AN: I don't own any of the Hobbit characters I am just taking them out of Tolkien's toy box and playing with them.

Merry Christmas to Randomplotbunny. Since you asked for the recipe I decided I would share in the Christmas Spirit. Hope you enjoy and thank you for being with me since the beginning, putting up with my appalling grammar and spelling before I got a Beta and my irregular updates.

Candycane bread.

Oh Yvanna, the first time I tried this bread I thought I had died and gone to the maker. I learnt of this during my first Yule in Erebor, well the first Yule I spent there when we weren't hauling piles of rocks around. There is a subtle crunch of yumminess and a sweet thrill of peppermint in this recipe. I can't claim this for myself, as unfortunate as that is, this is a recipe I bullied and coaxed from Bombur over the years. Please do enjoy it. I honour the dwarven tradition by only making this during the Yule season as I am afraid Bom may kill me if I make it any other time of year. It is, however, a struggle to not give in to the temptation.

Ingredients for bread:

1pint all-purpose flour

2 floz brown sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

4 floz butter

2 floz crushed candy canes

1 beaten egg

4 floz. Milk

3 tbsp peppermint essence.

Powdered sugar icing for decoration.

Instructions:

1) Stir together flour, brown sugar, crushed candy canes, baking powder and salt. (Do not skip this step or you will struggle to get the rest).

2) Cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

3) Mix eggs and milk together in a jug and stir into dry mixture just until moist. Now add the peppermint essence.

4) On a lightly floured surface, pat dough to a 10x7 inch rectangle 1/2 inch thick. (Now's the fun part).

5) Cut crosswise into 1-inch strips. Twist each strip by holding both ends. Bend one end to form a cane, shape.

6) Place several inches apart on greased baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees for 40 minutes or until light brown. Carefully transfer to rack. Cool.

7) Coat each cane with powdered sugar icing or make up coloured liquid icing if you are serving the individual bread as they are. Makes 10.

Bilbo you have to stop making me out to be something I am not. Really you will have people thinking I have a temper problem. I have a confession to make. That confession is that up until now I wouldn't give Bilbo the recipe to turn this into the chocolate custard version and my how he has sulked. Today I will tell you how to make this rather special dessert.

Ingredients:

1lb salted butter.

16floz double cream.

6 large eggs.

12 floz granulated sugar.

4 floz unsweetened cocoa powder.

2 tsp peppermint extract.

64 floz candycane bread, (cubed).

Icing:

12floz powdered icing sugar.

6tbsp double cream.

2 floz white chocolate chunks.

2 floz peppermint candy canes, (crushed).

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and lightly coat a 9×13 inch baking dish with butter.

Melt the butter in a dish over boiling water.

In a large bowl whisk the melted butter, cream, eggs, sugar, cocoa and peppermint until well combined.

Place bread cubes into prepared baking dish then pour chocolate mixture over top. With spoon, press bread to soak up the liquid.

Bake for 40 minutes, until set in the middle. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes.

While the bread pudding is cooling prepare the icing by whisking the powdered sugar and cream until creamy and drizzle consistency. Add more cream if needed to thin out. Drizzle over warm bread pudding and top with chocolate chunks and crushed candy canes.

Serve warm.

Makes 12 Servings

This is a fabulous dessert for when you have hungry children to feed. Just make sure they are over four or they may become hyper with the sugar involved.

AN: Leave me a review and let me know what you think.

I got this recipe from an American friend I made while on a dig at Vindolanda and it has become a family favourite. I'm sorry I can't give you it in lbs and oz as I translated it from cups and my scales have a setting for floz. We do tend to share this at family gatherings.