Chilly Chuuuunes!

 

Wondering how to celebrate this Christmas week?  Why not try Somerset House's Club Nights?  They're not just any old club nights.....they're on the ICE!!  Big name DJs and iconic clubs, including Ministry of Sound provide the soundtrack for open-air partying.

It's a very atmospheric place to grab a mulled wine and sip cocktails galore before (or probably more sensibly, after) taking to the ice.  Sessions are in hourly slots from 20.00–21.00, 21.15–22.15 and 22.30–23.30.  Tickets are a hefty price of £17 but I reckon its worth it - what better way to get festive, catch up with friends and don those skates to show off those moves on the ice (or not!)?!
 

Drink and be Merry!!

As it is the season to be merry, I thought I'd share a quick and easy recipe for Christmas in a glass - delicious mulled wine full of Christmassy spice and a kick of sloe gin!  This one is courtesy of BBC Good Food with a few McWhinney tweeks again!  The big day is in less than a week so relax, grab a glass and GET FESTIVE!!!

Ingredients:

- 2 bottles of red wine (Good ol' Jamie recommends recommend Chianti or another Italian red wine)

- 120g demerara sugar

- 2 cinnamon sticks

- 6 cloves

- grated nutmeg

- 1 orange, sliced (or whole with the cloves studded into it)

- 1 dried bay leaf

- 60 ml sloe gin

- peel of lemon

- 1 whole vanilla pod, halved (optional)

Method:

1. Put the wine in a saucepan with the orange, sugar, bay leaf, spices, lemon peel and vanilla
2. Heat gently until all the sugar is dissolved.  Taste to see if you want the wine sweeter, and add more sugar to taste.
3. Take the saucepan off the heat, and stir in the sloe gin
4. Strain into heat proof glasses and serve - drink and be merry!

"The best way to spread Christmas Cheer, is singing loud for all to hear"

Now I know we're all still weak at the knees over Michael Bublé's (or Bauble as I like to call him) Christmas crooning sending us into festive oblivion BUT here is a musical number that's a little different to brighten up your Christmas lead up!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas and what better way to celebrate than with a glass (or 5) of mulled wine, a cheeky mincey p (or 6) and a festive screening of the 1947 original of Miracle on 34th Street?

After the success of their previous film screenings, Midsummer Night Screen are getting festive and taking over The Nave for the second time this year to host a 1940’s themed evening of cinematic festivities on Wednesday, 21st December. With mince pies, mulled wine, hot mulled apple cider and mistletoe galore accompanied by DJs playing 1940s records before the film kicks off at 8:30pm, I’m not sure there’s a better way to get into the festive spirit?!

All profits will be going to Crisis to support their Christmas meal scheme for the homeless. Tickets are £6 in advance and £8 on the door. 

I thought getting cosy, getting merry and getting festive all for a good cause was definitely something worth shouting about!

Tickets are available here!

Bitchy and the Beast!

Oxford and Regent Street all to ourselves!

Picture credit: André Atty

It's that time of year again, and Oxford Street and Regent Street will be completely vehicle free this weekend (10th and 11th December).  Although the cars will be gone, shoppers seem to flock in their thousands to peruse the shops for some last minute gifts, so I would recommend either going early or late.  So go forth and shop til you drop!

Christmas Wednesdays!

Columbia Road is hosting a late night Christmas shopping fiesta, every Wednesday until Christmas.  All the independent boutiques stay open from 5-9pm every festive Wednesday!  So get away from the chains, bright lights and big crowds of the West-end, and head East as an alternative solution to last minute shopping.  The unique, one-off shops offer anything from vintage clothing and home-ware to contemporary artwork and jewellery.  With seasonal drinks, food and music galore, your festive wishes should all be fulfilled!

Pick of the Bunch of London Christmas Markets

Although most of us can’t afford to pack up our bags and jet off for an impromptu trip to scour the genuine Christmas markets of Berlin or Scandinavia to shop and drink Gluwein to our heart's content, London does a pretty good job of bringing traditional German festivities (and more!) to us!  I thought I’d share my pick of the bunch of London Christmas markets in plenty of time so that you don’t miss out!

Although many of the markets are overpriced, there is the opportunity to find (or haggle) a bargain for a unique pressie.  For traditional Christmas markets selling a selection of food, jewellery, decorations and handmade gifts head to:

• The Southbank Christmas Market is set against the backdrop of the River Thames, with over 60 little wooden huts lining the bank between the London Eye and the Southbank Centre stuffed full of everything you would expect to find at a German market with plenty of Gluwein available to warm you up (although it is at a price of £4.50?!) 

• Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland (until January 3^rd 2012, Tube: Hyde Park Corner, Free) – includes festive rides, stalls and crepes galore!

