New Year in July!

If we can have Christmas Dinner in June then why not New Year in July! If you don't like either idea but want to celebrate, just not in the traditional way, then you might like the following ideas.

I realise I'm tempting fate when I mention that the weather could be warm in July – though even in warm weather we still like hot food.

There are three different dishes coming up – lamb, beef and chicken/veggie and they have one thing in common – they are all cooked in the slow cooker. You can make these dishes when you have time and freeze. All that then remains is to choose your sides.

Lets get this show on the road :

There's a recipe Aromatic Lamb Shank Stew in Nigella Bites which serves whole shanks and includes lentils, served with couscous – this is my version.

Dish 1 - Lamb Stew

4 tbsp rapeseed or vegetable oil

6 lamb shanks

2 onions, finely chopped

4 tsps garlic paste

sprinkle of salt

1 tbsp turmeric

1 tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp dried chilli flakes

2 tsps cinnamon

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

black pepper

3 tbsps honey

1 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp Marsala

boiling water to cover

Using the oil, brown the shanks and place in your slow cooker. Fry the onion and garlic paste until soft, sprinkling with salt. Stir in the turmeric, ginger, chilli, cinnamon and nutmeg and season with pepper. Add the honey, soy and Marsala. Tip the mixture over the shanks and cover with boiling water. Leave for as long as you like. 4 to 6 hours. Remove the shanks and strip off the meat – add the meat back to the gravy in the slow cooker.

The lamb is ready to serve when you are, fridge until required. You can cook ahead and freeze if that's more convenient, it just gets better!

I serve this “stew” with the biggest pan of roasties I can. There's loads of spicy gravy and roast potatoes somehow fit. New potatoes would work well, just not as crunchy.

If you like the idea of a spicy roast “main” then this is for you, it's worth every second of prep and it's not complicated.

Then there's the posh chilli ...

Christmas Dinner in June … the final bits

 … are the most important.

Congratulations on your menu – I hope that my suggestions and ideas have helped – it has been so long since we've been able to celebrate with our family and friends we've forgotten how.

A final word to you, the cook. What is more important than anything is that you are front and centre of this Christmas Dinner so, now you've chosen your menu take the time to remind yourself of the recipes you'll be using.

From those thoughts and recipes check your store cupboard to make sure you've got all the tiny bits and pieces that get forgotten – then check again!

Now you can make your shopping list – I'd make two – the first list will be non-perishable stuff that you can buy now and the second will be the fresh veggies nearer the time. If however you've included certain dishes that can be made ahead and frozen, don't forget those ingredients too and get cracking!

Having just given you ideas for a Christmas Dinner menu it occurs that not everyone may want to use the traditional route. What follows next is a series of ideas for those who'd like an alternative Christmas Dinner or, better still, lets make a good job of it and why not New Year in July!

Here goes … but in the meantime Merry Christmas!

Two sauces and a pudding – now for the pudding!

Everyone has their favourite “go to” Yorkshire pudding recipe but if you haven't and need one – here it is – it does exactly what it says “in the tin”!

The Yorkshire pudding

This recipe belongs to Brian Turner a well known Chef and Yorkshireman to boot, so well qualified. The recipe's success is because it works not by weight but by volume. Use any size cup but measure each ingredient with the same cup. I'm not sure what the vinegar does but it's his Granny's recipe and it works so if it ain't broke don't fix it!

1 large cup plain flour

pinch of salt

1 large cup of eggs

1 large cup mixed milk and water

1 tbsp malt vinegar

beef dripping for pudding tin – use vegetable

or rapeseed oil if preferred

You'll need a Yorkshire Pudding tin

4x24x24x2cms or 12 hole muffin tin/Yorkshire

Pudding baking pan

Pre-heat oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6.

Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl.

Add the eggs and beat well with half the liquid until all the lumps have disappeared.

Add the rest of the liquid and the vinegar and allow to stand.

In the Yorkshire pudding tin put a dessert spoon of dripping in each of the 4 sections and place in the oven until it is very hot.

Ladle the batter into the individual sections of the tin and place back in the oven.

Bake for 25 minutes without opening the oven if possible. Serve immediately.

It really is foolproof.

Next up the final Christmas bits and then it's New Year!

Sauce number 2 – apple for the roast - Alchemy with apples

 

Sauce number 2 – apple for the roast

This is the ultimate apple sauce - I use it in loads of recipes – in this instance the Chestnut & Apple roast.

However, if you decide to roast a joint of pork for your Christmas Dinner in June then you have your traditional apple sauce condiment too.

I know that there are good quality ready-made apple sauces out there but if you have the time to try this recipe - you'll not be sorry.

Eliza Acton's Apple Sauce – with Bramley apples

Pre-heat oven to 160fan/180c/Gas 4.

Grease a glass dish with butter.

This sauce is so easy – the only emphasis is on the preparation of the apples. All the peel and core must be removed. There are no amounts here, you can cook as much sauce as you desire – it freezes well. Peel, core and slice your apples – if you can slice them to a similar size they will cook more evenly.

Place your apples in your dish and cover with a lid or foil – NO WATER, SUGAR OR ANYTHING ELSE!

Bake for 20-30 minutes. Check after 20. Apples should be soft. Here's the satisfying bit – whisk the apples until they begin to break up, sprinkle with caster sugar plus a generous knob of unsalted butter, whisk again – enjoy.

I should add that if you're cooking a large amount of apples then the cooking time should be extended – add another 15 minutes, check and repeat until the apples are soft enough to break up.

Alchemy with apples!

P.s. You might be familiar with the Chicken Soup for the Soul “comfort principle” – this apple sauce is the sweet alternative.

Next up – the Yorkshire pudding ...

Two sauces and a pudding!

Sauce number 1 – for

The cauliflower cheese

How much mornay (cheese) sauce you'll need really depends on the size of your cauliflower – the recipe given is generous – don't waste any leftover - freeze it!

This is not the first time mornay sauce has appeared on the blog. I use it all the time - yesterday I made a batch, the main purpose for which was to drizzle, generously, over the new season's asparagus. Fortunately I'd bought enough asparagus for two servings. Today I'll make sure I've enough mornay for the second and freeze the rest in medium sized pots. Why faff with a Hollandaise when you can have a Mornay!

Mornay Sauce

Serves 4-6

40g unsalted butter

40g plain flour

600ml of milk – I use semi skimmed

150g mature Cheddar cheese

(or a combination of Cheddar and gruyere)

salt and black pepper

½ tsp Dijon mustard - optional

Melt the butter in a pan and stir in the flour. Cook gently for a minute, stirring – make sure you don't brown the mixture. Gradually add the milk whisking constantly and eventually bring to the boil, whisking until it's smooth and thick. Lower the heat and simmer for 2 minutes, then add the cheese, mustard and season. I'd taste before you add salt – there's salt in the cheese – adjust accordingly.

Say hello to your new best friend!

Sauce number 2 up next …

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 ...