To make this canapé you can use shop-bought gingerbread, but I prefer something a bit more savoury.

Preheat the oven to 165°C (fan) for the gingerbread.
Simply add all the gingerbread ingredients to a mixer and mix until a smooth paste like dough. (If making by hand: Rub flour, butter, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices together until crumb-like. Then mix in black treacle and eggs to form a paste-like dough.) Roll out to thickness of a pound coin and cut out shapes, then bake for 15-20 minutes. Cool and set aside.

Nicci’s tip: On the gingerbread pictured, I have egg washed and sprinkled with homemade dukkha (cumin, black pepper and ground toasted seeds, such as pumpkin, sunflower, fennel and sesame).

Preheat the oven to 180°C for the baked Camembert.
Take out your whole Camembert and cut a shape out of the rind on the top – I’ve gone for a star. Sprinkle on rosemary and salt, wrap in parchment paper or foil ready to bake. Then, just before your guests arrive, pop into the oven at at 180°C (fan) or 200°C (conventional) for 20-25 minutes. Serve the warm Camembert with cooled gingerbread biscuits for dipping or topping. This is best enjoyed immediately.

Makes 24-30 canapé-sized biscuits, enough for 6 guests

We were delighted to visit Nicci and Sophie at Home Gurr’own to shoot this issue’s festive canapé recipes – their signature inventive take on a traditional small bite – a brilliant example of their flair for creativity which has made them so in demand as wedding and event caterers.
Using organic principles, the team at Home Gurr’own grow many of the vegetables, herbs and edible flowers used to create their wedding and event menus. They also rear animals which are free to roam their idyllic smallholding – think Gloucester Old Spot pigs, Southdown sheep, chickens for eggs and bees for honey and mead. Any ingredients that they aren’t able to produce themselves, are sourced from the surrounding countryside to ensure the menus are always unique, fresh and local. To find out more see homegurrown.co.uk, call 07747 816541 or follow them on Instagram @homegurrown