​It's that time of the year again, it is my birthday. Between Christmas Eve and my birthday we also have Christmas Day, New Years Eve, New Years Day, my son's birthday, and a few catch ups in between, it is an intense part of the year for me. I am all partied out, we've all eaten too much, drank too much, and now it's my birthday, one last hoorah to end the festive season.

I never want a traditional cake on my birthday, it's always something lighter. This year I really felt like a lemon flavoured dessert, so this is how this dessert came about. Now I made a lemon tart, so my daughter offered to make me this cake. She said was it easy to make, and it looked beautiful when it came out of the oven.

The mascarpone cream is optional in my opinion, yes it adds a light and fluffy creaminess to the cake, but I am just as happy eating the cake without the cream. So maybe only make the cream on special occasions.

The original cream recipe did not include lemon zest or juice and I found it bland. So I added the zest and just enough juice to not water down my frosting, but just give it a little more flavour with the lemon. Now it was lovely. Sugar is also, to taste.
​
I say serves 12-20, as it will depend on which tin you use. The tin I use gives you 20 slices, but your tin may be different.

Now for the breadcrumbs. There is nothing worse than making a cake like this in a kuglof style tin and you've baked it and it gets stuck in the tin. I have tried oil, butter, flour and oil, flour and butter, and each time, cakes can get stuck. My aunt told me about using oil spray and breadcrumbs and I have never had a cake stick since. The breadcrumbs need to be fine and they add just a little crunch to the outer layer of the cake. 

​So here is my version of a birthday cake, simple, elegant and delicious.

Recipe adapted from The Australian Women's Weekly Cookbook 'Indulgent Cakes'

Serves 12-20

For the cake:
225g butter, softened
1 1/2 tablespoon finely grated lemon rind
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup (160g) store-bought lemon curd
1 1/2 cup (225g) self-raising flour
3/4 cup (110g) plain flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (250ml) milk

​Breadcrumbs, for dusting the tin

Mascarpone Cream:
250g mascarpone, at room temperature
2 teaspoons icing sugar, to taste
300ml thickened cream
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice, to taste


Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan forced. Grease a deep 25cm fluted tube cake pan, lightly dust it with breadcrumbs.

Beat butter, rind and sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until just combined. Fold in curd, sifted flours, salt and milk. Spoon mixture into pan.

Bake cake for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Stand cake in pan for 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
​
To make mascarpone frosting, beat ¾ cup (180ml) cream in a small bowl with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Combine mascarpone, sifted icing sugar, lemon zest and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice in a medium bowl; fold in whipped cream, then remaining cream. Taste, add more lemon juice, if needed.
​
To serve, I like to dust the cake with icing sugar and serve the mascarpone cream on the side. But you could also spoon half of the frosting on the cake, with the remainder of the cream placed in a bowl, in case somebody loves more cream.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/lemon-cake-with-mascarpone-frosting.html 
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​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

​Recipe adapted from www.recipetineats.com/

Serves 5

500g spaghetti
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
800g fresh cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup fresh basil, lightly packed
Freshly grated or shaved parmesan cheese, to serve


Put a large pot of salted water over high heat, bring to the boil. Whilst this is happening, prepare all your other ingredients.

​Once the water is boiling, add the spaghetti to the pot and cook as per packet instructions, or until al dente.
​

Meanwhile, make the sauce: Heat oil over medium high heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, add tomato and cook briefly, just to warm through. 

Once the pasta is cooked, reserve one cup of the pasta water. Drain the rest of the water.

Add drained pasta into sauce with 3/4 cup of the reserved pasta cooking water. Toss pasta until sauce thickens and sticks to pasta, 1 - 2 minutes, use more water, if needed. Toss through basil. Taste for seasoning.

Just before serving, drizzle with a little more extra virgin olive oil.

​Serve with parmesan.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/spaghetti-with-fresh-tomato-sauce.html 
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​​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

​Serves 4

​450g spaghetti
60ml olive oil
6 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1 fresh hot red chilli, chopped
4 anchovy fillets in oil, roughly chopped 
​Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling, optional

Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente, follow packet instructions.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the garlic, chilli and anchovies. Fry gently but don't allow the garlic to brown. The sauce doesn't take more than 5 minutes to make. Season with a little salt and pepper.

