If you love those cookies that M&S make that are all soft an yummy in the middle then you will love these – they rock, but aren’t rock if you know what I mean!

Makes approx 48 cookies, but you can adjust quantities accordingly. Go on, your worth it!

What you need
2 1/2 cups of oats, porridge oats or dare I say it Ready Brek!
2 cups of self raising flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
12oz or 340 grams of semi sweet or milk chocolate coarsley chopped
1 1/2 cups of coarsley chopped walnuts

What to do

Blend you oats up in food blender, its better to do it in batches rather than all at once. You want to get the oats to a fine powder.
Combine the oats, , flour, baking powder, baking soda, slay and mix well.
By hand or with an electric whisk, whisk the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy like a butter cream.
Then blend in the eggs, vanilla nd the dry ingredients. When well mixed, add the walnuts and chocolate.
Leave to chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

Preheat your oven to 375F or 200C.

With a tablespoon, form the mixture into golf ball size balls and place on your tray or cookie sheet with at least 2inches apart.

Gourmet Shark Tip: No need to grease your tray hear yessir, they wont stick!

Bake in the oven for approx 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
Remove from oven and set aside on a baking rack to cool.

Once they have cooled, get the kettle on, get your soaps on Sky plus, turn up the heating and sit back and let the soft, squidgy cookie centre send you to heaven and back! And then have another!

Makes 12

What you need:

For the filling:
Mincemeat
Brandy

For the Pastry:
8oz self raising flour
2 oz of lard
2oz margarine (Stork)
1 oz of sugar
Teaspoon salt
Cold water
Milk
1 egg (just to seal and glaze the pasty)

To begin, pre heat oven to 180 degrees.

For the mincemeat:
Soak the mincemeat with some brandy or rum (to taste), give it a good glug, after all it is Christmas! Leave to sit for a few hours or overnight if you you wish.

For the pastry:

Add the flour in to bowl with salt
Add the margarine and lard
Gently rub this together so it all mixes in to like a crumble mixture, you want the pastry to be nice and short.
Add sugar and mix in well
Then gently dribble small quantities of water a bit at a time until you get a consistency were the mixture just comes together but isn’t too dry.

How to prepare the pastry:

On a floured surface, roll out two thirds of the dough and cut out 12 rounds using a 2-½ inch fluted cutter. Rub a small amount of butter around each of the tins and then use the pastry to line the tin. Fill with mincemeat.

Re-roll remaining pastry and trimmings and cut out another 12 circles using a 2 in cutter. Dampen edges of circle and place on pies. Seal edges, brush tops with beaten egg and cook for 20 minutes.

Once the pies are just turning a nice golden colour, remove from the over and set a side. When cooled sprinkle with icing sugar.

If you want to make some brandy butter, I use Linda Qualtrough’s fool proof and simple recipe. It goes along the lines of:
1 large tablespoon margarine
A dash of milk
Then add about half to 3/4 of a pack of icing sugar, followed by the brandy to taste. You can add more icing sugar, and booze depending on how you like it!

Gourmet Shark Tip: While the pies are still warm, plate some up and add the brandy butter to gently melt over the top! Delicious!

I have just managed to get hold of the latest times and dates for Farmers Markets being held around the Isle of Man in the lead up to Christmas. So there’s no excuse for not having a Isle of Man food Christmas this year by buying local. I think anyone who hasn’t been along to them yet it can be a bit of an eye opener as to what is actually produced and in season on the island, wrap up and check them out it will be a lot of fun too!

3rd December - Farmers Market at Tynwald Mills, St Johns in the courtyard area outside the Neb Cafe (11am-3pm)

5th December - Douglas Farmers’ Market at the Villa Marina colonnades (10am-2pm)

10th December – Farmers Market at Tynwald Mills, St Johns in the courtyard area outside the Neb Cafe (11 am-3pm)

11th December - Isle of Man Farmers’ Markets, Ramsey will be having Christmas Evening Markets at the Corner of East Street, Ramsey to coincide with Ramsey late night shopping (6pm-9pm)

12th December – Christmas Farmers’ Market, Ramsey, on at Albert Road School (10am-1pm)

16th December – Evening Farmers Market at Tynwald Mills, St Johns in the courtyard area outside the Neb Cafe to coincide with late night shopping at Tynwald Mills (6-8pm)

17th December – Farmers Market at Tynwald Mills, St Johns in the courtyard area outside the Neb Cafe (11am-3pm)

19th December - Douglas Christmas Farmers’ Market at Villa Marina Colonnades, mulled wine, mince pies, and hot roasted chestnuts (10am-2pm)

20th December – Castletown Christmas Farmers’ Market will be at the Southern 100 club house on the bypass (1.30pm-3.30pm)

18th December – Isle of Man Farmers’ Markets, Ramsey will be having Christmas Evening Markets at the Corner of East Street, Ramsey to coincide with Ramsey late night Shopping (6pm-9pm)

19th and 22nd December - Paddy’s Market, Port St Mary will be holding their Christmas Continental Market under canvas, there will be plenty of stalls plus music and Gluvine. 19th (10am – 2pm) and 22nd between (5pm-9pm)

23rd December – Evening Farmers Market atTynwald Mills, St Johns in the courtyard area outside the Neb Cafe to coincide with late night shopping at the Tynwald Mills (6pm-8pm)