Handmade Christmas: Sweets!

The last of my handmade gifts. For each family member I made florentines or truffles. For the truffles I used this recipe and for the florentines I used Nigella Lawson's recipe from 'How to be a Domestic Godess'. Delish!

Winter Good Things ~ In the Kitchen

Winter makes me feel crap. I put a lot of effort into not letting it get me down, sometimes with success and sometimes not. I'm really interested to hear if winter gets you down and what you do to prevent it. Spending time in the kitchen is one of the things which helps me. So I thought I would share three things which we are making a lot.

Homemade granola. I use this recipe and add only a pinch of salt. I love to eat it with chopped fruit and yogurt in the morning or as a snack when I get home from work. I find that eating something delicous for breakfast makes getting up in the dark a lot less depressing and helps me start the day on a good note.

Lots of hearty meals. We get a weekly veg bag filled with seasonal vegetables. I've also been going to a farmers market which started up at the end of our road recently. That is where I get our meat. With good quality meat and good quality veg I find we have all we need to make hearty, tastey food each evening. We've been making things like pork with cheddar and apples with a squash and potato mash. Delish!

Chai Tea. I'm obsessed. I use this stuff mixed with hot milk and it's delicous. Having a spiced hot drink makes the dark, winter evenings a lot cosier.

I'd like to hear what you do in the kitchen to keep the winter from being grim, if you'd like to share. Hope you are having a bright, cosy and enjoyable weekend.