My Obtainable Christmas 5 weeks to go (Part 1)

With only fives weeks until the big day, if you’re at all like me, you’ll start feeling the pressure building about now. 

Every week I will give you handy hints and tips on how to get ahead for a stress-free Christmas. 

Unfortunately I haven’t any handy tips for dealing with miserable mother-in-laws, stroppy teenagers, screaming toddlers or uninvited guests but at least they’ll all be well fed and watered.

Get Ahead

I’m one of those people who loves a list, not so much for the actual list but more for the ticking off moments. It feels so good to have accomplished something but conversely I feel quite stressed when I haven’t got things under control. Therefore of course, I have a plan at Christmas to make the holidays as stressless as possible!

Start to build up your freezer with mince-pies, sausages rolls, soups and cookie doughs

Mince Pies

Make your mince-pies as normal, (see below) once made and in the pans pop the whole thing into the freezer until totally frozen (about 2 hours) now pop the individual mince pies into freezer bags ready to go back into the pans, egg washed and baked from frozen when you need them.

Sausage rolls

Make your sausage rolls now using the recipe below, take them to the stage where you pop onto the lined baking trays and put into the deep freeze for about an hour, put into some freezer bags or a Tupperware container and freeze until needed. Other things you can make & freeze now are pigs in blankest (Chipolata wrapped in pancetta) soups, make the soups as normal chill then pop into a container already for an easy Christmas day starter.

Christmas mincemeat

Make Christmas mincemeat, this will let the flavours develop enough to make fabulous Christmas frangipane, but if you don’t feel like making your own add some booze, a little orange zest, a grated apple and chopped nuts to a good shop bought jar before making your mince-pies.

Christmas Pudding 

This week is stir up Sunday, get all the family around to str the pud and make a wish.

Things to do & buy now

A good month or so before the big day I start to stock pile, order and place a deposit  on my turkey and ham. This way I not only feel that I’m getting ahead but I can also spread the cost.

1. I always start to stock my garage with soft drinks, wines and sprits over the next few weeks, just adding one of each to my trolley each week, this way it splits the cost and doesn’t make it such a mammoth chore the week of Christmas.

2. Book your on-line supermarket delivery slot now, leave your basket empty but if you leave it any later all the good slots will have gone.

3 .Buy all your cards, make your list then write 4-5 each day ticking the list as you go, before you know it the whole lot are completed without that terrible marathon.

4. WRAP presents as you BUY, get each family member a roll of paper that you know is theirs this way you can store them without labels taking away the temptation from children/spouses to peep.

5. GIVE yourself a budget and stick to it, you may need to shop around a little more but with so much on-line now you won’t even need to leave your armchair. 

Mincemeat

Years ago I remember Delia Smith saying “once you’ve tried homemade mincemeat you’ll never go back” and my goodness she was spot on. 

500g of a mix of Raisins, sultana's, currants, apricots, dried cherries, dried cranberries

1 cooking apple diced, peeled and cored

A handful of mixed chopped nuts (not peanuts)

50g peel ( I blend mine to a paste)

3 tsp mixed spice

1 cup of brown sugar

1 cup of suet or melted butter

Zests of an orange and lemon

Juice of orange

Combine all ingredients in a large heat proof bowl, place in the bottom of the AGA covered with foil, or in a very low oven gas mark 1, heat for an hour, leave to cool, stir in 3 tablespoons of brandy.

Edible Gifts

I adore giving homemade gifts and each year I make about 7 Christmas cakes to give to people that have made an impact on my life that year. I think there’s so much choice of amazing packaging now that a homemade gift is always a beautiful option. Something  made and given with love.

Now is the perfect time to make Christmas Chutney, a wonderful addition to any hamper, or if your budget isn’t stretching to a whole hamper this year tie with a beautiful ribbon and its a perfect stand-a-lone gift. If you’re making chutney for the first time beware your kitchen with have a pungent vinegary smell, so my advice make it on a bright day with the windows opened wide and Michael Buble playing loudly (ok there’s no reason for Micky B other than I love his Christmas CD).

