Ok so it’s December 1st

……….  Ahhh it’s DECEMBER THE FIRST and I am not ready for Christmas in the slightest!!

How did that happen?  I love Christmas, I love food, I love treats, I love writing lists, I love making things and I love making people happy… so how has Christmas suddenly crept up on me this year?

Well, no use in pondering, I’d just better get cracking. If I’d been a little more organised I would have posted this little teaser of a post sooner. Oh well.

I will post the full recipe for these brownies tomorrow, but for now I just wanted to show you my version of an advent calendar before the day is out. 

Last year I wanted to buy a vegan advent calendar for the Boy… but could I find one?  Well, yes finally in the end but it was very hard to track down and nearly everywhere had sold out.  The one I ended up buying (although yummy!) was very very expensive and still full of sugar and naughtiness (ok- well it is Christmas so maybe that’s allowed!), but my point is that treats don’t have to be naughty and they can still taste amazing.  So, by that token I figured this year I would simply have to make my own.

Simple criteria.

It had to be:

• Chocolatey
• Indulgent but healthy
• Small but satisfying
• Customisable

… and most importantly last all the way through to Christmas day! 

I had been meaning to post my brownie recipe for quite some time so it was already at the forefront in my mind. In addition to that I know that brownies freeze very well… so that got my mind whirring…. And ta da!!

Mini Advent brownie bites!

…. store them in the freezer and take a little square out each morning for a mid-morning indulgence (if you can wait that long). Bonus points here also- because they are kept in the freezer they are less likely to be eaten all at once! (maybe?)

I added a large dark chocolate button to the top of each one (glued on with chocolate icing) and then iced the numbered days leading up to Christmas…… oh I’m such a child and it was such fun!

Happy Advent!! …has anyone else gone for something a little different from the norm this year?