dark chocolate, pear and pistachio cake

One of my favourite things to do at Christmas time is to head into the kitchen and do some festive baking. This season has been quite busy so my collection of cooking chocolates and nuts are gathering dust in the pantry. However a few weeks ago one of my all time favourite food and photography blogs by Jillian Leiboff put out a call for her readers favourite christmas recipes, and I submitted my favourite  recipe - Dark chocolate, pear and pistachio cake.

Their is a little story behind these cakes - Quite a few years ago while staying at gorgeous little resort at Lord Howe Island (we won the holiday, a most fabulous surprise, and even more fabulous that they spoilt us with amazing food!) we were served this gorgeous little cake which I devoured, and do believe went back for seconds. Upon our return home I searched high and low and found the recipe which I have since baked more times then I can count since. It is a bit of a messy recipe, the sort where you have chocolate and nuts flying across the kitchen, but to me it has a distinct Christmassy feel with the pistachios and rich chocolate all balanced out with the subtle pear inclusion.

Jillian has done an amazing job and I am beyond words with her gorgeous photography and styling of my favourite little sweet cakes. I will tell you this, mine look 100% less dignified and 100% more messy, plus my kitchen does look like a disaster zone, but we still devour them never the less.

This week Jillian is featuring a week long celebration of her readers Christmas recipes (and a few of her own secret recipes), such a beautiful idea and do make sure you pop over for a visit.

Thank you Jillian for choosing our recipe, you have made me distinctively itching to crack open a block of chocolate and get into the kitchen!!