Damson Vodka we are a little late to the party, but it’s ok, cut your damsons in half, add to a pan of spiced sugar and gently heat until you have soft damsons and a sticky syrup, pour over a bottle of vodka, next decant to a sterile Kilmer jar and pop into the fridge, just before Christmas remove the damsons and use a funnel to pour into pretty bottles.

Cookies
Make cookie dough now, form the dough into a log, wrap in clingfilm and freeze, ready to bake the night before you want to give as gifts.

Click Here for my clementine Mince Pies

Mince Pies 

These little pies should come with a warning, as the fruit juice has a chemical reaction making such a wonderfully melt in the mouth texture to these little pies, that once eaten, beware, you’ll want more.

Jar of homemade mincemeat

300g plain flour

150g chilled cubed butter

Zest & juice of 2 clementines

1 egg yolk

Mix flour butter & zest together till crumbly, add the egg yolk, next add the juice a little at a time, as soon as the pastry form a  bring ball stop adding the liquid,  I find it better to make my pastry in a food processor or my kitchen aid.Turn into a plastic sandwich bag, chill for an hour. Roll the pastry to the depth of a £1 coin. 

Now cut out circles (with a large cutter) and gently press into muffin tins add spoonfuls of mincemeat and now cut out smaller pastry circles for lids, cut out a small star and  brush with egg-wash around the lip of the bottom case to adhere the top disc, brush with more egg-wash and bake at 190˚c for 20-25 mins, dust with icing sugar x

Sausage Rolls

Lets be honest Christmas just isn’t Christmas with out a good sausage roll. 

Plain flour for rolling out

Homemade rough puff pastry or a packet of puff pastry 375g

300g good quality sausages, skinned

1 egg 

1 tablespoon milk

2 tablespoons sesame seeds                                                           

Preheat the oven to 180c/350f/Gas mark 4.

Lightly dust the work surface with plain flour and roll the pastry into 2 rectangles each 30 x 15cm.

Using your hands shape the sausage meat into two long sausages, each the same length as the pastry rectangles, and place one on each piece of pastry.

Mix the egg yolk with the milk and brush along the long side of each of the pastry rectangles. 

Roll the pastry around the sausage-meat to completely encase with the seam underneath. 

Place the sausage rolls on baking trays seam side down.

Brush the top of the sausage roll with egg wash, sprinkle with sesame seeds and slice into 3-5cm pieces.

Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

*For something a little different add some chopped sage and grated pear to the sausage meat before forming into sausages. 

Christmas Pudding 
Don't forget this week is stir up Sunday.

Next week

More edible gifts 

Mini Stollens

Christmas Shortbreads

Cranberry sauce

Chutney

My recipes for :-

Christmas Roulade

Cheese Straws

Light last minute Christmas cake

Boozy Hot Chocolate

Plus More ideas for shopping ahead & Homemade tree decorations

Lemon & Poppyseed Muffins

These are soft, fluffy, buttery and packed with fresh lemon flavour. Super easy to make and perfect with a cup of tea ☕️ Makes 10 muffins You’ll need: 280g self-raising flour ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp baking powder 180g caster sugar Pinch of salt 280 ml of whole milk 30 ml lemon juice 90g melted butter 1 egg 1 tbsp vanilla extract Zest of 2 large lemons 2–3 tbsp poppyseeds For the icing: Icing sugar Fresh lemon juice Method: Preheat your oven to 170°C and line a muffin tin with paper cases. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, sugar and salt. In a jug, whisk together the milk, lemon juice, melted butter, egg and vanilla. Add the lemon zest and poppyseeds into the dry ingredients and give everything a quick mix. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and gently fold together until just combined. Don’t overmix — the batter should still look a little lumpy. Divide the mixture between the muffin cases and bake for 25–30 minutes until golden and a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool slightly. For the icing, mix icing sugar with a little lemon juice until you have a thick but drizzle-able consistency, then spoon over the muffins. Finish with some zest if you like 🍋

Slow Roasted Lamb

I love a Sunday roast and when Dylan was younger he use to play rugby every Sunday. So this was a way that I could prep a dinner and just have to roast the potatoes and cook the veggies when we got back. We would have dinner by the time he'd showered and changed.

