Christmas Dinner in June – the veggie roast

This dish ticks two boxes – it's for those who love “stuffing” with their roast and with the extra ingredients it becomes a vegetarian roast in its own right.

It's tried and tested, here it is :

Chestnut and Apple roast

170g/6oz of dried breadcrumbs

2 tsps dried sage

100ml/3fluid oz boiling water

or

1 packet of sage and onion stuffing mix – 170g/6oz

1 packet – 180g/7oz of vac packed chestnuts, blitzed to a

crumb – not dust!

Vac packed chestnuts are available all year in

larger supermarkets

300g of chunky apple sauce – preferably Bramley apple

or

Portion of apple sauce, a la Eliza Acton – 225-350g/8-12 oz

1 medium onion, finely chopped

Drop of rapeseed oil and knob of butter.

2 additional knobs of butter

I used an oval cast iron oven proof dish measuring 25x17x5 cms – 10”x7”x2” in old money.

For your dried breadcrumbs, remove the crusts and tear up into chunks – weigh to achieve 170g/6oz. Pre-heat oven 150fan/170c/Gas 3. Blitz the bread in a food processor until you get an even crumb. Spread the crumbs onto a baking tray and bake for 6 minutes until they are golden. You can make a finer crumb by blitzing again when cooled. Add dried sage to taste – I'd suggest 2 tsps.

You don't have to make your own breadcrumbs, you can buy them dried.

Alternatively if you're short of time, use a sage and onion stuffing mix.

Have a look at these photos :

A mornay sauce recipe for the cauliflower cheese and just in case you'd like a Yorkshire Pudding recipe too … read on

Christmas Dinner in June – Decide on your menu

Okey dokey, what follows is a template showing what I'll be serving, as is usual the world is your lobster, mine is meant to be a guide and hopefully jog your memory too for your own family favourites :

*Roast potatoes

*Roast parsnips – available all year

*Lemon glazed roasted carrots

*these three veggies can be prepped and part

roasted ahead so that you've, say, 30 minutes or so

to finish on the day

**Cauliflower cheese

**Chestnut and Apple Roast

**these two dishes can be either made ahead

and frozen or, as above, part cooked, leaving a finish

time of 30 minutes

Petit pois

Redcurrant jelly – available all year and

much nicer than Cranberry Sauce – no bits!

Yorkshire Puddings – prep your batter

the day before and fridge – take it out to allow

to come to room temperature 2 hours before required

Gallons of gravy

I've got crunch, sweetness, bright vibrant colours and a creamy cheesy cauliflower dish.

The potatoes, parsnips and carrots are peeled and chopped to a similar size and part roasted the day before, then covered and fridged. I par boil my potatoes, drain, add a tablespoon of semolina then shake well so that they are coated. Cover your roasting pan generously with rapeseed oil, heat in the oven until hot, then carefully add the par boiled coated potatoes. Bake in a pre-heated oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6 for 30 minutes – turn the potatoes after 15 so that they are evenly roasted. Remove from the oven, cover and set aside to cool.

For the cauliflower cheese I steam a whole head of cauliflower, minus its leaves and then set it aside on a tray lined with layers of kitchen roll. This allows all the moisture to drain away from the cauliflower, ready to finish later on. I make the mornay sauce then cover and set aside until required – once again this can be prepped ahead and fridged. I grate Parmesan cheese in readiness to garnish the cauliflower dish and plan to be generous and sprinkle liberally!

Now for the Chestnut and Apple Roast ...

Christmas Dinner in June – the plan and hints & tips

The more thinking and planning ahead you can do, before you even begin to cook, the better :

the plan

Decide on your menu

Check your store cupboard for basics

Make your shopping list

You'll probably think I'm ridiculous but I always set the table ahead for Christmas Dinner – preferably in the morning or even the night before. It is also serves as a useful prompt – you can see what you've forgotten! There's nothing more irritating than bobbing up and down like a yo-yo for serving spoons or whatever else you've missed.

Unless you have a kitchen big enough you're not likely to have a warming drawer. I have a solution. You may not have the warming drawer but you might have two ovens – a small one without a fan which usually houses the grill too. Empty the small oven – it's perfect for your dinner plates, serving dishes and jugs for gravy. There's no need to turn the oven on, the residual heat from the lower oven rises and gently warms. There's nothing worse than hot food served on a cold plate or vegetables from cold dishes.

Decide on your menu

In Hurray for hugs … I mentioned two examples of dessert, one that you can make ahead and freeze and the other your own standout – food for thought - or should it be “dessert for thought”. Here's another one … did you make a Christmas Pudding for last year or bought them and they are still in the pantry? They have a long shelf life and get better with age. Christmas Pudding is like Marmite – the love or hate principle, no half measures. I can't say I know too many kiddies who are fans so you might want to consider a cook and freeze ahead, lighter option, for them.

Up next, my template – we all have our own family favourites, which is why Yorkshire Puddings are part of my menu!

