Memories of Sticky Date & Fig Pudding….

Yule or Christmas Pudding

There are so many recipes out there for Christmas puddings – I won’t even try reinventing the wheel however, I will say….I have made sugar free versions of absolutely everything and these are just as good as something with sugar.

Especially when it comes to puddings such as this. There are a lot of sweet ingredients that go into such a dessert but that is just the point isn’t it? A Christmas feast is not the time or place to be counting the calories!

My favourite Christmas pudding last year was one I made with pecans….or was it the one I made with sticky dates and toffee! Can’t remember, they were all so good and when served later, long after the heaviness of the meal has been digested, a pudding is quite a nice way to end any festive day.

But, the single most important thing to say about any Yule or Christmas pudding – is this – you have to be making it now! LOL

Now is the perfect time to set aside an afternoon and assemble your pudding. Get each of your ingredients ready (soaking the dried fruit is often a good idea too) and then follow your favourite recipe to your hearts delight.

Making the pudding is easy. I always find steaming it for 6 to 8 hours the more difficult part because I am always watching little ones around the stove and making sure the pot doesn’t run out of water. 

But, eventually the pudding is steamed enough to cool down and store or freeze until Christmas. I do believe that some of those made with rum or whiskey as well as all that sugar and fruit, will continue to age and develop in texture and flavour no matter where they are! LOL

This week – start getting ready for your special day. Choose a pudding recipe, make a ritual of gathering the ingredients, spend an afternoon making it and then store it in a special place to age. 

One of the most wonderful traditions of this time of year is the opening of all these little packages when the time comes. An aromatic Christmas pudding in one of them is a lovely gift indeed.

April

Sticky date & fig pudding ready to freeze

Fasting Has Changed My Life...I Now Have One!

Today is a fast day for me, tomorrow will be a normal food day….in a few days (Summer Solstice) there will be a couple days of feasting. Each week and every day brings something different to the table….

Because I am eating this way, I look forward to my food like never before. Even a bowl of porridge takes on a new meaning when you are truly hungry – and I fill up faster. I am satisfied after eating less.

My stomach empties out on the fast days (I usually just drink water and herbal teas), providing extra energy for detox, repair and rebuilding reserves. I work out as usual – feeling better and more myself –perhaps because I can actually ‘feel’….

My digestive system isn’t stuffed with food (all the time) – it’s a cycle of eating that has brought me back to myself in so many ways; old and new. I have discovered there is a spiritual element to eating that I never even knew existed….

Oh and the feast days! When following the Celtic or Pagan Calendar there are many feasts throughout the year. When you add in birthdays and a couple of other celebrations…there is something to plan for every few weeks.

Right now we are gearing up for the Summer Solstice or Midsummer as we know it here. This is a BIG deal for us and we have been planning our menu for weeks. Of course everyone wants a BBQ – so we are hoping the weather will cooperate too!

Fasting before a feast is not an issue at all…in fact – I think I have moved beyond my food ‘issues’ because I have permission to eat what I want, when I want it and as much as I want, during our feasts.

Of course, I’m not going to eat rubbish on my feast days either; my cleaned out digestive system enjoys organic, natural, wholesome, homemade, unprocessed and wild harvested food.

Anything I can raise, grow, make from scratch or dig up – is on the menu!

It’s hard to hang onto thoughts of deprivation when you have 3 or 4 days of non-stop cooking, baking and eating to look forward to. Once the feast is winding down I am more then happy to return to a fast day and normal eating, mostly because I am tired of all that food. LOL

Fasting has become an easy ‘out’ for me. On these days I get a breather…time to think, do some things I keep putting off – be creative and savour the feeling of a day off from eating and watch (feel) my body get stronger.

Since I started eating this way (food, fast and feast) I sleep more soundly, I wake earlier, I am less obsessed with food or eating. I think about food all the time (it’s what I do) however, those thoughts are on a far healthier level.

I am slimmer now and find it far easier to maintain a normal body weight. I work out nearly every day in some capacity (free weights, walking, Yoga etc.) – short term, intermittent fasting even enhances physical activity.

On my food days, I am the one ‘in control’ of how much I eat and when to stop. I find eating earlier in the day might be nice one day…or a big meal after a fasted workout is great too.

Everywhere I go people mention to me how healthy I look. I don’t feel tired, I have more then enough energy to do what I want to do and I feel younger then my years.

Actually…it’s far easier to take care of myself because I am eating this way then ever before. Life has found a gentle rhythm bringing my body into balance is, and I have found all this, by following a natural cycle of eating.

April

The Pagan Diet

Getting Ready for a Feast!

It feels as if I have hardly been in the kitchen at all - yet I have been cooking, baking and making foods (mostly treats) since early this morning. I am trying to fit in something special for everyone, and still have a list to work from! LOL

Today I made more date squares, because they were such a hit and are so tasty with a cup of dandelion or barley coffee. This time around I made them a little differently but putting more spices into both the date mixture as well as with the crust. 

I added into the chopped dates a teaspoon of cinnamon, lemon juice, water and some date syrup - this all cooked up into a paste and was then sandwiched between each layer of the oat butter crust. I also added some allspice into the crust mixture to give it more of a flavour.

It smells lovely with that warm, cozy scent only found from toasted oats! I can't wait to try them tomorrow.

Then I made some Hazelnut honey halva (due to popular demand), this was one of the treats we used to buy and I have not ever attempted to make it myself before now. I found a recipe from an old Middle Eastern book and mostly followed that.

It can be a bit tricky with temperatures and getting the mixtures right - once it is all into the pan to set, it then needs to cool and crystalize for 36 hours. Right now we are at this stage, and I will let you know how this one turns out. 

My real adventure today was toasting the hazelnuts. Of course, the halva recipe mentioned hot roasted nuts as being best, but with the skins off. Apparently the best way to remove skins from hazelnuts is to gently roast them for about 10 minutes then to rub off the skins in a coarse kitchen towel. 

Hazelnuts - removing the skins

It worked! The skins came off the nuts, for the most part and I was able to crush them a little before adding to the halva mixture. Fingers are crossed on this one...

Next I was still feeling adventurous, so I decided to make some flapjacks mainly for the children, but we love them as well. I like a recipe I can add or change ingredients for, and this one is ideal. Today I put seeds (sesame, sunflower) walnuts, sultanas, chopped apricots and coconut into the oat mixture and it turned out ok.

I was aiming for more of a chewy flapjack, however it was a bit crumbly and could have been left in the oven for another few minutes. They are quite tasty though, with the crumbly bit not too bad and no one really even noticed but me!

Near the end of the day, I decided to make something savory (mostly for myself) to offset all of these sweet treats. Of course, one of my favourite snacks is a Rosemary goat's cheese muffin, so now we have a batch of these as well. 

Flapjacks, date squares, goat's cheese muffins - looking forward to the party! 

All in all, today was a busy day gearing up for our feast, tomorrow will bring even more tasty bites for our Blue Moon party, now I have to decide which ones.....

Have a happy Blue Moon!

April

Looks blue to me!