1 leg of lamb
Mug full of wine or stock (lamb, beef, chicken or even veg stock will work)

4 heaped tbsp redcurrant jelly

2 tbsp mint jelly/sauce

a sprig of thyme & rosemary

1 tbsp gravy granules

Slosh of wine (only one you'd like to drink)

Put the lamb into a roasting tray and into the roasting oven (or at 220˚c in a normal oven) and roast for 30 mins.

Add either a mug full of wine or a mug full of stock to the bottom of the pan, some sliced onion, the cover loosely with foil. 

Transfer into the bottom oven or turn oven down to 100˚c

Now leave for about 4-8 hours depending on size

Turn up the oven to 220˚c. Uncover the lamb.

Mix 3 tbsp of the redcurrant jelly and the mint jelly or sauce together, pour or brush over the lamb, pop back into the oven for another half an hour

Transfer onto a wooden board and rest for 30-60 mins

Meanwhile make the gravy by mixing all the meat juices (there should be quite a lot) with a small jug of water some gravy granules, the herb sprigs and wine. Bring to the boil, strain into a small saucepan and simmer until ready to serve (I tie my herbs together and leave in the pan until the last mo)

Post Christmas Goodies (well leftovers really!)

For me it's always a mixture of sadness and relief when Christmas & NYE is over. When you take down the twinkly lights and pack away the baubles in their little boxes, it's all happened far to quickly. But then I have to admit I'm happy to have a good old clean and everywhere looks nice and spaciously tidy for about half an hour.

Over Christmas I seem to not be able to walk past a bowl of chocolates without putting at least one in my mouth. I'd eaten all the Dairy Milk ones out of the Celebrations before Christmas Eve! The boys weren't amused. So there is the relief when back to normal limitations with the rich stuff. The only problem is that, if you're like me, you still have a 100 weight of everything and aren't really sure what to do with it.

I think I must have thought the entire cast of Eastenders and Coronation Street were going to turn up for breakfast on Christmas morning. Really who could possible need 10 packets of sausages and bacon?

Pork Pies (sausages, ham & cranberry sauce).
I'm not a lover of pork pies but while I was cleaning my table I thought these would be perfect to use up some of those left over piggy bits.

Pastry
200g  plain flour
40g  strong plain flour
50g butter
60g lard
1 tsp salt
100ml boiling water
an egg

Filling
3 sausages
150g ham of the bone (chopped into tiny pieces)
1 shallots (diced very small)
1 tbsp chopped parsley
3 tsp cranberry
salt and pepper
1 sachet Dr Oteker gelatine
1 pod of chicken stock
100ml water

1. Heat pasty water in a pan add lard and salt stir until lard and salt have dissolved.
2. Rub flours and butter together until resembles breadcrumbs
3.Pour in lard and water and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together
4. Turn out and work for a couple of mins
5. Roll and cut out 6 large circles and line a muffin tin with them and 6 smaller ones for the lids
6. Skin your sausages, mix together with chopped ham, shallot, parsley, salt and pepper
7. Spoon half into cases, then add half a teaspoon of cranberry sauce into each, cover with the other half of pork mix.
8. Brush pasty lids with some water and stick to the bases.
9. Brush with some eggwash
10. using a piping nozzle make a small hole in each pie
11. Bake at 180 for 40 mins
12. Boil 100ml water mix with stock pod and gelatine, with the piping nozzle pour into pies.
13. Leave to cool then put into fridge to set overnight. Serve with some nice cranberry sauce.

Ham and Potato Hash
I was wondering what to do with the rest of the huge hunk of ham I had left over when a lovely lady on facebook gave me this idea.

Just chop up 1 large potato, some ham and a shallot (or half an onion) per person
Par boil the potato and shallot
Heat some oil and a little butter in a saluting pan.
Add potato, shallot and ham, salute until everything starts to go nice and crispy
Then add some salt, pepper and a pinch of dried thyme and either half a pepper, cubed into small pieces or I added a handful of fresh cranberries ( I love the tartness) Continue to cook until peppers or cranberries are soft.
Serve either on its own or with a fried egg on top.