Lift the cooked pasta from the water, using tongs, and mix directly with the sauce. Taste for seasoning, Add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil on top if you desire.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/spaghetti-with-garlic-olive-oil-and-chilli.html 
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​​​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

It's that time of the year again, it is my birthday. Between Christmas Eve and my birthday we also have Christmas Day, New Years Eve, New Years Day, my son's birthday, and a few catch ups in between, it is an intense part of the year for me. I am all partied out, we've all eaten too much, drank too much, and now it's my birthday, one last hoorah to end the festive season.

I never want a traditional cake on my birthday, it's always something lighter. This year I really felt like a lemon flavoured dessert, so this is how this dessert came about. It is the lemon version to my lime tart, that I have already posted.

The tart is delicious, it is simple to make and it looks beautiful.

Some make this recipe with a meringue top, using up the egg whites, I chose not to and went with a cream top.

This time I put cream all over the filling, in future I would pipe the cream on around the rim, so some of the tart was cream free, like I do with me lime tart. 

​You can add a little yellow food colouring, I didn't, but you can if you want it more yellow. The blueberries colour, but more so I love the flavour combination of lemons and blueberries.

This is simple, easy and tasty, something anyone new to pie making should try. ​

Recipe adapted from itsnotcomplicatedrecipes.com/

Serves 8

Crust:
10 digestive biscuits
84g (6 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Filling:
1 x 395g can sweetened condensed milk
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
3 teaspoons lemon zest, grated
A few drops yellow food colouring, optional

Topping:
½ - 1 cup thickened cream
½ teaspoon icing sugar, sifted
Extra grated lemon zest, to garnish
Blueberries, optional 
​

Preheat your oven to 180°C/160 fan forced

. Make the crumb: Finely crush the biscuits (rolling pin in bag or food processor).

Place the biscuit crumbs in a bowl, add the butter, sugar and salt, mix to combine.

Grease a 22cm  pie dish with cooking spray or additional butter.

Pour the crumb mixture into the pie plate and evenly press to form a crust on the bottom and up the sides. Place in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile make the filling: Add the condensed milk, egg yolks, lime juice and zest to a large bowl and mix thoroughly to combine. Add a few drops of yellow food colouring, if you like.

Pour into the prepared pie crust then bake for 15 minutes, or until set. Allow to cool then refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight.
​
​When ready to serve, beat the cream and icing sugar together until it holds stiff peaks. Using a spatula, evenly spread the whipped cream on top (or pipe the cream and decorate the pie).

Garnish with additional lemon zest and add blueberries, if desired.

Slice and serve.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/lemon-tart.html
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​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

​My mother and I work very well as a team when we host parties, we each know what we can cook and we plan menus accordingly so our parties run smoothly. But every now and then she'll plan on me cooking something she wants to serve, that I've never cooked before.

So she decided she wants to cook a prawn buzara, I arrive at her house knowing I'm making fregola with prawns, mussels and pipis, but now she's thrown in this recipe. So now I'm cooking two meals, one I know well, and one I need to quickly read about and find a recipe, I can use as a guide. So I found this one which used scampi, not prawns, and used it as a guide. She also bought 2kg of prawns, not 1kg, so no pressure in getting it wrong, as prawns are expensive and doubling recipes, can sometimes go wrong. So halve the recipe if you don't need 2kg prawns.

But I nailed it, I cooked the prawns perfectly, the sauce was delicious. It is messy eating prawns with the shell on, but the shells add so much flavour to the dish, that I would never make this using peeled prawns.

Cooking times will vary slightly depending on the size of your prawns, you just need to keep an eye on the colour of the prawns and use that as your guide.

This dish can be made with mussels, scampi and crabs also.

This is quite quick to make and absolutely delicious. My family loved it, hope yours do to.

​Recipe adapted from Dennis Valcich's Croatian cookbook 'A Walk Through Croatia'

​Serves 6

2kg raw prawns in the shell
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1-2 tablespoons chopped parsley
​1 teaspoon vegeta
8 roma tomatoes, finely chopped
1 cup white wine
1-2 tablespoon white bread crumbs
Salt and Pepper, to taste
​
Prepare the prawns, you need to leave the shells on for this recipe as they add flavour to the dish, but I like to devein them. Just make a slit in the prawn between the head and the body,  then with your knife or a skewer, slowly lift up the black intestine, when you can grip it, straighten up the prawn body and slowly pull it out. If it breaks, you can just make a slit near the tail and do the same from that end. You can't see the slits once cooked.
​

Take a large deep frying pan (or wok) (that has a lid), add oil, place over a high heat.

