Foodie Friday On A Saturday - What I Ate In December

Hi everyone and welcome to a slightly late What I Ate In December post.  I've really enjoyed writing these posts over the years but lately I think that they've become a little bit repetitive to write and I suspect to read, so for that reason this will be my last foodie review of the month post.

December is one of those months where the majority of us just eat and drink till we burst. I had the best of intentions but the minute the sweet dish appeared they went right out of the window. Unlike in previous years though I did eat a lot of proper meals instead of snacking so it wasn't all bad 

First up is a new recipe for me and something that I adapted from a recipe I saw in Tesco's free magazine. This Courgette, Basil and Ricotta Tart , was ridiculously easy to make. All you need is some puff pastry rolled into a rectangle , I used Genius Gluten Free, Then mix a pot of ricotta cheese with some grated Parmesan or the equivalent, a beaten egg, some pesto, and some torn up basil leaves. Pour it on top of the puff pastry leaving a border, then top it with sliced courgette and bake. When it's just about done sprinkle with pine nuts and a little grated Parmesan and put it back in the over for a few minutes. Garnish with basil leaves and scoff :)

Christmas to me means cheese month and whilst we still have a cheese board left, I ate a hefty amount. including the 3 varieties that went into my Triple Cheese and Onion Strata.

I also made another Pimped Up Macaroni Cheese, some Broccoli and Stilton Soup and a huge batch of my Broccoli, Stilton, and Walnut Pasta

and probably the biggest cauliflower ever, made into a comforting batch of cauliflower cheese.

Sticking with the cheese theme I also made a version of my Creamy Mushroom And Basil Pasta but with some added cherry tomatoes, red pepper, and Quorn pieces.

Cheese also plays a big part in my Christmas Eve foodie routine, as well as dips, and a cheeseboard, traditionally me and Mummy Lou always indulge in a mozzarella, pesto, basil and tomato ciabatta roll sandwich

and of course some homemade gluten free mince pies, 

and some mulled wine.

Christmas dinner is per usually ended up being the meal of the year. This year alongside my veggies, I had homemade gluten free Yorkshire pudding, veggie gravy, homemade gluten free sage and onion stuffing, Quorn Roast, and a The Real Pie Company Gluten Free Nut Roast, which was a nut roast full of cranberries, leeks, mushrooms and huge pieces of nuts all wrapped in fabulous buttery gluten free pastry.

To put it politely I was absolutely stuffed and as a family we all needed an hour or so's rest after our dinners and some pretty decent Aldi champagne before we could move on to our Christmas pudding.

This year, my gluten free pudding came from Sainsbury's and very nice it was too, rich, and dark and full of fruit. I had mine with creamy custard and just a touch of cream for good luck. Apologies for the blurry photograph, it was nothing to do with the champagne I promise ;)

As much as I love my cheese and my chutneys and pickles, for my December 2014 was all about my sweet tooth. As well as the mountain of chocolate that I got for Christmas I also  guzzled my way through most of Starbucks and Costa's festive delights. When it comes to Starbucks Red Cups, I'm usually a Toffee Nut Latte girl. Last month though I branched out and consumed several Eggnog Lattes and towards the end of the month I discovered the delights of the White Chocolate Mocha.

For most of the month I was a creature of habit in Costa and I stuck to my favourite White Hot Chocolate but I did make one deviation for one of their Sticky Toffee Lattes which was yummy. I also bought a mini pack of this years festive Monin syrups so I can make my own Brownie and Chocolate Orange hot chocolates.

Speaking of chocolate I also made up a festive batch of Nigella Lawson's Sweet And Salty Crunchy Nut Bars,

and several portions of delicious Calico Cottage Fudge including the fabulous Salted Caramel flavour.

I also made a batch of Gluten Free Gingerbread (click here to see the recipe),

some of which I used to make a No Bake Gluten Free Raspberry And White Chocolate Cheesecake.

So they were my December eats, there are so many things that I haven't shown you including a massive dish of nachos, a tray full of roasted vegetables and of course my Christmas cake but I'm sure you've seen more than enough see why I'm so terrified to step on the scales on Monday - haha.

Although this series is ending Foodie Friday will continue into 2015, I'm planning on doing more recipe posts, some product reviews, some restaurant reviews and maybe a few What I Ate Today posts, but if there is anything else you would like to see food wise on the blog then please let me know x