Christmas 2019

BaZmO*

I’m very organised this year. Made the stuffing a couple of weeks ago with the gravy so they’re both in the fridge defrosting.

Picked up the ham and turkey (crown) yesterday morning. Decided to go with a crown as there’s always loads of leftovers. Did the food shopping late last night. Missed the queues but had to go to 3 different supermarkets to get everything.

Ham is just cooked and I’ll do all the veg in the morning.

Hope all the organisation pays off tomorrow and it’s a stress free day.

rubadub

Deleted User wrote: »

Yes, I adapted the Nigella Lawson “ham cooked in coke” recipe.

Just make sure it is not diet coke, which is meant to taste horrible when cooked. Some other colas may only half strength now too, due to the sugar tax. Tesco own brand definitely is, so the missing sugar is made up for with sweeteners which would likely taste bad if cooked.

B0jangles

We just tried making some mulled ale instead of the usual Christmas Eve mulled wine and I think I prefer it - it's not so sweet and heavy as mulled wine but still lovely and warming and spiced
It's also incredibly quick and easy - I'd no idea it was as simple as it is. Literally pour the beer in a pot, sprinkle in your ground spices, bit of sugar and heat to taste (no boiling). Add a splash of brandy if you like, and serve in warmed cups. Start to finish takes less than 5 minutes.

B0jangles

B0jangles wrote: »

We just tried making some mulled ale instead of the usual Christmas Eve mulled wine and I think I prefer it - it's not so sweet and heavy as mulled wine but still lovely and warming and spiced
It's also incredibly quick and easy - I'd no idea it was as simple as it is. Literally pour the beer in a pot, sprinkle in your ground spices, bit of sugar and heat to taste (no boiling). Add a splash of brandy if you like, and serve in warmed cups. Start to finish takes less than 5 minutes.

I picked up some Scotts spiced cider in Super Valu the other evening and it’s lovely too. Looking forward to a hot sup in the morning.

Planet X

Doing mulled wine myself.......worth the effort. All ingredients lined up and going to store 2 bottles worth in flasks. I know it doesn't sound sexy but it'll free up a saucepan.

BaZmO*

Mulled cider is amazing. And when I say cider I mean good cider, not the likes of Bulmers.

Planet X

:D
Just made fresh Breadsauce, gravy and peeled a fresh "magazine" of sprouts and a bunch of spuds.
Love day 2.

RasTa

Turkey said 4hrs on the packaging. 5.4kg's. Internal temp reached after 1hr 50mins and juice pissing out. 150c too.

B0jangles

RasTa wrote: »

Turkey said 4hrs on the packaging. 5.4kg's. Internal temp reached after 1hr 50mins and juice pissing out. 150c too.

Meat themometers have saved so many Christmas turkey's from incineration. Since we got ours, the turkey cooking time has dropped by 1 - 1.5 hours compared to the the guide times in the recipe.

davegilly

RasTa wrote: »

Turkey said 4hrs on the packaging. 5.4kg's. Internal temp reached after 1hr 50mins and juice pissing out. 150c too.

That’s pretty quick!

Mine was 3.5kg and it took 2 hours. I cooked in BBQ but temp help stable at 175c for the 2 hours.

RasTa

Yeah I might need to get an oven thermometer to check if it's right

davegilly

RasTa wrote: »

Yeah I might need to get an oven thermometer to check if it's right

Well you're still alive so it was probably cooked alright 😂

RasTa

Oh I've total trust in my meat probe but my oven temp might be a lot higher then it's saying.

RasTa

RasTa wrote: »

Oh I've total trust in my meat probe.

Now there’s an expression with a number of uses....:D

kylith

Curried butternut and coconut soup with homemade bread to start.

Mushroom wellington with roasties, carrots, and broccoli for main.

Chai spiced bundt cake with soy yogurt glaze for dessert.

twignme

kylith wrote: »

Curried butternut and coconut soup with homemade bread to start.

Mushroom wellington with roasties, carrots, and broccoli for main.

Chai spiced bundt cake with soy yogurt glaze for dessert.

That mushroom wellie looks delish! Could you share the recipe please kylith?

kylith

twignme wrote: »

That mushroom wellie looks delish! Could you share the recipe please kylith?

I used this recipe : https://www.waitrose.com/home/recipes/recipe_directory/m/mushroom-chestnutwellington.html

I just switched anything dairy for the non-dairy equivalents.

twignme

kylith wrote: »

I used this recipe : https://www.waitrose.com/home/recipes/recipe_directory/m/mushroom-chestnutwellington.html

I just switched anything dairy for the non-dairy equivalents.

Thanks for the link kylith, I think I’m going to have to try it for New Year. If mine looks anywhere near as good as yours I will be happy.

B0jangles

M'hanncha made!



I have never been so angry with pastry before - the stuff is drying out as you look at it, so it feels like you're filling it and rolling it and repairing it all at the same damn time. So glad it's done

edit: just wanted to add in case anyone is looking for filo, I can recommend this brand - 'Zaad', it's very good and extremely thin, but the packaging doesn't say how many sheets there are, which was a worry because I knew I needed at least 12. Anyway the pack contained about 12/14 big sheets -I lost count in the chaos

https://www.nwmarket.co.uk/product/zaad-filo-pastry-for-all-purpose-of-pastry-sheets-470g/

rubadub

RasTa wrote: »

Oh I've total trust in my meat probe but my oven temp might be a lot higher then it's saying.

TImes on packets are usually overly cautious, I guess they would rather you complain of it being overdone than being sick. I expect fans in ovens have gotten better too, so cook quicker, just like an airfryer which is more like a heat gun blasting your food. So not all fan ovens are equal so need different times.

Your oven temp can be checked using sugar in trays. However this just tells you the temperature is correct, it could still cook a lot faster than another oven at the same temp

https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-to-test-your-oven-temperature-with-sugar/

350F=177C
366F=186C
375F=191C

if you put in lots small trays, say mince pie foil trays it can also reveal hot/cold spots in the oven.

Dizzyblonde

Christmas dinner here at Dizzy Heights was touch and go but between us we pulled it off, on Christmas Eve as is now our norm. Himself and myself were sick with a nasty virus which still hasn't left us. The family were here so we had help with the veg, and the sprouts were finished off in pancetta and garlic which was delicious. I threw together Bigger Bolder Baking's 10 minute tiramisu, flavoured with Captain Morgan's rum, and it was delicious.