Add garlic, wait 5-10 seconds, then add the prawns, tossing them about to disperse the garlic, so it doesn't burn and to start cooking the prawns. Add parsley, vegeta and a little salt and pepper. Toss again. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, so the prawns cook evenly. Cooking time will depend on the size of your prawns. 
​
When you see that the prawns are starting to go orange, but before they are cooked through, add the wine, cook, covered, stirring occasionally for a further 3-4 minutes.

When the prawns are nearly cooked through, add the tomatoes and breadcrumbs, stir, cook for a further two minutes, them remove from heat.

Serve in a large bowl with some crusty bread.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/prawn-buzara.html 
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​​​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

​This year I hosted Christmas Day at my house. One of the dishes I served was roast lamb. Now I intentionally cooked too much as I wanted there to be leftovers, as I did not want to cook on Boxing Day. Now I know making this soup is cooking, but a soup is about 10 minutes of work, then it cooks itself, and after a big Christmas dinner, easy is essential and a light soup is all that is needed.

Now I did buy two large lamb bones for this soup, as on Christmas day my dog got to enjoy the bones that were roasted, but if you don't have a dog, save the bones from the roast and use them.

Also if you just want to make this lamb soup from fresh meat, just add the meat with the bones and cook as per recipe, it doesn't have to be made with leftovers.

​This was something we loved, hope you do to.

Recipe adapted from www.taste.com.au/

Serves 6

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 carrots, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
2 tablespoons parsley stalks, finely chopped
2 large lamb bones, either fresh or leftover from your roast
3 litres water
1 tablespoon vegeta
1 large potato, peeled, cubed
1 cup frozen peas
200g beans, trimmed, cut into bite sized pieces
1 1/2 cups cold shredded leftover cooked lamb
120g, any dried pasta you like to have in soup 
2 tablespoons fresh continental parsley, torn

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, carrot, celery and parsley stalks. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes or until vegetables have softened. Add lamb bones and water. Bring to a simmer, add vegeta, season with a little salt and pepper. Cover. Reduce heat to low. Cook for 1 hour.

Add potato, peas, beans and lamb. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add pasta. Taste, season with salt and pepper, if needed. Cook a further 10 minutes or until the pasta is cooked. Sprinkle soup with parsley just before serving.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/leftover-lamb-soup.html 
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​​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

​This year I hosted Christmas Day at my house. One of the dishes I served was roast lamb. Now I intentionally cooked too much as I wanted there to be leftovers, as I did not want to cook on Boxing Day. Now I know this is still cooking, but this is so quick and easy to make, that it seriously doesn't feel like cooking, and more importantly, I bought all the ingredients earlier, so I didn't have to go shopping.

​This really was a fast dish to make. The dish is ready in about 20-30 minutes, with minimal effort. The only thing I will mention, if you want the lamb shredded do it while it is still warm, as cold lamb doesn't really shred, but I just sliced it thinly instead.  

At first my husband wasn't sure he would like it, as the aromas are middle eastern and not something we are used to eating. But after trying he, he loved it, as did my kids. We definitely all wanted to eat this again.

So if you have leftover lamb, and I'll probably make sure from now on, I always will, this is a great way to use it up.

​Recipe adapted from www.taste.com.au/

Serves 4

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup basmati rice
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
3 teaspoons ground cumin
400g can chickpeas, drained, rinsed
3 cups cold shredded leftover cooked lamb 
1/2 cup currants
1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 pomegranate, seeds removed


Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes until onion is soft. Add rice. Stir to coat in mixture. Add stock, 1 teaspoon curry powder, 2 teaspoons cumin and chickpeas. Stir to combine. Cover. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat. Set aside for 10 minutes. Fluff rice with a fork to separate grains.
​
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of remaining oil in a large non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add lamb. Sprinkle with remaining curry powder and cumin. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring once, until the lamb is browned and heated through. Transfer to a large bowl.
​
​Add rice mixture, currants, coriander, parsley, lemon juice and remaining oil to the lamb. Toss gently to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with pomegranate seeds.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/middle-eastern-lamb-pilaf.html 
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​​​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

​I cannot begin to tell you how much I love this. This is so delicious and it is so easy to make.

