2017 Christmas Extravaganza featuring Cassandra O’Leary

 

2017 Christmas Extravaganza featuring Cassandra O’Leary

Christmas Treats – Naughty or Nice
I thought I’d write about a few of my favourite Christmas treats for AusRom Today’s Christmas Extravaganza. Personally I’m a big fan of the idea that you should indulge in a few treats once in a while to ward off complete wanton gluttony all in one hit. That’s the theory anyway…

So here’s my list, a little bit naughty and definitely nice!

Pavlova
My absolutely favourite Christmas treat is Pavlova – the deliciously melt-in-your-mouth meringue base topped with whipped cream and fruit. My husband is a master at baking these (I think he needs a t-shirt with Master Pav Maker printed on it!) and I’m looking forward to eating one or two over the festive season.

Note: leftover Pav makes an excellent Christmas breakfast. I swear it’s healthy because it’s got eggs, calcium in the dairy and fruit of course. Delicious and chock full of vitamins, right?

Hand-made chocolates
I’ve made these a few times including dark chocolate truffles and home-made marzipan centres. I think I’ll have to give them a go again this year – I wonder if my little boys can help or if they’ll just eat all the ingredients? I’ll be on the lookout for some festive chocolate moulds.

Cheeses
Oh, yes. Vintage cheddar, brie or camembert, let me at it! I do have to be careful that I don’t eat any with gluten crumbs on them because I have Coeliac disease (gluten intolerance). Better get a cheese platter all to myself, just to be sure.  Throw in some nuts, gluten free crackers, fresh fruit, excellent wines and I’m in foodie heaven. Quite frankly, I could eat this for Christmas dinner and forget about anything else.

Lollies!
Yes, I’m still a kid at heart and if someone leaves Freddo Frogs or jelly snakes lying around I’m going to disappear them for you. Don’t even mention musk sticks or Minties. I cannot be held responsible for the lolly-muching that may occur!

This reminds me, the kids’ Advent calendars with little chocolates inside have been super tempting today but I have resisted like a champion. Can I get a gold star or an extra special present for being so good?

What are your favourite Christmas treats? Whether they’re naughty or nice (or both) I’d love to know.

 

About the Author:
Winner of the global We Heart New Talent contest. Nominated for Best New Author in the 2016 AusRomToday Reader’s Choice Awards for excellence in Australian romance fiction.

Cassandra O’Leary is a romance and women’s fiction author from Melbourne, Australia, drinking coffee, dreaming of Italy and Spain, and raising two mini ninjas with her superhero husband.

In 2015, Cassandra won the global We Heart New Talent contest run by Avon Books/HarperCollins UK and her debut romantic comedy novel, Girl on a Plane, was released in July 2016. Her Christmas romcom novella, Heart Note, was released in November 2017.

Cassandra was also a 2015 finalist in the Lone Star contest, Northwest Houston Romance Writers of America, and a 2014 finalist, First Kiss contest, Romance Writers of Australia.

Read more at cassandraolearyauthor.com or purchase Heart Note from Amazon, Kobo, iBooks, Google Play Books and more retailers – books2read.com/HeartNote