If you're still finalising Christmas presents, remember it's not too late to buy your loved ones (or yourself!) something from my book store.
f it's non-fiction they enjoy, try Match Wits with the Kids, or one of my Miscellanies.
So, time to come clean...
What should haggis really taste like? Why is the thistle the national flower of Scotland? How do you toss the caber (and why would you want to)? When does a broth become Scotch Broth? Why is Scotland called Scotland? And is there really a prehistoric monster living in Loch Ness?
One man is credited with creating the Christmas crib more than any other, and that is the 13th century Saint Francis of Assissi. In 1220, Francis made the pilgrimage to Bethlehem. While there, he saw how Christmas was celebrated in the town of Jesus' birth and was so impressed that he asked the Pope if he might recreate something like it in his own Italian home of Greccio.
The physical form of the Christingle is an orange, tied with a red ribbon and stuck with a candle and cocktail sticks bearing fruit and nuts. It is a symbolic object particularly used in Christian Advent services, hence the name given to a particular type of religious service. The word Christingle actually means 'Christ Light'. Both the Christingles that are made and the Christingle services that take place in church, celebrate Jesus coming into the world, in his aspect as the Light of the World.
And if you think the idea of warm mince pies and mulled wine on a cold December day sounds like a good one, follow this link to a piece I posted last year that includes a recipe for the utterly delicious Bishop's wine.
Nicola Simons calculates that she's already munched her way through 600 mince pies this year - and she hasn't finished yet! But then Nicola, 25, is the bakery product developer for Sainsbury's and responsible for creating the supermarket's seasonal range."Part of my job involves tasting every product, including mince pies, Christmas cakes and puddings from all our competitors, as well as reviewing our own range," she explains.
And she estimates that while developing this year's mince pies, she has chomped her way through 17kg of pastry and 18kg of mincemeat - approximately 23 jars.
"I usually spend around 12 hours a week eating, but in the run-up to Christmas this can be up to 21 hours," she adds.
To read more about Nicola's extraordinary dedication to perfecting the perfect mince pie, click here. And if you want to know what mince pies should really taste like, you can find an original Medieval recipe in Christmas Miscellany available now!
Every year more than 400 million people celebrate Christmas around the globe, which makes it one of the biggest religious and commercial festivities in the world.
Apologies for the pun, but today I want to talk to you about Yule, or rather more specifically the traditions surrounding the Yule log.
Love 'em or hate 'em, Christmas dinner just wouldn't be the same without them. But why do sprouts taste so vile? And why do people insist on having them with the main meal of the year?
Did you know that turkeys don't originally come from Turkey?
I know Christmas is still almost six months away, but it's only around four months now until Christmas Miscellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Christmas is published and so to get you in the mood, I thought you might like to try this festive quiz.
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