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As mentioned in Day 65 of The Challenge This is my first original cookie recipe, all my own rather than just tweaking of an original. It started because we made tollhouse cookies with butterscotch. I find those too sweet, with too high a flavour note. I, therefore, decided to make my own cookies, changing the sugar types - reducing the granulated sugar, both white and brown, and using pomegranate molasses instead. Regular molasses would also have the effect of deepening the note, but pomegranate molasses has an added acidity to it. I then added dried orange peel, dates and ground almonds. These came out quite moist and light. If you want them a bit more substantial, and closer to the texture of tollhouse cookies, add an extra 1/4 c of flour. Recipe Cook time: 30 minutes -- Difficulty: Easy Ingredients: 1 c butter, softened 1/2 c white sugar 1/2 c dark brown sugar 1/2 c ground almonds 1/3 c pomegranate molasses 1/4 c dried orange peel 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 2 eggs 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp cloves 2 c flour 3/4 c dates, chopped 1) Cream butter and sugar in a bowl. add almonds and pomegranate molasses and mix well. Soak orange peel in a cup of hot water. 2) Stir in wet ingredients, then gradually add dry ingredients. 3) Drain orange peel. Add date and orange peel. Drop onto greased cookie sheet by teaspoonfuls. 4) Bake at 180°C for 8-10 minutes until golden on top. Cool for a few minutes then enjoy warm! I love these and am so happy with them! I will continue to tweak and play with these a little, but these are a keeper. They are fragrant with a beautifully balanced, complex and yet delicate taste. They are moist and soft, and though sweet and overall very satisfying. The dough is less tasty to eat raw though. When baked in a slightly under-preheated oven, the bottoms caramelised a little, which quashed the orange flavour and brought out the dates. They were also tasty, but with a much less delicate and complex flavour. Swaps and substitutions: You could use fresh orange zest instead of the dried orange peel. I personally liked the chewy pieces of peel, but if you don't have any to hand, the zest will do. You could replace the pomegranate molasses with regular molasses. It will not have the same zing to it, but it would still be a balanced cookie. Try replacing the ground almond with other ground nuts to see the difference. Replace the dates with dried apricots or prunes. If you want to use prunes, alternatively, you could check out the Grapefruit and Prune Cookie recipe. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Anyone who has ever lived with me for any period of time knows that my morning go-to is oatmeal. I love it. It is quick and simple, it keeps me satisfied for the morning, even when on my feet on a busy ward (or nursing a baby every 2 hours) and I love the creamy texture. Not to mention that oats are very healthy for you. 95% of the time I have my porridge the same way (made with milk and raisins, and just a sprinkling of cinnamon over the top). Once in a while though, I like to shake things up a bit and play with other flavourings for my morning go-to, and even sometimes to sweeten the pot a little, as it were. I've posted a few oaty recipes before (Persimmon Porridge, Fenugreek Porridge, Sweet Potato Porridge, Baked Oats) but thought it was maybe time for some more. Recipes: Cook time: 15 mminutes -- Portions: 2 -- Difficulty: Easy Roast Chestnut Oats: Ingredients: 1 c oats 2 c milk 1 c roast chestnuts, crumbled or chopped A handful of raisins 1 tbsp maple or light brown sugar 1 tsp mix spice (Optional: a splash of cream) 1) In a small saucepan, place the oats, milk, most of the chestnuts and raisins and cook over medium heat, stirring regularly to prevent burning. 2) When it has thickened to the desired consistency, stir in the sugar and spice, pour out into two bowls, and top with the remaining chestnuts. Pour over the cream now, if using. Enjoy hot with a good cup of tea (or coffee if that is your thing.) Hot chocolate works too. Candied Orange Oats: Ingredients: 1 c whey 1 c milk 1 c oats 2 tbsp candied orange peel A handful of raisins 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tbsp cacao nibs 1) Place the whey, milk, oats, most of the candied orange peel and the raisins in a saucepan and soak overnight. 2) In the morning, bring the saucepan up to a simmer over medium heat. Stir regularly to prevent sticking and cook until you have achieved the desired consistency. 3) Spoon out into two bowls and top with the remaining orange peel, the cacao nibs and the cinnamon. Both of these work beautifully for a bit of a switch-up of your morning porridge. Either or neither can be soaked overnight, depending on your tastes and what is more convenient. I tend to soak whey porridge overnight as it cuts the acidity a little and comes out sweeter than it would if made fresh in the morning. I like it both ways (pun unintended), but Hubby finds making it fresh in the morning too acidic, so I have bent to his taste here. Conversely, although I do soak milk porridge overnight, I find it quite sweet in the morning, so I often make that in the morning instead. There are no hard and fast rules though! Swaps and substitutions: Both of these recipes would work with other forms of hot cereal. For example, for cream of what, substitute out the cup of oats for 6 tbsp of cream of wheat. For a vegan or dairy-free experience, swap out the whey or the milk for your favourite nut milk. Personally, I would go for almond milk in this instance, but the choice is yours! Instead of the mix spice in the first recipe, swap in pumpkin spice, or some cinnamon and cloves, or skip the spice altogether. Rather than the raisins, replace them with some diced prunes or dates, but be aware that these are almost a little sweeter. They do work beautifully though. Instead of the cocoa nibs, you could be truly decadent and use chocolate chips. For my part, I would go for dark ones, but it is your breakfast! (As a side note, I have been loving cocoa nibs recently and have enjoyed putting them in all sorts of things that would normally have chocolate chips. If given the chance to soak even a little, they soften up wonderfully, while still remaining toothsome, and they have that much less sugar.) Instead of the maple sugar in the first recipe, use light brown sugar. Be aware that although dark brown sugar would work too, this will deepen the flavour notes considerably. Cinnamon sugar or plain white would work too. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Chestnuts always hold special emotional associations for me, reminding me of Christmas magic and family

A year ago for Christmas, my sister gave me bagel moulds (also known as witches` hats) and a recipe. Somehow, it never occurred to me to try making my own until my sister gave me those moulds last Christmas

I must add though, that having received a new ice cream maker for Christmas (the 30-year-old one from

We made this for the family after Christmas, when we had all had a few too many turkey sandwiches and It is veggie-packed but was not too heavy, which was a relief after all the rich food around Christmas

I used to only get them at Christmas markets in little paper cones, roasted and so hot that you burn chestnuts to roast a little, releasing a delicious flavour reminiscent of cold hands and paper cones in Christmas

The White Balsamic Syrup is one I got as a Christmas gift.

Due to Covid quarantining we could not be with all the family for Christmas, so I am waiting on the last 3 days of Christmas cookies until we are all together.

I received a cheese making kit for Christmas, something I had been looking into for a while.