Mincemeat
I love homemade mincemeat but this year went slightly overboard with it (12 jars)
I did actually use nearly all of it, don't gasp as I made lots of hampers for friends and family!
I absolutely love mincemeat frangipane it's a real lovely dessert and freezes beautifully, so if you can't face another dried fruit delight now maybe something for a chilly January sunday tea

Or for a really simple Mincemeat Loaf is wonderful.

• 150g soft butter
• 120g soft light brown  sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 220g self-raising flour

• 150g mincemeat
• 100g currants
• 100g sultanas
• 3 tbsp Demerara sugar

Just mix all the above ingredients except for the Demerara sugar together
Spoon into lined 2 loaf tins and top with Demerara.
Bake for 1hr 15 mins @ 160 or until firm to the touch
Cool on a wire rack

Chocolate
Little chocolate pots, for those of you who know me, you'll remember that pic on my facebook page with the millions of GU glass ramekin dishes, well this is when they come into their own.
Little chocolate pots
200g dark chocolate or 100g dark 100g milk chopped into small pieces
200ml of double cream heated to just boiling
2 Tbsp baileys
2 egg yolks
4 tbsp icing sugar
2 tsbp cocoa

Pour hot cream over chocolate and give a good stir
Fold in Baileys, egg yolks and icing sugar
Pour into ramekins or coffee cups and put into the fridge to chill
Dust with cocoa powder and enjoy xx

Countdown to Christmas (Part 4) The Full Christmas Dinner

Well with only a week to go we need to start thinking about dinner for the big day. This is for 6-8 people with some leftovers for turkey sandwiches and bubble and squeak for the days that follow. I wish you all that is wonderful this Christmas and The New Year. With love Jo x

*Top Tips 
1. Peel and prepare all the veggies the night before.
2. Buy one of those big plastic lidded boxes to store the overflow of fruits and veggies outside.
3. Lay the table/s the night before.
4. Don't try to do to many dishes, stick to 3 side veggies. 
5. Take any help thats offered!
6. WRITE YOURSELF A TIMED SCHEDULE & STICK TO IT it truly does help. 
7. Use a timer (without them i'm always distracted and forget things are in the oven)

Photo taken from my Article in The Mirror 

Roast Turkey

I know that lots of people have fallen out of love with turkey but this is definitely not the case for me. The problem I think is that people are often so terrified of under cooking the bird that they tend to over cook making it dry and like eating sawdust! The other problem is under-resting, give that gorgeous bird at least an hour to sit and plump, letting the juices evenly distribute themselves before carving. Finally, remember to baste, baste and baste again, it really will make all the difference.

5.5kg turkey 

bay leaves

2 stems sage leaves

1 cinnamon stick

1 orange

2 stems of thyme 

200g softened salted butter

1/2 bottle of white wine 

1 pack of diced swede & carrots

250g unsalted butter placed in a small pan and melted to baste the bird. 

Preheat the oven to 200⁰C

Tie the thyme, bay, cinnamon and sage leaves together. Stuff into the cavity of the turkey along with the orange and 50g of the salted butter. Scatter the swede and carrots into your roasting tin with some rosemary and thyme. Gently loosen the skin on the breast away from the flesh of the turkey and ease the softened butter under the skin. Place the turkey into the roasting dish and add the wine, now cover with a foil tent giving plenty of space around the turkey, roast in a preheated oven for about 3 - 3^1/2 hours basting every 30 minutes. Remove the foil for the last 40 minutes. Pierce the thigh with a skewer, if the juices run clear the turkey is cooked but if they run pink pop back into the oven for another 15-30 mins and repeat. Remove the orange and herbs from the cavity and cover the bird with foil and a large towel and leave to rest for at least an hour, up to three before serving.

Cranberry sauce

Like a bowl full of red glistening jewels, to me cranberry sauce is the epitome of a Christmas side dish. It just screams festivity and with an added glug of port you’ll have a wonderful cosy feeling as an extra bonus.

1 large cooking apple peeled and diced (tiny)

1 punnet of cranberries

zest and juice of 2 Clementines

1 large cup of sugar (caster or granulated)

Splash of water

Bring ingredients to the boil, reduce heat until all of the cranberries have popped and the liquid has reduced down, cool (add a glug of port if you'd like) transfer into sterilised jars.