These sorts of things I cook because I either have too much bread left over after a party, or too much ham after Christmas, it could also be a combination of both. Well this time it was actually because I had too much bread. Seriously sometimes the best things I cook, come from these situations, sloppy joes were discovered just like this to. 

This is so easy to make, feeds as many as you want. I'll tell you a secret, there is a recipe, but you can just keep making them until you run out of ingredients, I don't measure the cheese, I just scatter it on, I add as much ham as I like, or have in the fridge. So use the recipe as a guide, then just do what you like. The only thing I measure is the garlic butter.

​Use whatever ham you love, use whatever cheese you love, you should include mozzarella, it makes it stringy and stretchy.

These are great for lunch, dinner, when my kids have friends over, when I have friends over, when I don't feel like cooking, it's so easy, seriously it doesn't feel like cooking, when I'm having a party, this is something you can make anytime.

My family love this, I know yours will to.

​Recipe adapted from www.yellowblissroad.com/

Makes 12

12 small round rolls or slider buns
1-2 cups shredded tasty cheese
450g sliced deli ham or more, depending on thickness and desired amount
1-2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup (113g) butter, melted
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped
Pinch of salt and pepper
​
Preheat oven to 175C/155C fan forced.

Using a large serrated knife, slice the rolls in half so you have a “slab” of tops and a “slab” of bottoms; don't pull the rolls apart and slice individually because you want to keep them connected. Hold the top with one hand to keep them steady. If they separate, it doesn't really matter.

You need a baking dish that will fit the rolls snuggly, if slightly larger, just keep the rolls together, don't spread them out.

Layer the sliders as follows: tasty cheese, sliced ham, Mozzarella cheese.

Replace the top half of the rolls over the cheese.

In a small bowl, combine melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, fresh parsley and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour or brush the mixture onto the tops of the rolls.

Cover rolls with baking paper, then loosely cover with nonstick foil, the baking paper ensures the foil does not stick to the rolls.

Bake in your preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove foil and baking paper and continue to bake for another 10 minutes or until tops are nice and golden brown.

Cool slightly, then cut the sliders apart with with a sharp knife.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/ham-and-cheese-sliders-with-garlic-butter.html 
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​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

I love Christmas, I am one of those people that can't wait to put up my tree, I hang Christmas lights (that kind of stay up all year, or until they stop working) and  it's just a fun time of the year. You get to spend time with your family, feeling grateful for all that you have been blessed with.

It's summer in Australia at Christmas so we need a few cold refreshments to help us celebrate during the festivities.

Here I have a few of my favourite Christmas cocktails. Hope you love them as much as we do.

Holly Daze

This ones fun, and really nice to drink. Originally we made this with whipped cream, but we prefer it with ice cream.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

30ml vodka
20ml banana liqueur
20ml midori
vanilla ice cream
ice

Shake the vodka, banana liqueur, midori and ice in a cocktail shaker. 

Place a scoop of ice cream into a cocktail glass of your choice, I like the one pictured. 

Strain the vodka mix over the ice cream.

Enjoy!
​

Christmas Party on the Beach

Here is one of my favourite cocktails. It is beautiful-to look at and to drink. Very refreshing, lovely to drink on a hot summers day.

Here is how you make it: 

Serve 1

30ml vodka
30ml peach schnapps
1 dash grenadine
150ml orange juice
Ice
Shake vodka, schnapps, juice and ice in a cocktail shaker.

Pour grenadine in a chilled cocktail glass and strain the mixture on top carefully.

Serve immediately.

Note: If you don't have a cocktail shaker (or can't find it like me), just make it all straight in your glass, works beautifully both ways. And I really never strain it, as I love sucking on ice cubes, and I love my cocktails really cold.

Enjoy!
​

Santa's Strawberry Sensation

This is a simple one, it has a touch of elegance to it.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 8
​
450g strawberries, hulled
1 tablespoon icing sugar
160ml vodka
1 bottle of sparkling wine
crushed ice

Blend strawberries and icing sugar in a blender until pureed. Pass through a fine sieve. Cover and chill.

Half fill champagne glasses with crushed ice. Divide chilled strawberry puree among the flutes. Top each with 1 tablespoon of vodka and fill with sparkling wine.

