Not a biscuit in sight

I did not make one single biscuit this Christmas. And I'm not distraught and stressed out about it but very happy and serene. Biscuits are the one thing I do not like to make in the kitchen. The rolling out of the dough, over and over again, the cutting out of little angels and hearts and pigs, the tricky transfer to the baking sheet - I just find it so tedious. And whenever I do the Christmas baking thing, I inevitably eat so much of the buttery sugary dough that I end up on a complete sugar overload from which only a cold beer and some mature cheese offers relief. Not to give you a wrong impression - I like to eat all those sweet Christmas delicacies, I just rather not be the person to make them. Which is why in this foodblog, there will be no suggestions for perfect looking, wafer-thin cookies or biscuits with too-beautiful-to-eat decorations to give to your loved ones. If you could still need a last-minute Christmas present, I suggest you make oignons confits (onion relish).

Oignons confits (makes 2 jars of 2.5dl)

• 5 large brown onions
• 750ml white wine vinegar
• 1 small glass of tawny port
  
• a handfull of raisins
• 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
• 500g brown sugar

Peel the onions and cut them into rings. Place them in a large saucepan with the vinegar, raisins and mustard seeds. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Add the sugar and continue to simmer, uncovered, for about 1.5 hours until the onions are soft and the liquid is syrupy. Add the port and simmer for another ten minutes. Fill into sterilised jars and seal.

I got the recipe from Donna Hay's wonderful book flavours. The port, the raisins and the mustard seeds are my addition, though, she uses caraway and coriander seeds to spice things up. I'm not overly keen on caraway but if you like the taste, use it by all means as it helps digestion and is therefore a clever addition to the onions. I think this would also taste very nice and maybe just a little bit milder using red onions and part red vine, part balsamic vinegar. Lovely with a burger or cold meats, goat cheese or mature cheddar.

Jam-making

I'm turning into my mother. It's official and there is no denying it. How can I tell? Easy - I made jam today. For a little more than twenty years I have been eating mum's jams and marmelades but it was only last year that I first had a go at making my own. It was a success so I made some more today. I think it's best to go and see what's the ripest and yummiest-looking fruit available rather than to pick a recipe first. I bulk-bought small, sweet and juicy plums and made

Plum and cinnamon jam (makes about 4 jars of 2.5 dl)

You need:

- 1.8 kg plums
- 1.2 kg sugar
- 1 large cinnamon stick
- juice of 1 lemon

- halve the plums and remove the stone
- put in a heavy-based pan with the sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon
- bring to a boil, stirring carefully, until the sugar has dissolved
- remove from the heat, cover and let the fruit steep for two hours
- put back on the heat and boil for about seven minutes, stirring frequently
- place a small spoonfull of the jam on a saucer (which you've placed in in the fridge beforehand) and check whether the liquid sets
- fill into sterilised jars and screw the lids on.

A word about the sugar: some "schools" say to use 500g of sugar for 1kg of fruit, while others say 750g for 1kg. This recipe uses quite a lot - experiment and see what you like best. I wouldn't go lower than the 2:1-ratio, though.

In order to sterilise the jars, I fill them with boiling water and I put the lids in a pan of boiling water. Then I empty the jars and fill in the jam without drying them first. If the jars are filled right up to the brim, they don't have to be turned upside-down in order for the jam to keep.

I think this will taste good on buttered slices of fresh bread or spooned over plain yoghurt. And it will make me feel quite grown-up and a little like someone out of Country Life - after all, I make my own jam.