This recipe comes courtesy of http://www.retrofoodrecipes.com/yorkshire_pudding.html All Yorkshire Pudding recipes are basically the same, so I see no reason to pretend I've come up with one myself. You can leave out an egg here, or add a drop of milk or cream more there, but it all boils down to the same thing. Just don't be afraid and give it a try!

Wikipedia says: “A canelé is a small French pastry with a soft and tender custard center and a dark, thick caramelized crust. The dessert, which is in the shape of small, striated cylinder approximately two inches in height, is a specialty of the Bordeaux region of France but can often be found in Parisian patisseries as well. Made from egg, sugar, milk and flour flavored with rum and vanilla, the custard batter is baked in a mold, giving the canelé a caramelized crust and custard-like inside.”

Where does all the time go to that disappears every day? Is there a big black time hole somewhere in the sky? One day I'm gonna find it and then use it all up just laying in the sunshine somewhere exotic. And because time always disappears, it will do so there to, but it will keep returning to the hole and I will spend the rest of my life sipping cold rose in the shade of a palm tree on some beautiful island.

I have 3 very ripe bananas and 3 very cake loving Germans currently in my home. One of them is a permanent fixture, i.e., the German husband Joergi Bear, and the other 2 are his parents. Germans traditionally eat cake in the afternoon with their coffee and so I decided to make use of said 3 black bananas and bake a cake. I often bake a deevine banana bread, but I wanted to do something more special and for once the internet has proved less than forthcoming.

I know I’ve told you before, but I shall not tire of reminding you that hubby and I lived on a sailboat for a couple of years and happily sailed from Africa into the Mediterranean. On route, we stopped off at the Cape Verde Islands in the north Atlantic where I went to the market to buy fresh fruit and veg. I asked for bananas (or shall I say, I gesticulated for bananas) and successfully managed to buy some. A whole stalk to be exact. That makes a mere 52kg…

(This photograph is copied from “Good Food” magazine, July 2009.)

Going straight from appetizer to dessert may seem a little strange to some, but it seems perfectly normal to me… Yes, I will be posting the middle bits, but I know how you lot like your puds so I decided to post it first.

Today’s recipe: Christstollen (The recipe is at the very end of the post. Da ist auch ein Link zu einem Deutschen Rezept ganz unten.)

I had hoped to get to another Christmas market of an evening to practice my night (naught) photographic skills, but (lucky for you) I have been unable to get to any of late (and late) so day views of how it gets set up (with German efficiency) and clearer photos are on today’s order. Phew, that was a long self-interrupting sentence.

I was checking out some of my favorite blogs and found a great recipe for spaghetti squash on chocolate and zucchinis blog with links to other blogs and on one of these (http://verysmallanna.com/) I found a recipe for macaroons (or macarons depending on where you live). So instead of doing spaghetti squash (promise to do so later), I am going to do a piece on macaroons that involves amongst other things, lunch with friends and the French gendarmes / police…

I continue with my series on German Christmas biscuits and want to tell you about the most famous cookie in Schwaben or Schwabia, the area in which my in-laws, Karl and Leni, live. Any housewife who has any self-respect whatsoever puts a lot of effort into her Springerle and it is a highly talked about cookie. As always, the recipe is to be found at the end of this post.

Today’s recipes: Hazelnut meringues and Coconut meringues

I saw it up ahead. It was something I had never seen before and I raced forward to get a better look. And sure enough, my worst fears were confirmed. Driving in the slow lane was a BMW sports car, its taillights tucked beneath its bumper. I kid you not. I mean, would one joke about something as serious as this?