The Christmas Dinner that never was …

 … because it was cancelled!

How about Christmas Dinner in June – don't you think it has a certain sparkle?!

It may not be what you'd call a traditional Christmas Dinner but who cares - it's about being together and giving everyone food they love to eat, so what if it includes Yorkshire Puddings.

The “roast route” it shall be. If your gang love a roast then what better way to celebrate being together again – that wonderful familiar feeling – everyone trying to get a word in or finish a sentence – oh how we've missed it.

Hmm, note to self – did I buy crackers for last December and didn't use them? Here's hoping I can remember where they are!

Do you have Christmas “crockery” that's used for the festive season?

Have a look :

Here's another thought – do you have a tiny Christmas Tree decoration – if yes it would make a perfect table centre.

If you don't have Christmas crockery or a tiny Christmas Tree decoration and fancy pushing the boat out, check out Amazon.co.uk christmas crockery uk. Believe it or not, they have both!

Most of us can cook a roast in our sleep. However, this roast requires special attention. I realise the chances of you being able to source a turkey at this time of year are about as likely as hens with teeth. All is not lost – roast a large chicken – easily obtainable and what's more you'll always get more “meat” from a large chicken than a small turkey.

Interested – then lets begin …

Hurray for hugs and celebrations!

In “The Birthday Menu Choice” I said that the birthday menu was a dress rehearsal for the time when I'd be able to cook for our family and friends again – I'd forgotten how!

It doesn't matter what you cook – it's being with your loved ones that matters but you'll still want to eat and you'll want it to be delicious and effortless.

Whatever you choose to serve think about yourself too – don't stress – use your time between now and then to create your celebration. If you plan ahead not only will everything work superbly but most importantly you'll be right where you should be – smack in the middle with everyone else and not doing a very good impression of a piece of chewed string - or a wet lettuce if you prefer.

If we've learnt anything in the last while it's that life is too short ...

Here are a couple of ideas – make a “to do” list and “a daily planner” to spread the work, preparing bits and pieces each day and freezing if you can. It definitely takes the pressure off. If you want to look at examples of both check out The “to do” list and The Daily Planner on the Meal Planning label.

Enjoy the planning – take into account the likes and dislikes of your guests. A quick question for you to consider - do you want your menu to be posh or practical?

To explain myself and using dessert as an example - by posh I mean make your signature, standout pud which may take a while. This year my standout pud was the Biscoff and Salted Caramel Cheesecake – completely unexpected! It is generous and serves 10, so seconds too! If you'd like to have a look check out the Cheesecake label for the recipe and a photo guide too.

By practical I don't mean less yummy and delicious, merely that if you have time issues then make a pud like the Banana Cake, the Miso Caramel Sauce and the Sweet White Miso ice cream. All three elements can be made ahead and popped in the freezer. Add a huge bowl of fresh strawberries to complete the picture.

Coming up – a few ideas for your celebration mains!

Treats trio photos!

I always find that small pots work best -

you can always squeeze a small pot in a packed

freezer – glossy and smooth - fab!

the humble banana – makes a great cake!

I love combinations like ice cream, sauce and cake. They always save the day. I know that of late we've not had any visitors but they are hopefully on their way so here's an idea for your freezer and dessert is ready to serve – defrosted of course.

If like me you're a fan of hot and cold together then this is for you – if not, no problem, choose your favourite, add fresh strawberries and serve with the ice cream – you could always experiment and add an optional generous drizzle of the warmed miso caramel sauce.

I don't expect you to take my word for it – I'm sending the trio to my taste testers and will deliver their verdict soon.

Next up, revisiting sharing plates and planning ahead for your family and friends arriving!

A very kind cake …

... that uses those bananas you'd forgotten about. This isn't the first time I've mentioned this cake but I think it completes the “treats trio” well. Some are sniffy about using bananas in cakes that it somehow isn't posh or cheffy enough – it's their loss!

Banana Cake

250g/9oz self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

150g/5oz unsalted butter

250g/9oz caster sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

3 ripe bananas – pureéd or mashed with a fork

1 tbsp milk

You can make the cake as a tray bake – you can make it in sandwich tins and turn it into a filled cake (2x8in) or even make it posh using dariole moulds for timbales - anything made in a dariole mould becomes a timbale when turned out.

Grease and line the sandwich tins, grease the dariole moulds.

Sift the dry ingredients together. Cream the butter and sugar then add the eggs gradually. Fold in the dry ingredients alternately with the bananas and milk.

Bake for 30 minutes 160fan/180C/Gas 4.

This cake freezes well in whatever shape or size you decide to bake.

If you're using sandwich tins then freeze the cake unfilled.

If you're making a tray bake then it would be practical to cut the bake into squares, or whatever size portion you prefer, before freezing.

If you're using dariole moulds for timbales then let them cool, then remove from the mould, bag and freeze. They take one minute in the microwave, individually, to defrost and warm.

Photos coming up ...