Enjoy!
​

Prancer's Punch

We tried this one with soda water the first time we made as per recipe, but felt it needed some sweetness so changed the recipe to top it with lemonade instead. We enjoyed this one.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

60ml light rum
60ml dark rum
30ml lime juice
1/4 teaspoon triple sec
dash grenadine
1 teaspoon sugar, optional
top up with lemonade

Combine all ingredients except lemonade in a cocktail shaker. Pour into a highball glass half filled with crushed ice. Top up with lemonade, to taste.

​Enjoy!
​

Mistletoe Margarita

You can't go wrong with a margarita and this one is delicious.

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 1

40ml tequila
20ml grand marnier
20ml lime juice

Shake all the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker.

Spread salt onto a sheet of baking paper or on a plate. Using the limes that you squeezed, rub a little lime onto the rim of your glass, dip the rim of the glass into the salt .

Strain into your salt rimmed cocktail glass. 

​Enjoy!
​

Santa's Boozy Watermelon Slushy

Now this cocktail is not only easy to make, but it is good. This is refreshing and just the perfect party drink in summer. It really is a festive Christmas cocktail.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 2-4, depends on glass size

1kg piece seedless watermelon, chilled
½ cup orange-flavoured liqueur
1 tablespoon grenadine
2 teaspoons lime juice
4 cups crushed ice
Small watermelon wedges, to serve
Lime wedge, to serve
​
Method 1-No Pulp: Cut rind from watermelon and discard. Chop watermelon into pieces. You need 600g (about 4 cups). Place in a blender. Blend until pureed. Strain through a sieve into a large jug to give 2 cups watermelon juice. Discard pulp. 

Add liqueur, grenadine and lime juice to watermelon puree. Stir well.
​
Just before serving, place 1 cup crushed ice in each glass (1 cup-capacity) Divide watermelon mixture over the ice. Decorate with small wedges of watermelon.
​

Method 2: With Pulp: Cut rind from watermelon and discard. Chop watermelon into pieces. You need 600g (about 4 cups). Place in a blender. Blend until pureed.

Add liqueur, grenadine and lime juice and ice to watermelon puree. Blend until the ice is crushed.

​Divide watermelon mixture into your serving glasses. Decorate with small wedges of watermelon and lime.
​
Enjoy!
​

White Christmas

So easy, two ingredients and a blender. This is so refreshing.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 8

1 litre passionfruit sorbet
750ml prosecco

Place half the sorbet and half of the prosecco in a blender and blitz until combined. Pour into 4 champagne flutes. Repeat with remaining sorbet and prosecco.

Enjoy!

North Pole Iceberg

I really love this one, one of my favourites.

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 1

30ml cointreau
30ml gin
1/4 lime, juiced
sparkling wine
Blue curacao
1 cup ice

Blend cointreau, gin, lime juice and ice in a blender. Pour into chilled glass. Top with sparkling wine and drizzle with blue curacao.

​Enjoy!
​

Cracker Cosmo

We really liked this one, easy to make and absolutely delicious.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 2

10ml Citron Vodka
20ml Vodka
30ml Cointreau
60ml Cranberry Juice
1 lime wedge
1 cup ice

Shake all ingredients in cocktail shaker. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a twist of lime.

Enjoy!
​

Watermelon Wonderland

A lovely summer Christmas Cocktail.

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 8

​125ml white rum
60ml triple sec
500g watermelon (peeled & chopped)
1 teaspoon grenadine
ice

Blend all ingredients except ice until smooth. Divide the ice among glasses. Pour watermelon mixture over ice cubes. Garnish with a watermelon slice.

Enjoy!
​

Mistletoe Mojito

A classic, an absolute favourite of mine.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

60ml light rum
1 lime, juiced
2-4 sprigs of mint
2 teaspoons caster sugar
soda water
ice

Lightly muddle the mint & sugar with a splash of soda with a splash of soda water in a mixing glass until the sugar dissolves. Squeeze the lime into the glass, add rum and shake with ice. Strain over cracked ice in a highball glass. Top with soda water, garnish with mint.

Enjoy!
​

Salty Reindeer

​To be honest, this isn't my favourite, I would prefer sugar on the rim, but then it would be a sweet reindeer, not a salty one. It was still good, just not a favourite.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

​60ml gin
grapefruit juice
1 teaspoon coarse salt
lime
ice

Dip a lime moistened glass rim into salt. Pour gin over ice in glass. Fill with grapefruit juice to taste. Garnish with a slice of lime.

