If you're in need of a gift for someone who's tricky to buy for, the time and effort involved in baking your own is a great way to show you care. And as the latest series of Bake Off proved, Italian baking is a gold mine for beautiful sweet treats.
So an Edible Gifts of Italy workshop by Oxford’s very own Gypsy Baker (aka Hannah Bironzo) really has you covered this Advent.
The family-friendly workshop, taking place over Zoom on December 12th, will provide all the know-how to help you create a sumptuous Chocolate Torrone, a traditional favourite festive gift in Italy. By the end of the session, not only will you come away with your own delightful dessert, you'll have been taken on a journey through southern Italy by expert chef Mariella Bliss, who promises to uncover tales of festive delicacies and traditions from her homeland. Places are £15 each. To find out more and book your place please contact: ox4gypsybaker@gmail.com
Hannah also runs a series of popular Zoom workshops throughout the year, often in collaboration with other Oxford-based chefs. If you catch the baking bug from this workshop, she offers a number of other baking related gifts, to treat yourself or the baker in your life:
Online Pasteis De Nata workshops on January 23rd and 27th, £15 (gift vouchers available)
Online Sourdough workshops - by appointment, £60 including delivery of a sourdough starter and 5 small-group sessions
A limited edition Gypsy Baker Hamper. This includes: printed workshop voucher, proving basket, dough cutter, scoring knife and a Gypsy Baker mug, all beautifully gift wrapped and delivered for free, locally (within Oxfordshire), £80 (includes the workshop voucher)
Find all details on her website: https://oxfordgypsybaker.wordpress.com/workshops/
To give you a flavour of what to expect, Hannah and Mariella have kindly shared a recipe for a classic
Ingredients (8/10 ramekins)
600g fresh whipping cream
60g sugar
2.5 gelatine leaves
Vanilla seeds (from a pod) or vanilla paste or extract (avoid vanilla essence as contains very little or no real vanillin)
Method
1. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for 15 minutes
2. Place the cream, the vanilla, the sugar in a saucepan and bring to simmer over low heat. Stir the cream a few times to make sure the sugar is completely dissolved
3. Beat in the well-drained gelatine leaves.
4. Pour into serving dishes and place in the fridge to set covered with tight clingfilm or lids.
5. After four hours in the fridge, your panna cotta should be set and ready to be enjoyed with fresh raspberries, strawberries or even just lemon or orange zest.
More options:
Chocolate panna cotta - Add 100g dark chocolate (63%) and possibly less sugar. Always taste, you may need to add more chocolate
Coffee panna cotta - Add 1 tbsp (or more) of instant coffee
Limoncello panna cotta - Add the liqueur to the cream and lemon zest.
Decorate with: berries and mint, mango and lime zest, passion fruit, crumbled merengues, roasted hazelnuts, mint leaves or fresh peaches
One of my favourite combinations is: cardamom (seeds crushed, cooked with the cream, then discarded) and orange zest.
A Christmassy option is: vanilla Pannacotta with plums roasted with sugar and star anise. The squashed plums are on the side of Pannacotta.
Welcome to Daily Info’s 2024 Advent Calendar – 24 days of events to celebrate the festive period and get ready to ring in the New Year!
This year's calendar offers a mix of Christmas activities - pantos, comedy shows, carol concerts etc, taking in traditions in Oxford and the wider area, as well as free diversions in December and some of the best happenings to book ahead for in 2025.
