Cranberry Walnut Pie (Christmas Wreath Pie)

Pulse the walnuts several times in a food processor until finely chopped. Add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and chopped rosemary. Pulse to combine.

Then add the cold butter cut into cubes. Blend a few times until you get a sand-like consistency. Add the eggs and blend again until a dough forms. We don’t want to overwork the dough, so make it almost combined (not sticky).

Place the dough in cling film and flatten it with the palms of your hands. Place the dough in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours or overnight.

Place everything in a medium saucepan and give them a quick stir. Cook over medium heat until the liquid thickens. When the mixture becomes slightly sticky, remove from the heat and transfer it to a bowl. Set aside until ready to use.

Assemble the cake

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Take the cold cake dough and divide it into 2 parts: a smaller ⅓ and a larger ⅔. Place the smaller piece in the fridge, covered with cling film.

Sprinkle a little flour on your work surface and roll out the dough to 3-4 mm (⅛ inch). If the dough is too hard, let it rest at room temperature for 10-15 minutes.

Place the cake pan on top of the dough and cut a circle 7-8cm (3 inches) larger than the pan. Roll out the dough on the rolling pin, sprinkling a little flour to prevent it from sticking. Place the dough inside the cake tin, pressing with your fingers to give it shape. Trim excess dough with a sharp knife.

Place a baking paper on top of the dough and fill it with balls or beans. Blind bake the crust for 15 minutes, then remove the beads and paper. Fill the crust with the cranberry filling, then add a few extra cranberries to the center.

Bake the pie for 20-25 minutes until firm and the crust is golden. Leave the cake to cool in the pan for 2 hours before removing it from the pan.

To make the leaf decorations, roll out the remaining piece of dough to 2-3 mm (⅛ inch). Use a cookie cutter or mold to create small leaves. If necessary, use a toothpick to accentuate the details of the leaf.

Brush with beaten egg for extra shine, then bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool, then paint some leaves with edible gold paint for an extra touch of magic.

Decorate the cake by adding leaf biscuits, meringue kisses, sweetened rosemary sprigs and sweetened cranberries. Finish by placing the edible bow in the top center of the cake.

Roll out the dough to a thickness of 3-4 mm (⅛ inch). With a scalpel, cut out two diamonds approximately 15 cm long and 8 cm wide. Also cut two strips 10 cm * (4 inches) long and 2 cm (1 inch) wide and a small rectangle of 6 x 3 cm (2.5 x 1.5 inches).

Fold each diamond shape with the thin sides touching. Add a piece of aluminum foil inside each fold to give the bow a 3D effect. Join the two sides of the ribbon in the center, adding the small rectangle above the join. Place long strips of dough on foil to make them look swirly.

Bake in the oven at 180°C for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Once baked, let it cool completely before removing the aluminum supports. Airbrush or paint with edible colors before placing on the cake.