Pink Champagne Jelly with Lycee in Vanilla Syrup

How is this Christmas? How is it not! *its the champagne that makes it Christmas :) *

I was surfing through some websites for some Christmas recipes and so I found this, and it looked doable, and I got my dad to buy me the pink champagne just so you know. I'll make some Lemon Posset and caramelized figs with some biscuits. Anyways just enjoy this recipe...

Ingredients:

Jelly-

750ml- Pink champagne or sparkling wine
215g- Caster Sugar
3- Sheets of Gelatine

Lycee & Vanilla Syrup-

215g- Caster Sugar
250mL- water
1- Vanilla Bean
1- Lemon, juiced and zested
1Tbsp- Fresh Ginger
1Kg- Fresh Lycees

Method:

Jelly-

To make the jelly, first soak the gelatine sheets in cold water until soft. Place the champagne and sugar in a saucepan and cook over medium heat or until sugar dissolves, then add in the gelatin sheets and stir until it is melted. Cool, then place in dariole moulds or use cups and refridgerate until set.

Fragrant Syrup-

Split vanilla bean down in half and scrape the beans, put in a saucepan with the water, sugar, lemon juice and zest over medium heat and place peeled lycees in a bowl and pour over the syrup. Cool in the fridge.

Hint: To serve, place hot water in a cup and place set jelly moulds in the cup until it is loosened up, then it's easier to take out without ruining the shape. Then pour the syrup over the jelly.

.rEy.

Orange Chocolate Truffles

Yes... it's chocolate again... and I haven't been cooking for a while lately because of school and other stuff, I only made this because I was bored. Anyways these are my orange dark chocolate truffles, dark chocolate was too strong for me. I don't even know why I use dark chocolate, next time I'm using milk chocolate. The texture was good, it's like silk in your mouth, and it's very easy to make, it's one of the easiest things I've made, anywho enjoy the recipe. Oh and Christmas is coming up, so I'll be sure to post a few Christmas recipes.

Ingredients:

225g- Dark Chocolate (Good Quality, none of them Cadbury crap)
175mL- Thickened Cream
2Tbsp- Orange Juice
Lemon Rind
Icing Sugar to dust
Cocoa Powder for coating

Method:

Melt chocolate with a double boiler (baine marie) over medium heat. Turn heat down to low and pour in the thickened cream, use a spatula to mix through, and mixture will thicken and become glossy, mix in orange juice and rind. Take off from heat and let it cool in room temperature for 30 minutes and refridgerate for a further 1 hour. Once cooled, mixture could easily be handled by hand and not runny. Use teaspoon to scoop out the bite-sized pieces and roll with hands (clean first with cold water so chocolate doesn't melt fast or use gloves), then roll in cocoa powder and dust it with icing sugar. Serve with coffee or ice cream.

.rEy.