Dishes of chocolate-coated halva and bowls of sticky poached quince, these sweet treats will delight friends and families throughout the festive season
There is rough-hewn, sesame-scented halva with dark chocolate, walnuts and sugared rose petals; wedges of golden baklava with layers of sweet mincemeat and buttery filo; an ice-cream glistening with candied fruit and amaretti, and glass dishes of jelly that smells of sweet orange, elderflower, pomegranate and fresh mint. A bowl of quince has been cooked till the fruit is as red as garnets and as sticky as honey. The candles are lit. The Christmas dessert table is ready.
As much as I love the traditional plum pudding with its holly sprig and crown of flames, the sumptuously layered trifle as soft and white as goose down and button-sized mince pies sparkling with sifted sugar, I like to offer more – a handful of little surprises, tiny temptations no one is expecting. This is pure fun for the cook, the day spent putting a tub of cassata in the freezer or halva in a tin; quivering jellies in the fridge, for tomorrow or the day after.
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