The Christmas Dinner 2015 Thread!

Stheno

C.K Dexter Haven wrote: »

Check out Mary Berrys beef in filo pastry and creamed horseradish sauce- great tapas (sorry, I know, pastry again- only thought of that after spending ages deleting 1/2 your post:o

I'm looking for a horseradish sauce recipe, so that will be useful

Even better would be a recipe for dairy, egg and soya free icecream!

C.K Dexter Haven

Stheno wrote: »

I'm looking for a horseradish sauce recipe, so that will be useful

Even better would be a recipe for dairy, egg and soya free icecream!

These guys are in supermarkets now if that helps:

http://www.kefi.ie

Stheno

C.K Dexter Haven wrote: »

These guys are in supermarkets now if that helps:

http://www.kefi.ie

It's milk in it! Anyway I've found a great vegan recipe for strawberry and chocolate chip ice cream and another for cornbread that is gluten, milk and egg free, so we'll see how we get on.

When she is over for Christmas I like to try and make as many "normal" foods as possible for her to try, and if she likes them we add them to our list of stuff she likes/can eat.

This year we found a vegan cheese she can have and she loves it so a nice bit of cornbread to go with that would be good

Spanish Eyes

I'm a "prep and cook as much as possible in advance" person here!

Roasts - parboil or steam the spuds. Douse in goose fat, cool down, into the freezer. Cook from frozen on the day.

Buy croquettes (OH loves them), but I can't be bothered doing them myself. Well if he is happy with M+S, everyone is happy!

Don't bother with mash, too much else going on!

Make cauli cheese in advance and freeze. Defrost night before in fridge, top with a bit more cheese on the day and into the oven.

Make carrot and parsnip mash, freeze, defrost, and add a touch of cumin and butter, into the oven too. You can see a trend here can't you!

And for my beloved there will be Marrowfat peas. No sprouts here, so they are a must. I like them too and they are so easy to cook.

Don't do ham, don't like it much, so a crown of turkey cooked on a bed of carrots, onions and celery that has a little stock added works for me.

Stuffing made night before. Got some great tips for making that here, thanks all. I am rubbish at stuffing, but you never know, this might be my piece de resistance this year, here's hoping!

I'm sure I've forgotten something, but we won't starve!

I hope you all enjoy Christmas cooking. It's good fun.

Stheno

I've just been reading up on brining a turkey as I can't use butter to moisten it.

Now forgive me if I sound as mad as a brush, but my turkey fits into a new mop bucket that has never been used, and will fit in our second fridge so would that be ok?

Would you also brine a goose?

BailMeOut

Stheno wrote: »

Now forgive me if I sound as mad as a brush, but my turkey fits into a new mop bucket that has never been used, and will fit in our second fridge so would that be ok?

Yes - assuming the bucket is nice and clean and never been used. I usually get a clear plastic storage container from Woodies and always put in the fridge.

and yes you can brine a goose (or a duck or a chicken).

howamidifferent

I live on my own but will be doing the full x-mas dinner of turkey/ham/spiced beef etc... I could cut the fresh turkey up and only cook parts of it and freeze the rest but I was wondering if its possible to cook the whole thing then cut up and freeze what I dont eat into meal sized portions for defrost and eating at a later date. Will cooked Turkey freeze and be edible later? And if so would I have to defrost slowly at a later date or could I simply reheat from frozen?

tayto lover

Love cooking and eating the Christmas dinner.
Hate cleaning and washing up afterwards.

kylith

Stheno wrote: »

I'm looking for a horseradish sauce recipe, so that will be useful

Even better would be a recipe for dairy, egg and soya free icecream!

You can use coconut milk in ice cream. I have a recipe somewhere, I think it's 2 cups of diced frozen peaches and a quarter cup of coconut milk. Chuck them in a blender together and ice cream comes out.

Stheno

kylith wrote: »

You can use coconut milk in ice cream. I have a recipe somewhere, I think it's 2 cups of diced frozen peaches and a quarter cup of coconut milk. Chuck them in a blender together and ice cream comes out.

Yeah got one, using coconut milk and honey thanks!

Dizzyblonde

howamidifferent wrote: »

I live on my own but will be doing the full x-mas dinner of turkey/ham/spiced beef etc... I could cut the fresh turkey up and only cook parts of it and freeze the rest but I was wondering if its possible to cook the whole thing then cut up and freeze what I dont eat into meal sized portions for defrost and eating at a later date. Will cooked Turkey freeze and be edible later? And if so would I have to defrost slowly at a later date or could I simply reheat from frozen?

I always slice and freeze leftover roasted meats and cooked ham, and it's very successful. I've done it with turkey breast for lunches too.
The forum charter forbids food safety advice but I personally always defrost the meat. With roasted meat I usually put it into a dish, sprinkle a little water over it, cover it with foil and heat in the oven. If there's gravy left over I'll often throw that over the meat before freezing. You could microwave it if you prefer, and that works best for ham. Ham is very nice sliced thickly too, and fried when you defrost it.

Gloomtastic!

Stheno wrote: »

I've just been reading up on brining a turkey as I can't use butter to moisten it.

Now forgive me if I sound as mad as a brush, but my turkey fits into a new mop bucket that has never been used, and will fit in our second fridge so would that be ok?

Would you also brine a goose?

