Domestic Goddess I definitely am not but I should be given points for trying, especially at Christmas time, when I become embroiled in a baking frenzy, whipping up traditional Christmas fare like there’s no tomorrow.

This surprises people who don’t see me as a traditional kinda gal, but wouldn’t life be boring without the occasional surprise?

As well as spreading good will, there’s an element of greed involved in my festive baking marathons. I love Christmas cake, Christmas pudding and Christmas mince pies and if I want to enjoy these consistently over the summer break it’s best I make some myself to ensure a decent supply.

Catherine’s Pastry Recipe Cream together 125 gm butter, just under a cup of sugar, and one egg. Add 1.5 – 2 cups of flour, (I normally add 2 cups), 1 tsp baking powder and a pinch of salt.  Then gently mix your magic. This recipe completes a great apple pie and if you make the effort to make your own pastry for your Christmas tarts, they’ll become legendary in your own lifetime. That’s a promise.

My Christmas kitchen manoeuvres are interwoven with memories of my mother who passed away 15 years ago. For years Mum made the steamed pudding for Christmas dinner, and 15 years ago I took over this role. This has amused the husband no end, who doesn’t understand why anyone would boil a bag of mixed fruit over a stove for 8 hours, when all you need to do is go down to the supermarket and buy an Ernest Adams one, all done, for just six bucks. I tell him he’s missing the ‘appreciation for tradition’ gene. 

One of the greatest gifts my mother left to the world is her pastry recipe. She may not have been the world’s keenest housekeeper, but her apple pie, with its sublime pastry, is famous the world-over. And I’m sure it’s better to be remembered for whipping up a dish so grand it knocks the socks off people from all corners of the world, than for having a tidy home. It’s thanks to Mum’s pastry recipe that I have a claim to fame – I’m known as a spectacular Christmas mince pie maker. When everything else I make is pretty mediocre – and people have been known to smell my cooking before they eat it – this is welcome comfort. 

One food-sniffer says I remind her of Astar, the Jill of all Trades on Television One’s Good Morning programme. “She can’t cook, but she’s entertaining to watch”, is this food critic’s summation. I have a feeling this line will appear on my gravestone. But I’m hoping they’ll add: – “although she did make a damn fine Christmas tart.”     

The positive responses I’ve had to my mince pies, especially from males, has confirmed to me the power of food. After sampling my Christmas mince tarts, I’ve had people drooling at my kitchen and have  converted previous non-tart fans into smitten, broken men who want me to make some more, and quick.

I now have an inkling where Juliette Binoche’s character in the movie Chocolat was coming from. Binoche plays Vianne Rocher, a free spirit and talented chocolatier, whose cooking had the potency to make men fall at her feet. Lucky girl – Johnny Depp was her co-star. Imagine whipping up something for him?