Yorkshire puddings

I know not traditional but my lot would be in uproar if the humble Yorkshire Pud wasn’t on their plates with our Christmas lunch. These are such a winner. The chestnuts and shallots give a festive feeling and if you don’t want to add brandy just leave it out. 

1 cup of plain flour

1 cup of milk 

1 cup of eggs

pinch of salt 

6 cooked shelled and finely chopped chestnuts

2 finely diced shallots 

1 tbsp of brandy

1 stem of thyme

Non-virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 210

Whisk together the flour, milk, eggs and salt until frothy. Leave to rest for at least half an hour. Next add oil into a 12 hole muffin pan, place into the oven until smoking hot, then add the batter. 

Cook for 22-26 mins until well risen and golden brown. While waiting for the Yorkshires to bake, cook the shallots in a frying pan with a little oil until softened and translucent. Add the chestnuts and thyme leaves, cook over a medium heat for a couple more minutes before adding a little brandy, cook for 5 more minutes. 

To serve, add a tsp of the chestnuts into each pudding. 

Pigs in blankets

Rosemary and pork make for such a wonderful partnership but if you have fussy eaters leave the rosemary stems out of their little piggies. 

12 good quality Chipolata sausages

12 rashers of pancetta

12 stems of rosemary

Remove the leaves from the bottom half of the 12 stems of rosemary and cut the bottom of each stem to a point. Wrap one end of the sausage with the pancetta, pierce with the pointed end of the rosemary to hold in place. Now hold the rosemary next to the sausage and wrap the pancetta around it. Place joint side down on a lined baking sheet and roast in a hot oven for about 18-22 minutes. 

Bread sauce

My bread sauce maybe a touch extravagant with all that cream, but hey if you can’t push the (bread sauce) boat out at Christmas time, when can you? 

1 day-old small loaf unsliced white bread

500ml full-fat milk

200ml single cream

1 onion, peeled and quartered

4 cloves

3 fresh bay leaves

1 tsp peppercorns (i use pink)

pinch salt

30g butter

1/2 fresh nutmeg, for grating

Heat the cream and milk with the peppercorns, bay, cloves and onion, simmer for 10minutes. Then remove from the heat and cover, leave to infuse for at least an hour (I do this the night before and once cooled place in the fridge). Half an hour before you’re ready to serve strain the infused milk and pour back into the pan and slowly heat. Cut the crusts from the bread and cut into cubes, add to the liquid, stirring until the bread breaks down, stir in the butter and grate over the nutmeg to serve. 

Roast potatoes and parsnips

I always bake my potatoes and parsnips together on Christmas day. I find it not only saves time but also saves hob and oven space. 

3kg of King Edward potatoes

1 kg parsnips

4 peeled and quartered onions

1 jar of goose fat
Knob of Butter

salt and pepper

Preheat the oven 210

Peel and quarter the potatoes and parsnips, place into a large pan and cover with water, drain the cover again. Add a pinch of salt and 2 onions, cover and bring to the boil on a high heat, turn down to a medium heat and simmer for about 5 minutes, drain and vigorously shake until the potatoes have a fluffy surface. Heat the goose and butter fat in 2 roasting trays in a preheated oven until very hot, now carefully add the potatoes, parsnips and onions. Roast for about 45-60 minutes until crisp and golden. 

Vichy Carrots

Gorgeous glossy carrots will wow anybody sitting at your Christmas table as they really are a thing of beauty.

750g carrots, peeled and sliced diagonally 

Zest and juice of an orange

2 Tbsp of caster sugar

100g butter

pinch of salt 

pinch of black pepper

1 tsp of fresh thyme leaves

Put the carrots in a saucepan with the orange juice and enough water to cover them half way. Add the sugar, butter, zest and salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then cook briskly for about 30 minutes until all that is left of the liquid is a thick buttery coating. Give them a little shake and scatter with the thyme leaves. 

