven to 180 C.
Beat eggs and sugar until creamy, add the flour, then incorporate the chopped fruits, nuts and chocolate. Spread onto a baking tray lined with silicone paper, bake for 15 minutes.

Mandelboegen (caramelised almond "florentines" without the dried peel and cherries, and no chocolate in sight either)
(makes ca. 30)

100 g flaked almonds
100 g flaked almonds - roasted
150 g caster sugar
60 ml cream
50 g butter
2 tbsp honey
edible rice paper

Pre-heat oven to 250 C.
Put cream, sugar, butter and honey in a non-stick pan, bring to a boil and simmer until well combined and foaming. Add the almond flakes and combine well. Leave to cool slightly.
Take 3 sheets of rice paper, lay onto a non-stick baking tray, spread the mixture onto them, then put in the oven.
Bake for 6-8 minutes. The mixture will have run off the paper, so push it back on, distributing it evenly.
Leave to cool slightly, then cut with a very sharp knife, arranging each piece ove a rolling pin or bottle lined with baking parchment. Leave to cool and stiffen up completely.
Keep in an airtight container, making sure they're not too tightly packed, so they don't stick together.

Comments

[Stephanie]

Wow...you are one busy gal!

The Blog Party round-up has been posted!

[Pille]

Dear Johanna, I'm glad to read the meeting was a success! I'm sorry I couldn't make it, as I'm already in Estonia for my Christmas holiday. Next year, I hope..

[Andrew]

Sounds a great day and those biscuits look superb - sorry I missed it! :-(

[angelika]

I am glad you had such a great time ! Would have liked to join you, but of course my thoughts were with you, and at the same time you were my so-to-say virtual guests at our own party here (will post about it soon). Merry Christmas to all of you and my very special greetings also to Martina, all the very best from snowy Vienna, angelika

[Martina]

Hallo Johanna!

Ich warte schon begierig darauf, ob du in den nächsten Tagen deinen Vorschlag für ein Weihnachtsessen hier öffentlich machst.

Ich hoffe es geht dir gut.

Liebe Grüße aus dem leider verregneten Linz, Martina

[melissa_cookingdiva]

I am glad to learn that you had a great time! AND, your cookies look fantastic :)

[Joanna Cary]

Johanna, It was a fantastic way to start Christmas, such lovely things you gave us to eat, and such a great idea swapping all those delicious biscuits - everyone here was delighted to eat them. Thank you.

And I'm really looking forward to the choco-mocca liqueur, as I didn't taste it!

Happy Christmas
Joanna

[celiaK]

Johanna, thank you so much for hosting that cookie swap Christmas party. I love love all the cookies there and hope you won't forget to post your recipe for the choco-mocca liquer. :)
Btw, where can I get rice paper?

[celiaK]

Johanna, thank you so much for hosting that cookie swap Christmas party. I love love all the cookies there and hope you won't forget to post your recipe for the choco-mocca liquer. :)
Btw, where can I get rice paper?

Happy Holidays!

[johanna]

hi celia, you can get rice paper at any supermarket, i believe, i got it from sainsbury's or waitrose, it's usually in the baking department with the decorations and confectionary cases etc. the brand is "supercook" - hope you'll be able to find it, otherwise, let me know!

[Tülin]

Hi there, your cookies seemed so tasty that as a coffee lover I tried them. I am thinking of putting them in my blog with your permission. Please let me know if there is a problem. All the best for the new year!