​Enjoy!
​

The Grinch

This is a fun one. It's Christmas, there's always a grinch.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1
​
40ml lemon vodka
30ml melon liqueur
40ml sweet and sour mix
20ml lime cordial
lemonade
soda water
ice

Mix all ingredients except lemonade and soda water. Strain into a glass with a couple of ice cubes and fill with equal parts lemonade and soda water. Garnish with a lemon circle.

Enjoy!
​

Mrs Claus' Margarita

This was fabulous, we loved it.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1
​
30ml tequila
15ml cointreau
30ml fresh lime juice
30ml bottled pineapple juice
4 fresh mint leaves
1 cup ice cubes

Combine ingredients in jug of a blender, blend on high speed until well combined. Pour mixture into a salt rimmed glass. Garnish with a small wedge of lemon and a sprig of mint.

Enjoy!
​

North Pole Iced Tea

This one we loved and it such a beautiful blue colour.

This is how you make it:

Serves 1

​20ml gin
20ml vodka
20ml white rum
20ml cointreau
20ml blue curacao
lemonade
ice

Build in a highball glass, add ice to glass. Add gin, vodka, white rum, cointreau and blue curacao, fill with lemonade. Serve with a wedge of lime.

​Enjoy!

Christmas Cranberry Crush

This is so good, a alcohol based slushy, divine. It is very refreshing, very easy to sip on, and perfect for a warm Australian Christmas.

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 6 

250ml vodka
250ml cranberry juice
200ml cold sugar syrup
6 large limes, juiced

In a large jug add the vodka, cranberry juice, sugar syrup and lime juice, mix well.

Pour into a large container, cover and freeze overnight.

Once frozen, stir and spoon into glasses.

Serve with a wedge of lime.
​
Enjoy!
​

Frosty's Frozen Daiquiri

I love frozen cocktails, they are just perfect on a hot summers day, and this one is delicious.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

45ml Bacardi
30ml fresh lemon juice
15ml sugar syrup
2 cups of ice

Pour all the ingredients in a blender, blend until smooth. Pour into your serving glass.

Garnish with a lemon circle.
​
Enjoy!

Star Strawberry Daiquiri

We love daiquiri's in our house, and this one is delicious.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1
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60ml white rum
30ml strawberry liqueur or creme de fraises
30ml lemon juice
ice (crushed)
4 strawberries

Pour the rum, strawberry liqueur, lemon juice, strawberries and ice into a blender. Process for 20 seconds till ice is completely crushed. Pour into a chilled glass. Garnish with a strawberry.

Enjoy!
​

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 4-6

5 cups full cream milk
1 ½ cups caster sugar
1 large cinnamon stick
10 egg yolks
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 cup white rum
Pinch of ground cinnamon

I​n a 3-4 litre saucepan, combine the milk, sugar and cinnamon stick. Place over a medium-low fire, stirring often, heat until it comes to a full boil. Turn off heat and remove the cinnamon stick.

Immediately, whisk the egg yolks in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Slowly, add the hot milk, whisking rapidly at the same time, until all the liquid has been incorporated.

Place the mixture back into the pan and return to the stove over very low heat. Stirring frequently, continue cooking, not boiling, for another 5 minutes. Make sure that at this point it does not boil, because it will curdle.

Remove from the stove and let it cool. Add the vanilla and rum and mix well. Chill in the refrigerator overnight and serve in your favorite holiday glass, sprinkle the top with the ground cinnamon.
​
Enjoy!
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Happy Hurricane

This is the colour of Christmas in a glass. 

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 1
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45ml dark rum
45ml light rum
30ml passionfruit syrup
45ml orange juice
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon grenadine
ice

Combine all ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange circle and cherry.

​Enjoy!

Pink Snowball

This one we had instead of dessert after dinner. It is so good.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1
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40ml licor 43 (cuarenta y tres)
20ml kahlua
fresh strawberries, about 4
vanilla ice cream, about 2 scoops

Mix licor 43, kahlua, strawberries and ice cream in blender until smooth and serve. Garnish with a fresh strawberry.

​Enjoy!

Here is how you make it:

Serves 8-10

Ice
500ml Vodka
900ml Lemonade
900ml Raspberry and Cranberry juice
Fresh mixed berries
​
Chill all ingredients in advance.
Combine all ingredients in a large punch bowl.
Add fruit.
​Serve over ice.

Enjoy!