Shredded brussels sprouts

Until I found out about shredding brussels they were a thing of dread for me; boiled bullets of yuckiness only to be placed on the Christmas table out of tradition.  But now I can truly eat them for pleasure and not just obligation.

750g of prepared sprouts

2 cloves of garlic

50g butter

2 tsp olive oil

1 shallot chopped very finely

50g cubed pancetta

Add the oil and butter in a large sautéing pan and heat over a medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook for a couple of minutes before grating in the garlic and shallots and fry gently. Shred the brussels in a food processor or slice with a knife, add to the pan along with 2 tbsp of water or chicken stock stirring the whole time, cook for about 2-4 minutes until tender.

Italian inspired stuffing

1 half loaf Ciabatta

Olive oil

1 small rosemary focaccia

6 fresh sage leaves

1 large red onion peeled and diced

1 egg yolk

handful of fresh cranberries

Preheat the oven 200

Start by chopping the Focaccia into small cubes, place on a baking sheet and bake in a hot oven until just starting to turn golden (this can be done a few hours before you need them). Now Blitz the ciabatta and sage leaves in a food processor until the loaf turns into breadcrumbs and the sage is finely chopped. Add the oil to a sautéing pan over a medium high heat, add the onions, fry gently until softened, add the bread crumbs and cranberries, cook for a couple of minutes. Take off of the heat and add the Focaccia croutons and the egg yolk, stir to combine and spoon into a buttered ovenproof dish, bake in a hot oven for about 10 minutes. 

The Gravy

The gravy is such an important part of the meal, this is the reason for the wine, herbs and cubed veggies under the turkey. 

3 Oxo cubes 

1 tbsp plain flour

2 cups Chicken/veg stock

Crumble the oxo cubes into the turkey roasting pan oven the veggies and herbs. Next add tbsp of plain flour, cook over a low heat for a minute. Now whisk while adding the stock, pour into a liquidiser or a jug and blend with a hand held whizzer. Pour through a sieve into a pan, bring back up the heat before serving.

For My Quick Christmas pudding Click here

For My Christmas Bread and Butter pud Click here 

For My Mincemeat Frangipane Click here 

My Obtainable Christmas 3 weeks to go (Part 3)

This is the time when I start to think about getting my decorations in order. I found out a few years ago that the more organised you are when packing away the easier it is when you come to putting up your decorations the next year. So now I store my decs in those clear plastic storage boxes , labeled with info on what's in them. That way not only do you know whats in the box, when it comes to putting them away it makes it so much simpler.

I know it may sound a bit of a faff & an added expense (let's be honest, at a really expensive time of year) but here's the pay off. I haven't had to buy any new lights for a good couple of years now and it takes me a quarter of the time to put up and put away my decs (with time is of the essence this time of the year!)

Another one of my must do's is to wrap as I buy. Every year I wish I took this advice. As the mound grows I become more and more stressed. It makes it so much simpler to wrap a few everyday than have that mammoth chore waiting for you.

If you make hampers for people here are a few things that you can get ahead with. 

Panforte: 
This is a traditional Italian treat, wrap in parchment, then place either in a pretty airtight tin or a clear bag wrapped with a ribbon. (will keep up to two weeks)

Candy cane meringue kisses: 
I adore these cheerful little treats so simple to make and they will enhance any hamper they adorn. (will keep up to 10 days)

Cranberry Sauce: 
This is the thing I get asked for in my Christmas hampers, above all others, jewels of ruby red gorgeousness. (will keep up to two weeks in the fridge)

Homemade Butter: 

Bake for success, here are a few of my most popular festive posts, these can all be made ahead

Chocolate and Peanut Delice

I made this at the Good Food Christmas shows this year and it was very well received, it looks really impressive but is in-fact really simple to achieve. Make this up to two days in advance, but add the brittle just before serving.

Cherry and Marzipan Traybake

This bake gets record hits year after year, with lots of tweets FB and insta messages of how good it is, bake, cool and freeze before icing.

Maple and Pecan shortbread 

This is another hugely popular post, if you don't have the Nordicware pan you can just as easily make it in a brownie pan.

Asian inspired Chicken filo parcels

Perfect little canapés,  can be frozen before the baking stage, then defrost fully before baking.

