HANDMADE AND HEARTFELT

Handmade gifts from your kitchen for the special people in your life this Christmas from Handmade Gifts from the Kitchen by Alison Walker (Appetite, $24.95).

SPICED STARS

1 stick butter, plus extra for greasing

Scant 1/4 cup molasses

Seeds from 4 green cardamom pods, crushed

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Scant 1/4 cup superfine sugar

1 tbsp almond flour

1-1/2 cups plus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tap ground allspice

1 egg yolk, beaten

To decorate (optional)

Icing

Superfine sugar for sprinkling

Melt the butter and molasses in a pan on gentle heat. Cool a little.

Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour in the molasses mixture, followed by the egg yolk. Mix to form a soft dough and then wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour until the dough is firm but pliable.

Preheat the oven to 375° F and lightly grease 2 or 3 cookie sheets.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator, divide it in two and roll out each piece on a lightly-floured counter to 1/4-inch thick.

Using 2-3/4-inch and 2-inch star shaped cutters, stamp out shapes, rerolling the trimmage as necessary. Arrange the stars on the cooking sheets, spacing them apart.

Bake for 6 to 8 mins.

Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 mins on the cookie sheets until set, then transfer to wire racks to cool.

If you’d like to decorate your stars, fill a pastry bag with icing and pipe shapes onto the cookies.

While the icing is still wet, dust lightly with superfine sugar, shaking off the excess. Let dry completely before packing in cellophane. These cookies keep for up to 4 weeks in an airtight container or sealed plastic bag.

PEANUT BRITTLE

1/2 cup unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing

2-2/3 cups salted roasted peanuts

Scant 2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup corn syrup

Scant 2/3 cup water

Liberally grease a cookie sheet or a marble slab measuring around 12 inches by 16 inches. Preheat the oven to 250° F.

Sprinkle the nuts onto a cookie sheet and keep warm in the oven.

Put the butter, sugars and corn syrup into a large deep pan along with the water. Gently heat until the sugar has dissolved.

Wash down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water to dissolve any sugar crystals.

When the sugar is completely dissolved, bring to a boil.

Boil steadily, without stirring until a candy thermometer reaches 300 F (the hard crack stage).

If you don’t have a thermometer, drop a tsp of the mixture into a bowl of cold water and it would snap easily.

Quickly and thoroughly stir in the warmed nuts.

Pour the mixture onto the greased cookie sheet or slab and spread out thinly.

Leave to cool completely, then break into pieces.

This brittle keeps for up to two weeks in an airtight container or sealed plastic bag.

BAKLAVA

4-3/4 cups walnuts

Scant 1/3 cup superfine sugar

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

A pinch of ground cloves

9 oz ready-made phyllo dough

1 stick, plus 1 tbsp butter, melted

For the syrup:

1-1/4 cups superfine sugar

Scant 2/3 cups water

1 whole clove

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

2 tbsp liquid honey

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Toast the walnuts in the preheated oven for 5 to 10 mins until golden. Tip onto a plate to cool.

Coarsely grind the cooled walnuts in a food processor. Tip into a bowl and stir in the sugar and spices.

Cut the phyllo sheets to the same size as an 11-inch by 7-inch baking pan and cover with a damp dish towel while you are working to stop the sheets from drying out.

Brush the base and sides of the pan with melted butter. Lay a phyllo sheet in the base, brush with butter, and lay another sheet on top. Repeat with 8 more sheets, brushing in between with butter as you go.

Next, spread with 1/3 of the walnut mixture. Lay another two phyllo sheets on top, butter as before. Repeat this twice more with the remaining walnut mixture.

Lay another 6 sheets of phyllo on top, again brushing each sheet with butter. Brush the top sheet with butter and mark into diamond shapes.

Bake for 1-1/2 hours until golden.

Meanwhile, make the syrup. Dissolve the sugar in water with the clove and lemon zest. Bring to the boil then simmer rapidly for 10 mins. until lightly syrupy. Strain and stir in the honey.

Remove the baklava from the oven and immediately pour over half of the syrup. Leave for 30 mins. then slowly pour over the remainder.

Leave overnight to infuse, but do not chill.

Cut the baklava into diamond shapes using the previous markings as a guide.

The sticky pastry keeps for up to two weeks in an airtight container or sealed plastic bag.