• National Maritime Museum Christmas Market (Thursday 8^th December, 6-9pm) has stalls selling unique gifts and food (including Christmas cakes and puddings).  The evening will also be accompanied by a brass band and carolers (it doesn’t get much more festive than that?!)
  
  
• Petersham Nurseries Candlelit Christmas Carols and Market, (Richmond, 7^th & 14^th December, 6-9pm) Petersham Nurseries have transformed their Victorian Greenhouse into a Christmas extravaganza complete with festive food and drinks.  In the atmospheric candlelight, Christmas trees and gifts, including angora winter warmers, candles and decorations, will be on sale while the Petersham Opera choir serenade shoppers with carols.   
  
  
  For Something a little different, head to:

• The Barbican Duckie Christmas Market (10-30^th December) The Barbican foyer will be transformed into an ‘indie’ Christmas bazaar selling anything from artwork, food, home-ware, clothes and potions.  There will be a ‘posh car boot sale’ where anyone can apply for a stall and also bohemian workshops and pop-up performances.
  
  
• Southbank Centre Real Food Christmas Market (December 16th-23th) Festive food market with seasonal gourmet grub such as chutnies, wild game,  mince pies, Christmas puddings and mulled wine.  Good for foodie presents!
  
  
• National Theatre Dazzle (until January 8^th 2012) Jewellery market showcasing designers from all over Europe, aiming to promote and reveal new and exciting talent.  The scale of the market allows for a range of styles, prices and items!

Now Bring Us Some Figgy Pudding!!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas and the time of year has arrived for Christmas pudding making!  The McWhinney’s donned their aprons and made ours yesterday and I thought I’d share the recipe with you!  We use Delia with a few tweeks here and there, the main one being the amount of booze included!  We often keep ours for a whole year before eating them, and they are still just as delish!  Remember to make your Christmas pudding wish while stirring – all of mine have come true!!! 

Serves: 2 puddings in 2 pint (1.2 litre) basins, or four in 1 pint (570 ml) basins 

Ingredients:
*      225g shredded suet
*      110g self-raising flour, sifted
*      225g white breadcrumbs, grated (or word processed) from a stale loaf
*      1 heaped teaspoon of mixed spice
*      1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
*      ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
*      450g soft brown sugar
*      225g sultanas
*      225g raisins
*      575g currants
*      50g mixed peel – finely chopped whole candied and citron peel if available
*      50g almond, blanched, skinned and chopped
*      1 apple, peeled, cored and grated
*      Grated rind of 1 orange and 1 lemon
*      4 eggs
*      6 tablespoons brandy (Delia says rum, but I think brandy is much better!) 

Method: 

1.     Put the suet, flour, breadcrumbs, spices and sugar in a bowl, mixing in each ingredient thoroughly before adding the next.
2.     Gradually mix in all the dried fruit, peel and nuts and follow these with the apple and the orange and lemon rind.
3.     In a different bowl, beat up the eggs and mix in the brandy.
4.     Empty this into the dry ingredients and stir very hard indeed – Remember to make your Christmas pudding wish here!
5.     Mix until it falls from the spoon when tapped sharply against the side of the bowl.
6.     After mixing, empty the contents into 2 (or 4) greased pudding basins and pack the mixture into them right to the top.
7.     Cover each basin with a square of greaseproof paper, with a square pudding cloth on top.  Tie these round the rims of the bowls with string.
8.     Steam the puddings for 8 hours – keeping an eye on the water to make sure it doesn’t boil away.  When cooked and cooled, remove the paper and cloths, and replace it with fresh foil.
9.     Store in a cool, dry place and, when ready to eat, steam for 2 hours.
10. Pour over some brandy, light with a match and carry to the table while lit for an extra Christmas spectacle!

 

Run Santa Run!

Stuck for something to do tomorrow?  Why not don your white facial hair, polish your boots and dig your Santa costume out for the London Santa Run!  

Although Santa is depicted as a man with ‘a broad face and a little round belly, that shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly’, our perceptions are about to change!  More than 2000 Santas will be running 6k around Battersea Park as part of a festive fun run, designed to raise money for Disability Snowsport UK, a national charity that helps people with disabilities experience the thrill of snowsports.

 There is even a prize for the highest fundraiser and goody bags for those who raise over £250.  Entry fee is £20 (which includes a Santa suit you can keep) – imagine the years of fun that could provide?! 

For more information on last minute entries or for details on how to cheer on our favourite festive man then click here.

There is also a Santa Fun Run on Sunday 4th December around Greenwich park with a variety of charities participating and a choice of either 5k or 10k runs.  For more information, click here.

Happy Advent!!! =>>

Here's a little snippet to mark the start of Advent and to brighten up this grey day!!  Enjoy and start the celebrations!!