My Obtainable Christmas 4 weeks to go (Part 2)

Only 4 weeks remaining on my count down to an obtainable Christmas. Around now I go on-line and make my shopping order to be delivered Christmas week (my delivery slot booked earlier in the month). 

I start to think about making a couple of freezable desserts and also I make my Yorkshire puddings and gravy, freeze and then put them in freezer bags ready to be defrosted & heated through on Christmas day (keeping valuable space in and on the oven)

 Sloane Square, London 

Yorkshire Pud Recipe

Mix together a cupful of plain flour, one of milk and use the same cup to measure your eggs (a tea cup is about 3 and makes 12 puddings). Whisk together. 

Now heat some oil in a muffin pan in a very hot oven (210) until smoking and pour in the batter. 

Bake for about 20-25mins cool on wire racks and till completely cold, place onto parchment lined baking sheets and freeze until solid, now pop into freezer bags. 

To serve remove from the freezer bags pop onto a tray and heat in a hot oven for about 6 mins.

Make your gravy

Place a chicken carcass in a large pan two thirds filled with water with an onion chopped into quarters (skin can stay on) 3 sticks of celery, a bunch of woody herbs (thyme, bay leaves rosemary and oregano) and a couple of carrots for about an hour on a medium/low heat till reduced by half. 

Strain into a jug when completely cooled pour into a ridged container and freeze. Defrost gently the night before you want to use. Add a tbsp of softened butter to a pan, add one of flour mix together over a medium heat, crumble in an oxo cube and gradually add the stock whisk the whole time until the gravy has thickened, keep warm until required, I add a glass of wine and the turkey juices to mine, then I heat again just before serving. 

I also make my savoury biscuit dough to be served with cheese, grapes and celery for the cheese course, they also make the most amazing canapés topped with chutney and slivers of cheese at drinks parties. Here is my  new recipe below for walnut, cracked black pepper and herb biscuits, but you can find my Parmesan, chilli and rosemary biscuits (on the left of the photo below) in my second book Home Baking

Click below for 

Walnut, cracked black pepper and herb biscuits (on the right)

Mini Tear & Share Stollen 

7g easy yeast
140ml lukewarm milk
1 tsp caster sug
pinch of salt
125g strong white bread flour
100 g plain flour
1tsp mixed spice
100 g mixed fruit (soaked in booze overnight)
50 g flaked almonds
25 g peel ( I blend my peel into a paste as I hate that yucky texture)
50 g softened unsalted butter
an egg  (to enrich the dough)
150 g Marzipan made into 78 small balls

Lined baking trays

Place all the dried ingredients into the bowl of your freestanding machine and make a well in the centre.

Combine milk, mixed peel paste and egg in a large jug, pour into well of dry ingredients.
Mix together, and Knead in a machine with a bread hook for 5 mins. Now knead in the softened butter for about 3 minutes

Return to an oiled bowl, cover and prove for 90mins.

Knock back for 2 minutes shape into an  long sausage shape, divide into 3 pieces and then divide each piece into 26 small marble sized pieces, flatten and pop a marzipan piece into the centre,wrap the dough around the marzipan so it's completely enclosed, place onto the lined baking tray. 

Repeat placing the little dough balls next to each other until they are all on the tray. Make sure all the little balls are seem sides down.  

Cover and leave to prove for 40 mins in a warm place.

Bake in a preheated oven 180 for 25- 35mins.

Brush with a little melted butter and dust with lots of icing sugar. For my full size Stollen

Boozy Hot Chocolate

1 pint of milk
100ml double cream
1-2 tsp vanilla extract
200g dark chocolate drops (or chopped)
75ml Baileys
6-8 maltesers
6-8 mini marshmallows

In a pan gently heat together the cream, milk, vanilla and chocolate. If you have a sweet tooth you can add a tbsp of brown sugar, stirring the whole time until the chocolate is completely melted. Now stir in the baileys pour into 2-3 glasses and top with the maltesers and marshmallows. 

Christmas dessert recipes Click:
Christmas bread & Butter pudding & Salted Caramel, chocolate and pineapple meringue roulade

Christmas posting dates 

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