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Vickie Chan

Mini master chefs can get busy in the kitchen to whip up some sizzling seasonal delights, writes Vickie Chan.
Cooking is a fun and interactive way of spending time with your children while they’re off school – but since Christmas Day can be quite busy, why not try some recipes for things that will last a few days? This will keep the children satiated, and the kitchen clear, on the 25th!
Christmas is a special time for most families because, whether or not you celebrate religiously, it’s a time away from work and school, when everyone gets together for several days. For many, it’s a time when family traditions are created, remembered and practiced, with food playing an important role.
Growing up, we always spent our Christmas at home in Britain, which meant log fires, a 10-foot tree and guests being invited to join us for a festive dinner. Sometimes, it also meant snowmen and sledging.
It was left to my older siblings and me to decorate the centrepiece of our dining room table and keep it as a special surprise for guests, who were not allowed to enter until dinner. A Bavarian tradition passed down by my mother’s grandmother, the scenes always wowed guests: foil lakes and cotton wool snowdrifts on coloured crepe paper, giving way to miniature tableaux of small ornaments – including some from my mother’s childhood – such as small china dogs and rabbits, Dutch windmills, flapping geese, decorative candles and our customary angel chimes, without whose tinging, it just doesn’t feel like Christmas.
Nowadays, my Christmases are mostly spent in Hong Kong. But I still make some traditional Christmas treats, to stir up childhood memories and share with friends. Christmas in Hong Kong can be strange for expats. But cooking will always make you feel festive. After all, the traditions and memories of your childhood Christmases will always stay with you!
 
Savoury: Sausage rolls
An easy snack and perfect for serving to guests!
Ingredients

180g (6oz) plain flour
90g (3oz) butter
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons cold water
2 beaten eggs
225g (8oz) sausage meat

To make the pastry, cut the butter into cubes and put in a bowl with the flour and salt. Rub them together until they look like breadcrumbs, but do not over mix. This part might be more difficult for the little ones.
Then, sprinkle the water into the bowl and mix until the dough forms a soft ball and leaves the bowl clean.
To make the sausage rolls, roll out the pastry onto a floured pastry mat or flat surface until it is about 10cm wide. Cut it into two equal strips. If using puff pastry, lay it out on a floured surface and cut into two oblong strips.
Divide the sausage meat and roll it into two long sausage shapes and lay it along the middle of the pastry strip. (You can add extra herbs or flavour to the meat, if your children like that sort of thing).
Brush the long sides of the pastry strips with beaten egg and fold one side of the other, so that the seam is along one long side of the roll. Then, cut the roll into smaller pieces.
Brush with beaten egg and cut a small slit into the top of each one, so that it cooks through and doesn’t burst in the oven.
Bake at 190ºC (375ºF) for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.

Vegetarian filling option
For an alternative option, here’s one of my favourites. You can follow the steps for sausage rolls and simply swap the sausage meat for:

180g brown rice
150g grated cheese, such as cheddar
Grated carrots or other filling that the children like – why not let them choose?
2-3 teaspoons of Marmite
Knob of butter
(Optional) One-to-two tablespoons tomato paste

Cook some brown rice, and while it’s hot, add the Marmite and a little butter. Mix it up until the rice is coated. Then add the other ingredients and mix together well. You can taste test it as you add the tomato paste.
 
Sweet: Sugar mice
These are very traditional Christmas treats! The best part is making them.
Ingredients

340g (12 oz) icing sugar, sieved
1 egg white
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Silver ball cake decorations
(Optional) red and green food colouring

Place the egg white in a glass bowl and whisk with a fork, until frothy. Using a wooden spoon, beat in around two thirds of the icing sugar, and add the lemon juice. If you want to coloured mice, now is the time to add a few drops to make either green or pinky-red mice. If you want both colours, first divide the mixture into two.
To finish making the mixture, turn out onto a clean working surface or pastry mat and knead in the remaining icing sugar until the mixture is pliable and you can shape it. This part is really fun for children – tell them to work slowly, so that the icing sugar doesn’t get whipped up into the air. Use extra icing sugar to stop the mixture from sticking to the surface.
When everything is mixed together, shape or roll it into a long log shape about one-inch wide. Then cut the log into 14 pieces. Shape 12 pieces into a round ball and elongate them by pinching one side, to form the nose and mouth. Use the two spare balls to make two ears and a tail for each mouse, which you can stick to the bodies. The silver balls can be used to make two eyes.
Leave them laid out, spaced apart, overnight (or in the fridge if it’s a warm winter) so they set and become firm. These little mice are great for decorating the table!

 
Sweet: Iced spice biscuits
These tasty treats have a festive flavour but children love cutting them into fun shapes and decorating them! Make sure you have festive-shaped cookie cutters.
Ingredients

250g (8oz) plain flour
125g (4oz) butter
125g (4oz) brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons mixed spice
Pinch of salt
125g (4oz) icing sugar
1-2 tablespoons hot water
Food colouring
Decorative sprinkles

Beat together the butter and the sugar, until it’s fluffy. You can do this with a food mixer, but if the butter is soft enough, it shouldn’t be too difficult. Then, beat in the egg, a little at a time.
Sift in the flour, salt and spice. Mix it together well until it makes a firm ball of dough. Sprinkle some extra flour on a pastry mat and rolling pin, and then roll out the dough until it’s about half a centimetre thick.
Cut the dough into shapes with your festive cutters. Then, take any leftover dough, roll it out again and make more shapes until you have finished all the dough. Put the shapes onto one or two greased baking trays and bake them at 190ºC (375ºF) for about 15 minutes, until light brown.
While the biscuits are cooling on a wire rack, mix together the icing sugar and hot water until it’s smooth but not too runny. If you want to make different colours, divide it up before colouring each one. Leave some white, for a frosty look.
When the biscuits cool, spoon a little icing on each one and spread it out evenly with a palette knife. It’s a good idea to do this while they are still in the wire rack, as any extra icing will drizzle off. If you’re using a flat surface or plate, the biscuits may stick. Before the icing sets, decorate the biscuits with sprinkle, silver balls or what you wish.

 
Shops are all around
It’s not always easy to find all the things you need in Hong Kong supermarkets. A good cooking session often means visiting two or three stores. During the holidays, neighbourhood supermarkets do stock some useful ingredients, but for anything specialised, try the following.
 
Olivers
One of the best supermarkets for international food. They have a good selection of festive ingredients and ready-made items. Staff are helpful if you want to phone and check first, but if they are busy they may not answer.
201-205 Prince’s Building,
Chater Road, Central
2810 7710
www.oliversthedeli.com.hk
 
Great Food Hall
A spacious shop with a range of products – but can be expensive.
Basement
Two Pacific Place, 88 Queensway
Admiralty
2918 9986
www.greatfoodhall.com
 
Marks & Spencer
The dedicated food shops like the one in Soho are now carrying a range of baking items including cake decorations. Besides that, Marks & Spencer do festive food well, rotating stock accordingly.
1/F, Kinwick Centre,
32 Hollywood Road
Central
 
I Love Cake
A great place to find backing utensils, including sprinkles and decorations. Shanghai Street in Yau Ma Tei is worth a visit for any aspiring chef!
Shop H2, 188 Wan Chai Road
Wan Chai
G/F, 338 Shanghai Street
www.ilovecake.hk


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Fun and frolics cooking up festive fare

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Mini master chefs can get busy in the kitchen to whip up some sizzling seasonal delights.


Fun and frolics cooking up festive fare

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Mini master chefs can get busy in the kitchen to whip up some sizzling seasonal delights.

Mini master chefs can get busy in the kitchen to whip up some sizzling seasonal delights.