Gin-gle Bells Sparkling Punch

This is a great summer party drink and as Christmas is in summer for us, this is a great Christmas Party drink. It's so easy to throw together and looks so festive.

Here is how you make it: 
​
Serves 10

​125g punnet raspberries
2 limes, thinly sliced
1 cup dry gin
750ml bottle sparkling crisp apple juice, chilled
375ml can lemonade, chilled
750ml bottle sparkling rose wine, chilled

Berry Ice Cubes:
250g punnet strawberries, hulled
600ml bottle raspberry flavoured soft drink
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To make berry ice cubes, cut strawberries into quarters. Divide half the strawberries among two x 12-hole ice cube trays. Fill with raspberry soft drink. Freeze. Reserve remaining strawberries in a covered container in the fridge. 

Up to 1 hour before serving, combine raspberries, lime, gin, apple juice and reserved strawberries in a large serving jug. Cover and refrigerate to chill.

Just before serving, add lemonade, rose and berry ice-cubes. Serve immediately. 
​
Enjoy!
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Frosty's Frappe

I love coffee, I love Baileys. So I love this. So if you are like me, this is such a beautiful cocktail, you need to try it

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 1

80ml Baileys
80-120ml milk
1 cup ice cubes
1 tablespoon instant coffee
Chocolate topping (optional)

Place the baileys, milk, ice cubes and coffee in a blender, blitz until almost smooth.

If using chocolate topping, swirl it around the rim of your glass.

Pour in the Baileys mix.
​
Enjoy!
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Blitzen Bliss

This ones easy to drink, we loved it.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 9

250ml vodka
2 tablespoons lime juice
Angostura bitters
1 litre guava juice
1 litre dry ginger ale
1/4 cup mint leaves
ice

Mix vodka and guava juice, refrigerate until needed. When serving add dry ginger ale, lime juice, 5-6 drops of bitters, mint leaves and ice cubes.

Enjoy!
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Christmas Party Punch

We really loved this one, a great party drink. Original recipe said champagne, any sparkling wine you like to drink will work, and as I couldn't find tropical soft drink, I used tropical juice.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 20

375ml vodka
125ml malibu
750ml prosecco
250ml apple juice
500ml tropical juice
1.25ml lemonade
variety of fruits

Chill all ingredients in advance. Combine all ingredients in a large punch bowl. Add fresh fruit and serve.

Enjoy!
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Christmas Pina Colada

This is a classic and is a great summer cocktail, drinking this always makes you feel like your on holidays.​

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

1 cup ice cubes
30ml white rum
30ml dark rum
80ml pineapple juice
20ml sugar syrup
40ml coconut cream
Dash of angostura bitters
Garnish:
Pineapple pieces and leaves
Cocktail umbrellas or frangipani flowers

In a cocktail shaker place the ice cubes, white rum, dark rum, pineapple juice, sugar syrup, coconut cream and angostura bitters. Close the lid and shake, shake, shake. Until mixed well.

Pour into your glass, add some more ice cubes if you like. Garnish with pineapple pieces and leaves.

Festive Fizz

This one my husband liked, as he does like his rakija, me and my daughter, not so much.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

60ml slivovitz (plum brandy)
15ml lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar syrup
soda water

Blend all ingredients except the soda in a cocktail shaker. Pour into a highball glass and top up with soda.

Enjoy!
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Santa Sling
​
This one was good to, not my absolute favourite, but would definitely make it again next Christmas.​ We originally made one with soda water, them decided to make the second one with lemonade, as we thought it needed some sweetness.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

60ml gin
30ml cherry brandy
30ml lemon juice
soda water or lemonade
ice

Combine all ingredients except soda in a glass half filled with ice. Stir and top up with soda water or lemonade, to taste. Garnish with lemon and cherry.

Enjoy!
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Happy Holidays

This one is fun, both in colour and in drinking it. Will definitely be having this again.​

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

30ml white rum
30ml blue curacao
20ml coconut cream
pineapple juice
ice

Blend rum, curacao and coconut cream in a blender, to combine. Pour into a glass with ice, fill with pineapple juice. Garnish with a pineapple slice.

Enjoy!
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Christmas Eve Sunset

This one looked pretty, was it my favourite, no, but would have it again next Christmas Eve.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

30ml tequila
30ml banana liqueur
7ml blue curacao
ice

Mix tequila and banana liqueur in mixing glass filled with ice. Strain into glass. Drop blue curacao through the centre of cocktail to achieve a two tone effect.

