One Step From Insanity - Ho Ho Flippin' Ho

It's madness, this time of year. I must confess that I don't much like the few weeks preceding Christmas - it's too stressful and busy. Is it just me or do others out there end up bordering on the edge of a breakdown? :-) I'm exaggerating, don't mind me. It annoys me when shops and leaflets start putting the Xmas pressure on you way back in flipping October, so I go into "I refuse to let one single Xmas atom of thought into my mind" mode as a 'so there, you can't tell me what to do'. Then when I finally decide that Xmas thinking is acceptable I go into hyperventilating panic that I've left it too late and what if I forget this and what if I can't find that. Arrrggghhhh! Meshell thinks I'm a big poobar Xmas cynic, and I guess I am, until a few days before when I'm organised enough to start breathing a little easier.

Right, now I've got all that off my chest I feel better. :-)
I'm organised enough as of today to relax a bit. Present buying is finished, just loads of wrapping to do. I started the food shopping today so if nothing else we have a turkey!

We've decided to break with tradition this year and not have a Xmas pudding. Instead I'm going to make a layered icecream thingy. I've lost the recipe so it will be 'make it up as I go along', but what I'm going to do is this. Soften 2 Lts of good quality vanilla icecream and the idea is to make about 6 - 8 different layers with the icecream in a bowl and refreeze it.

So I've bought slivered almonds that I'll toast, glace cherries that I'll chop, Maltesers that I'll break up a bit, Violet Crumble that I'll also break up into bits, Aero chocolate also broken up and Peppermint Crisp bars, also broken up.

Line a bowl with Glad Wrap (cling wrap), and gradually build up the layers by (in a separate bowl) mixing the appropriate proportion of icecream with your chosen extras, and pouring it into the big bowl. In hot Australia it is wise to keep putting the big bowl back into the freezer between layers so you don't end up with a slushy mess. I may pour a thin layer of cream inbetween a few layers too, and I'm thinking when the layers are finished that I might sprinkle toasted desicated coconut over it.

Then you freeze the whole thing solid and the idea is that you then invert it onto a plate, peel off the plastic wrap (which is there to stop it sticking to the bowl), and voila, there you have it - Layered Ice cream whatchamacallit. I'm toying with being terribly clever and pouring some melted chocolate into the Gladwrapped bowl first, and swishing it around quickly so it coats the plastic wrap. If it works then it will be a chocolate coated layered ice cream whatchamacallit - sounds dreadfully decadent eh! :-) I'll try and take some photos when I make it in a few days time, then you can see if it was successful or not!


Our family tradition for the last few years has been to watch Elf. I love this movie. And I'll confess to you that my favourite highlight of the entire movie is the burp - if you've seen the film you'll know what I'm talking about. Never fails to send me into fits of laughter. :-)) Which has something to say about my juvenile mentality. :-)

Right, I'm signing off now, I have to head into the sewing room to finish Xmas presents for the Tipsy Cross Stitchers - we are going out on Tuesday for our Xmas lunch.