Turkey bags are good for brining. They're leak proof and flexible to fit in the fridge.

homemadecider

We've just prepped our stuffing. One batch with thyme and sage, another with apple, orange zest and nutmeg. Into the freezer with these little guys now.

C.K Dexter Haven

homemadecider wrote: »

We've just prepped our stuffing. One batch with thyme and sage, another with apple, orange zest and nutmeg. Into the freezer with these little guys now.

And of course, the mandatory glass of wine in the background I see, a la mode Keith Floyd :P

homemadecider

Sure it's not Christmas cooking without wine!

C.K Dexter Haven

homemadecider wrote: »

Sure it's not Christmas cooking without wine!

I tend to keep that rule all year round, just in case I'd forget it at Christmas time;)

Stheno

I'm confused about preparing the brine, do you boil it up or just mix everything together?

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

BailMeOut

Stheno wrote: »

I'm confused about preparing the brine, do you boil it up or just mix everything together?

If you heat the water when you add the salt more salt will dissolve rather than just sinking to bottom. You need very little heat to make this happen and once all the salt is dissolved then add a load of ice to cool the water back down again.

carr62

I boiled a leg of ham today, then glazed it and finished it (or so I thought!!) in the oven. It seemed ok, if a little tough, but as i've started to cut slices off it I realise that it is a bit underdone in the middle. Anything I can do about it? Could I reboil or put back in the oven? Thanks in advance for any advice!

C.K Dexter Haven

carr62 wrote: »

I boiled a leg of ham today, then glazed it and finished it (or so I thought!!) in the oven. It seemed ok, if a little tough, but as i've started to cut slices off it I realise that it is a bit underdone in the middle. Anything I can do about it? Could I reboil or put back in the oven? Thanks in advance for any advice!

How long ago did it come out of the oven? PS, if more than a couple of hours, then we're into "advice giving" on "food safety" I'm afraid, which isn't allowed on boardsie.

RentDayBlues

All mine done today, well mostly. All canapés for brunch done, all veg par cooked and ready to finish. Will cook the turkey and ham tomorrow, and maybe another batch of mince pies

C.K Dexter Haven

RentDayBlues wrote: »

All canapés for brunch done, a

What sort of canapés do you mind me asking?

I'm doing a bit of tapas tomorrow for friends and family so interested in any ideas.

anothernight

Finally sat down with my boyfriend to decide what we're having for Christmas, as it's the first time it'll only be the two of us. Seven sides and two mains later (I'm vegetarian, he isn't), I can't decide whether having only one dessert is enough.

Our dinner will be closer to a tapas meal than a Christmas meal. :P

misslt

My turkey is in the fridge in the buttermilk brine, buttermilk is so much thicker here (UK) than at home so I hope it works :-/

Ham ready to go on tomorrow morning in the slow cooker in cider, did that last year and it was divine.

Starting to get excited now!

Bongalongherb

Oh....... Sweat Italian sausage. Made 5 of these today and they are a must for the munchie in you... Deep fried only, very tasty... Toulouse sausage will do as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkPPn5ycsnc

jt69er

misslt wrote:

Ham ready to go on tomorrow morning in the slow cooker in cider, did that last year and it was divine.

May try that tomorrow, how long did you cook it for?

Dizzyblonde

misslt wrote: »

My turkey is in the fridge in the buttermilk brine, buttermilk is so much thicker here (UK) than at home so I hope it works :-/

Ham ready to go on tomorrow morning in the slow cooker in cider, did that last year and it was divine.

Starting to get excited now!

I've got my turkey crown in the buttermilk brine too, and the ham ready to go on in the morning. I'm sure your buttermilk will be fine

Gloomtastic!

homemadecider wrote: »

Sure it's not Christmas cooking without wine!

Just cracked open my first of the day. Driving is the curse of the drinking classes!!! :rolleyes:

Stheno

Jesus what a day.

Finished work, I thought at twelve then got a phone call to revise some stuff.
Went and did the final bits of shopping, then realised I'd missed a few bits on the way home, so queued up and picked them up.

Then - a FIND, a gluten, dairy and soya free bread mix for the OHs daughter that uses chickpea flour instead of eggs!

OH was out shopping in Pavillions, so sent him to get chickpea flour (called gram flour)

So no need to make cornbread, have a loaf of "brown bread" now cooking in the oven after it rising for an hour and a bit. Also discovered that Dunnes do soy/egg/gluten and dairy free wraps, so for the first time in about seven years, OHs daughter will have "bread" type products to eat

Picked up a big container for the turkey in the pound shop, it's now brining in a very nice mixture along with seven kilos of ice to keep it cool in an unheated room.

The ham is in the slow cooker overnight on low, surrounded by coke, and my alternate ice cream is setting in the freezer before going into the ice cream maker tomorrow.

We've ditched the goose as we've a 7kg turkey, so things seem under control. Just a final big clean up tomorrow and it's time to relax, shove the turkey in the oven Xmas morning and that's it

I get great pleasure out of finding "normal" foods that OHs daughter can have or ones that cater for her intolerances as they are severe and limiting. Earlier this year I found vegan cheese that was soya free, and she is still raving about it.

Having bread, wraps and ice cream will probably mean more to her this Christmas than whatever presents she gets

The main fridge is stocked with food, the second fridge is stocked with beer and wine, just need to do a final booze/stuff run tomorrow