I wish you a Merry Christmas!
I know. That’s what it says on every damn advertising leaflet, pop-up window or gift ribbon floating around somewhere. This year, people were spammed for Christmas more early than ever before. And I notice that, even though I’m one of the absolute Christmas fans. I love Christmas. But not quite as loud, penetrating and noticeable when the Halloween pumpkins haven’t even been put away yet ;-)!
And that’s exactly why I wish you a Merry Christmas with all my heart! And I mean it exactly that way. This is comparable to the obligatory “How are you?”, which is actually only said for form’s sake. Without the other person’s wish as a brief “Thank you, good.” I wish you a REALLY happy holiday, peace, a good time for you and all your loved ones. And of course a little something to delight the (culinary) heart!
This year I can also be a calendar door for THE culinary Advent calendar from Zorra! This time I have the honor of opening the last door. You can see what I’ve served so far here feel free to take a look! And I have saved a real highlight for this year too.
In any case, you should also take a look at all of the other 23 doors. Always just brilliant recipe ideas. And on top of that, a wonderful competition starts today as part of the calendar. You can easily answer the competition questions once you have looked at the doors ;-)!
Maybe today’s recipe is “too late” for you this year because you’ve already baked everything and your presents have long been wrapped. Or today, the 24th, is full of work for you or 1001 more things to do to make it nice. If so, just save the gingerbread cream recipe for next year. Because once you try them, you’ll be just as addicted as we are here :-)!
The basis of this Gingerbread cream is the dulce de leche, caramelized, sweetened condensed milk, which is now quite popular in foodie circles. If you haven’t come into contact with it yet: This is not just a trend, but in many countries the status quo on bread or in cakes/pastries. Only not here in Germany…
In our country you can hardly buy them ready-made. I occasionally discover them in the Eastern European supermarket, but they are also indispensable in the Latin American/Spanish sector. I came across dulce de leche on my travels to Colombia or Barcelona, for example, but of course also at Zorra. From her I learned that you can’t just buy the stuff ready-made, but you can also simply turn sweetened condensed milk (e.g. Milkmaid) into dulce de leche.
My favorite variant is caramelizing in a sealed (!) can. Yes, totally crazy, but it works perfectly. No mess and, above all, the dulce de leche has a very long shelf life and you can caramelize several cans at once. No stirring. No stress… you just have to follow a few rules and it’s really easy! I explain everything in more detail below in the recipe so that nothing can go wrong!
So if you have this sweet dream in front of you, add some whipped butter, cocoa powder, a pinch of salt and gingerbread spice. This wonderful spread really gets the final kick with roasted hazelnuts. And believe me. Just crazy!
I prefer to eat this stuff plain (guilty pleasures and stuff like that…), but it’s also incredible good on bread and rolls, on croissants or brioche, pancakes, waffles, muffins and soooo much more! Even in ice cream, this stuff would be a blast.
Most people I know aren’t that into hazelnuts. Or rather, I only ever hear that other varieties are preferred. Pistachios are probably the hottest thing at the moment (and not just thanks to Dubai chocolate), but long-running favorites like cashews and almonds are somehow becoming more and more popular. The hazelnut is the (supposedly) ugly duckling, but if you treat it correctly, it is not only easily available regionally, but also has an incomparable aroma.
The trick and the unchangeable condition really is: roasting! In the oven! Even in the hot air fryer if you like! Totally crazy, but it’s exactly this process that really tickles all the flavor out of the small, round nut kernels. And it’s precisely these, roughly chopped, that give this cream just that little something that makes it addictive. And let’s be honest: the well-known nutty-chocolaty spread from the supermarket, which seems to be in every household (and which has often received negative press due to its palm oil content and whatnot), also contains hazelnuts. A tiny amount that is continually being minimized year after year for cost reasons, but which also adds a bit of real flavor. Certainly for reasons. However, in a direct taste comparison, this spread would be disastrous if you compared it with this delicate, homemade gingerbread cream.
By the way: How do you get a Christmas tree? We always go to the forest ourselves at designated times, but there are many options. An artificial tree would be unthinkable for me! Ours usually lasts well into January and can then be turned into a fragrant campfire with stick bread when it has finally had its day…
But it’s not just where you get the Christmas tree that’s a big issue: what the thing should look like is almost just as important! And I don’t just mean the long search for “our” tree. Everything is very harmonious (without bullshit!), but extremely concentrated because our tree has to be so big that it just fits into our living room. Under no circumstances should it be a small tree :-)!
This year my husband finally gave in, even though the tree he chose was about 15 cm too small. But actually the space above must be used to the maximum!
Then comes the next challenge: setting up the fairy lights straight and placing them evenly and aesthetically. Always a highlight every year. Before we became parents, we always enjoyed decorating our trees ourselves. Since the mice have been able to walk, we have had little to report and therefore the Christmas trees are sometimes very, shall we say, specially decorated. It can happen that only the lower third is excessively hung and the top is completely natural. But we are tolerant. The main thing is that everyone has fun! But when it comes to one thing, my husband and I don’t let each other take the reins: when it comes to decorating the top of the tree. You might think that a particularly beautiful Christmas tree topper or a special star would probably have to go there. No. Completely wrong.
Every year our trees are decorated with a tiny fabric Santa hat. For our first Christmas many years ago we actually didn’t have one and just put this thing on top as a joke. Well, that’s how it happened that it became a tradition for us. And it remains that way to this day!
Merry Christmas!
Gingerbread cream:
1 can of sweetened condensed milk (usually 400g)
250 g soft, room temperature butter
2 tsp gingerbread spice
100 g hazelnut kernels
Preparation:
First the milk needs to be caramelized. Place the sealed (!) can in a large pot of water so that the pot is generously covered with water. Bring the water to the boil and then simmer for 3 hours. Do not put a lid on during the cooking process and always check that the container is permanently covered with water.
Then use tongs to remove the can (be careful, it will be extremely hot) and let it cool completely.
Once the condensed milk has cooled completely, the can can be opened. It then contains caramelized condensed milk, also known as dulce de leche, and is brownish-caramel in color and slightly firmer.
Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees top and bottom heat and roast the nuts for 20 minutes. Take the roasted hazelnuts out of the oven and, while they are still warm, remove the fine skins by rubbing them on a clean kitchen towel. Chop the hazelnuts finely.
Beat the butter with a hand mixer for a few minutes and then add the caramelized condensed milk. Carefully fold in the gingerbread spice and chopped nuts.
Now put the finished gingerbread cream in sterilized jars and store in the refrigerator.
The gingerbread cream lasts for about two weeks in the refrigerator.
It is ideal as a delicious spread, but also makes a great cookie filling, muffin topping and much more!
