Merry Christmas, happy holidays or just Happy new years

I dislike starting with an apology but last week I tweeted that I would post on Tuesday and then got taken up with lots of jobs and never posted. So this week I am posting one day early to make up for it. Well I have a few little treats to share with you....

This year, like every year, I gave out sweets as gifts

The selection is as follows (starting from the 9 o'clock position and working anti-clockwise)- Dark Chocolate Truffles with white chocolate topping, Pudding Truffles, normal and reverse Cookies n' Cream fudge.

So looking at them individually, lets start with the Dark Chocolate Truffles -

These are very simple to make and very very delicious. I used 70% dark chocolate chips that I bought online in bulk.

I take equal parts dark chocolate and cream, 50g butter and flavours of choice. I heat the cream, add some flavouring; vanilla or alcohol, and then pour the hot cream over the chocolate. I allow it to sit for a few minutes then stir, finally I add the butter in little pieces and stir. Then it chills in the fridge and is ready to scoop in a few hours.

I melt some white chocolate and drip it over the top.

Next on to the Pudding Truffles -

These are a little more complicated but can be achieved with relative ease, once you have access to dispensable Christmas cake

This is not the cake I used but looks like it!

I take the christmas cake and break it down, then I add a mixture of whiskey, cream and honey. These are all combined before adding to the cake mix and then the whole mixture is combined. From there I scoop and roll into balls and then roll into in a mixture of ground almonds and icing sugar, or the nuts of your choice.

And finally the fudge. This may actually be the easiest to make and one that I have made in a pinch in about an hour or so.

This recipe involves condensed milk, butter, chocolate and Oreos. Normally I use just white chocolate and normal Oreos but this year I also made reverse cookies n cream with dark chocolate and 'Golden Oreos,' which essentially makes chocolate biscuit cake but with extra chocolate fudge.

Somewhat like the truffles you heat the condensed milk, but this time with the butter, then remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate. Allow to sit, stir together and then crush your Oreos and add. I leave some of the Oreos with the cream and remove the cream from others for variety. I add the cookies into the chocolate mixture, mix and then pour into a heat proof bowl with some grease-proof paper and allow to cool, which happens quickly (45 mins at a push) and then cut and you're away!!

So yes these were my Christmas presents this year. They stay relatively the same every year because traditions are important! So in the tradition of the season I will wish you all a very happy new year and look forward to posting more in 2016!!!