Christmas Pudding Strudel

• Parmesan often goes rock hard or becomes horribly sweaty. Ideally, all cheese should be stored in a cool, airy place at a temperature of 46-50F/8-10C. However, most of us put it straight into the fridge. This is fine providing the cheese is kept loosely wrapped in its own airtight container so it isn’t tainted by other foods.
• Store it in the salad drawer, which is not quite as cold as the rest of the fridge and use a micro plane for grating.

• Although it might seem odd, grinding black pepper over a bowl of strawberries enhances the flavour of the fruit.
• Pepper that is pre-ground is not fresh tasting and often has other ingredients mixed in.
• Choose the type of mill that suits you, and if you want coarser pepper you can loosen the screw on the top of the mill or crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar

Ideal for quick pies

Easy spread butter is ideal for sandwiches and toast.

• Add to baked apples or apple pies.
• Break the stick and add to poaching syrup for fruits like pears, plums or bananas or use to infuse wine or punch.

• Once opened ensure they are tightly resealed with quick clips or bag clips.
• If you have got rock-hard brown sugar, crystallised honey/syrup, place in a suitable non-metallic bowl and give a quick blast of about 30 seconds on high in the microwave to bring these back to their normal state.