Enjoy!
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Christmas Day Sunrise

A classic, it always tastes good.

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 1

60ml tequila
orange juice
dash of grenadine
ice

Put ice in a highball glass. Add the tequila and then orange juice. Top with a dash of grenadine. Garnish with a slice of orange.

Enjoy!
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Sweet and Sour Season

This is easy to drink, festive.

This is how you make it:

Serves 1

20ml vodka
20ml midori
lemonade
cranberry juice
ice

Build over ice in a highball glass. First Midori, then vodka, then fill with equal parts lemonade and cranberry juice.

​Enjoy!

Santa's Spritzer Slushy

Think aperol spritz, but in a slushy form, and better. This is delicious. You do need to make the slushy in advance, which is great for parties, as it frees you up on the party day.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 8-10

2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice (from 4 to 6 oranges)
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)
1/3 cup sugar 
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 
2 cups bitter orange liqueur, such as Aperol 
1 x 750ml bottle prosecco

In a small saucepan, combine the orange juice, lemon juice, sugar and salt. Warm over medium heat to just below a simmer, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon to help dissolve the sugar. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the liqueur. Set aside to cool completely.
​
Pour into an 20cm baking dish and freeze until completely frozen, at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
​
Scrape the surface of the frozen mixture with a fork to form large shards of ice. Spoon about 1/2 cup into champagne coupe or any glass you like and top with prosecco.

Enjoy!

Santa's Screwdriver

A classic, it always tastes good.

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

60ml vodka
Fresh orange juice
ice

Pour vodka over ice cubes in a highball glass. Top up with orange juice to taste. Garnish with an orange circle.

​Enjoy!

Merry Mulled Wine

This is more like a Christmas in July drink for us as our Christmas season is in middle of summer, but we love it, the flavours are delicious, you can taste the lemon and the orange and the cinnamon, so I added it for those that have a white Christmas.

Here is how you make it: 

Serves 10

2 litres (8 cups) red wine
750ml (3 cups) water
500g (2 cups) sugar, you can reduce this amount if you like
1 orange, cut into eighths
1 small lemon, cut into eighths
3 cinnamon sticks
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Place all of the ingredients into a large saucepan. Place over a very low heat and stir for a few minutes until the sugar has dissolved. After that, keep heating the wine slowly until it is almost boiling, but do not allow it to boil. The longer it is left on the heat, the better it is.

​Then sip and enjoy all night long. 

Enjoy!
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Elves Eggnog

I love eggnog, it is so good, and so easy to throw together, this version especially. 

Here is how you make it:

Serves 1

30ml dark rum
30ml brandy
15ml sugar syrup
1 egg
90ml milk
Ice

Pour rum, brandy, sugar syrup, egg and ice into a blender, blend for about 30 seconds, until frothy and mixed well.

Pour into serving glasses and top up with milk.

Enjoy!

Santa's Sugar Syrup

This is used in many cocktails, is easy to make. I store mine in the refrigerator.
​

Here is how you make it:

250ml white sugar
250ml cold water

Combine sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil, simmer gently for 10 minutes or until the syrup thickens slightly. Remove from heat and refrigerate until cold.
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​This is so good, honestly one of my favourite snacks. I know it's called a dip, but I make this for myself for lunch. 

The recipe can be halved, doubled, add things, take things out, it's just so easy.

I think pictured this one doesn't have corn in it, as my son doesn't like corn and I made it for him, but for me I would definitely add the corn.

I use cherry tomatoes and quarter them, as I like the dip chunky. If you prefer, you can use 2 ripe large tomatoes, seeded, and finely chopped, for a less chunky dip.

This is something that needs to be tried at your next party.

​Recipe adapted from Woman's Day 'Easy Kids' Party Food'

Serves 8-10

4 avocados, seeded, peeled
1/4 cup sour cream
425g can tuna, dtrained, flaked
310g can corn kernels, drained
1 punnet cherry tomatoes, quartered
4 green onions, thinly sliced

​230g packet plain corn chips, to serve


In a large bowl, mash together avocado and sour cream. Stir in tuna, corn, tomatoes and green onions. Season to taste.

To save the recipe to your favourites go www.whatscookingella.com/tuna-and-avocado-dip.html 
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​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella