Festive recipes from our favourite chefs
Arm yourself with a glass of something sparkling and head for the kitchen. We’ve rounded up some festive recipes you can try at home. From the best leftover turkey curry to some moreish nibbles, we’ve got it covered…
XMAS MORNING
Café Boheme’s Posh poached eggs & warm mulled wine
Gently poached eggs with a rich hollandaise sauce. You can serve it on toasted muffins, warm croissants or rye bread.
Try using duck eggs or adding smoked salmon, black pudding, or baby spinach with smoked bacon to make it really special. Allow two eggs per person.
To make the hollandaise
3 Egg yolks
160g Melted butter
A splash of white wine vinegar
A squeeze of lemon
Chopped chives
A pinch of smoked paprika
Add the egg yolks and vinegar to a metal bowl and whisk over a bain marie until double in volume and pale. Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the melted butter. Season with salt, pepper, cayenne, lemon juice and chives.
Place your poached eggs and whatever else you’ve chosen on your toasted muffins and pour the sauce over.
TIP: If your hollandaise goes extremely stiff and begins to set, slowly add a couple of splashes of boiling water while whisking. Leave in a warm place until you are ready to serve.
Warm mulled wine
1 Bottle red wine, light and fruity works well
50ml Brandy
1 Cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 Star anise
5 Cloves
1 Orange, sliced
100ml Fresh orange juice (optional)
150g Brown sugar
Bring all ingredients to a simmer in a large pan for five minutes then cool and allow to infuse overnight. Reheat gently before use.
Christmas Lunch starter
Eat on the Green’s pimped up prawn cocktail
Give the traditional prawn cocktail a new twist by adding flavours from a Pornstar Martini.
300g King prawns
1 Mini gem lettuce, washed and chilled
5 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
2 Passion fruit (remove pulp & seeds from one, quarter the other)
1/2 Freshly squeezed lime
Pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon pink peppercorns
1 Shot vanilla vodka
Combine the mayo, tomato ketchup, the first passion fruit’s pulp and seeds, fresh lime juice, sea salt and pink peppercorns and vodka. Set to one side. Pop four or five crisp little gem lettuce leaves into a martini cocktail glass. Next, take the king prawns and place into the sauce, ensuring they are generously covered. Place the prawns on top of the lettuce and garnish with quarter of a passion fruit and a wedge of lime. A teaspoon of crème fraiche on top works well too.
Veggie
Teacake’s truffle roasted squash pearl barley risotto
Teacake in Chapleton offer a delicious bistro menu at weekends and lunches, cakes and coffee during the week.
Roast squash
½ Squash peeled & finely diced
Clove of garlic, crushed
Sprig of thyme or rosemary
Salt & pepper to season
Truffle oil
Knob of butter
In hot pan, sear the squash, garlic and herbs in truffle oil. Add the butter, salt and pepper. Remove from pan and roast in the oven at 180oC till cooked.
Barley risotto
Clove of garlic peeled, finely diced
1 Banana shallot peeled, finely diced
800ml White wine & veg stock
Sprig of thyme
2 cups Pearl barley
Salt & pepper
Sweat off the shallot and garlic in pan, add barley and thyme, slowly add stock. Stir frequently till risotto is cooked but retains a slight bite, season to taste.
Squash purée
½ Squash peeled, diced
800ml White wine & veg stock
Chopped chives
Salt & pepper
Zest & juice of half an orange
Pinch of allspice
Bring stock to boil with allspice, orange zest and juice. Add the squash
and cook till soft. Drain, but reserve some of the liquid. Blitz the squash to a smooth purée, season to taste and add chopped chives. If too thick add a little of the reserved liquid.
Roast almonds
Roast almonds in oven at 180oC, remove once coloured and season.
Cranberry dressing
1 Shallot, peeled, cored & quartered
½ cup Fresh cranberries
¼ cup Extra-virgin olive oil
¼ cup Walnut oil
2 teaspoons Red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon Maple syrup or honey
½ teaspoon Salt
¼ teaspoon Freshly ground pepper
Blitz all ingredients till smooth and desired thickness. Sweeten with more honey if needed.
Crispy sage
Bunch of sage leaves
Oil
Salt
Fry sage leaves for a few seconds till crisp. Dry on a paper towel and sprinkle with salt. Warm the purée and add barley, place in centre of plate, placing roasted squash around plate. Scatter the roasted nuts and crispy sage. Drizzle with cranberry dressing, garnish with micro-sorrel leaves.
Dessert
The Esslemont’s mulled berry cranachan
This dessert has two main components, a whisky syllabub and a mulled berry compote. The syllabub gets made the day before and is left to set in the fridge before the berries are added just before serving.
Whisky Syllabub
The zest of three lemons
80ml lemon juice
60ml whisky
32g caster sugar
240ml double cream
Place lemon juice, lemon zest and whisky in a bowl and leave to infuse for 3-6 hours. Stir in the sugar, then strain off the liquid. Whip the cream to soft peaks and slowly add whisky/lemon mixture. Spoon the mixture into glasses to around half way full and leave to set overnight
Mulled Berries Compote
100ml mulled wine
60g sugar
500g fresh/frozen berries
1 tsp cornflour
A handful of oats
Mix the cornflour with a splash of mulled wine and heat in a pan until smooth, then add sugar and the rest of the wine. Once fully mixed, add the berries, cover and boil for about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool. Spoon the cooled compote on top of the syllabub. Toast a handful of oats until golden brown and sprinkle on top of cranachan.
Boxing Day
Jewel in the Crown’s turkey masala
This simple and easy to make recipe is the perfect way to use the leftover turkey. Serve it with pilau or steamed rice, naan bread or a pile of poppadoms.
Cooked turkey (this recipe also works well with chicken)
2 teaspoons Ghee or vegetable oil
1 Chopped onion
2-3 Cloves of garlic
1-2 inches of peeled fresh ginger
1 teaspoon of each of the following: ground cumin, ground coriander, garam masala, turmeric powder, paprika & curry powder
1 Cinnamon stick
A tin of plum tomatoes
Salt & pepper to taste
2 teaspoons Mango chutney
Turkey or chicken stock
2 teaspoons of natural unsweetened or greek yogurt
Heat the oil up in the pan
Blitz the onion, garlic and ginger into a paste in a food processor. Put to one side, then do the same with the tomatoes. Heat the oil in a large saucepan, then fry the onion paste to a golden colour, stirring frequently. Add the ground spices and cinnamon stick. Cook this for 2 or 3 minutes to release the aroma. Add the blitzed tomatoes and sufficient chicken stock to create a creamy consistency for the sauce, simmer gently for five or six minutes. Add the mango chutney. Simmer gently. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little more chicken stock or water. Gently fold in the cooked turkey and add the yogurt. Once the turkey is properly warmed through, remove from the heat and serve with rice.
Hogmanay
Malmaison’s nibbles
Each dish serves four people.
Honey & Mustard Pigs in Blankets
8 pigs in blankets
150g honey
100g wholegrain mustard
Small skewers
Place the pigs in blankets on a baking tray in a preheated oven at 180oC for about 12 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a frying pan over a medium heat. Pour on the honey and mustard. Make sure the sausages are well coated, becoming nice and caramelised. Stick a skewer through each one and serve.
Turkey, Stuffing & Cranberry Sliders
320g roast turkey breast
100g sage and onion stuffing
100g cranberry sauce
1 little gem lettuce
1 beefsteak tomato
4 small brioche buns
100g mayonnaise
Lightly toast the brioche buns, split and spoon mayonnaise on the bottom half. Top with a lettuce leaf or two, a slice of tomato, turkey, stuffing and finally the cranberry sauce. Put the lid of the bun back on and place a small skewer through the bun to hold everything in place.
Smoked Salmon Roulade with Crème Fraiche
150g cooked salmon
100g smoked salmon
1 shallot (fine diced)
20g chopped fresh dill
20g chopped fresh tarragon
20g chopped chives
Zest of ½ lemon
1 tablespoon creamed horseradish
75g butter
75g double cream
50g crème fraiche
Lay a piece of cling film on a flat surface and lay the smoked salmon on top, making a rectangle about 5 inches by 3 inches. Combine the cooked salmon with shallot, dill, tarragon, chives, lemon zest and creamed horseradish in a heatproof bowl. Bring the butter and cream to the boil in a pan and add this to the bowl. Mix and season and season with salt and black pepper. Spread this mixture over the smoked salmon evenly. Roll up tightly to form a sausage shape, making sure the cling film surrounds the parcel but isn’t in it. Leave to set for 30 minutes or more in the fridge. Slice into 4 and pipe some crème fraiche on top, finish with zested lemon.
New Years Day
The Marcliffe Hotel & Spa’s Beef Bourguignon
This recipe serves four people, but can be doubled for a bigger crowd round the table.
For the Beef Bourguignon
2 tablespoons Plain flour
Salt & ground black pepper
1kg Chuck steak, cut into large cubes
2 tablespoons Olive oil
150g Smoked pancetta, cut into small chunks
1 Large onion, finely chopped
1 Clove of garlic, crushed
500ml Red wine
250ml Beef stock
1 Bouquet garni (bay leaves, sprigs thyme, sprigs flatleaf parsley, often wrapped in a square of muslin)
25g Butter
18 Peeled baby shallots
200g Chestnut mushrooms, cut in half
For the potatoes
1kg Floury potatoes such as Rooster, peeled & cut into chunks
110g Butter
60ml Cream
Salt & ground black pepper
For the cabbage
1 Head of Savoy cabbage, cut into squares
110g Butter
Salt & ground black pepper
Dredge the beef in the seasoned flour and set aside.
Heat one tablespoon of the olive oil in a large pan and fry the smoked pancetta for 1-2 minutes, or until golden-brown. Add the beef and fry for a further 4-5 minutes, or until browned on each side. Add the chopped onion and garlic and fry for another 4-5 minutes, or until just beginning to soften. Add the wine and beef stock and bring to a simmer. Add the bouquet garni, then cover and cook on a low heat for two hours, or until the beef is tender and the sauce has thickened.
Heat the butter and remaining oil in a pan and fry the whole baby shallots for 4-5 minutes then add the shallots and chestnut mushrooms to the beef casserole and cook for another 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and ground black pepper.
Cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling salted water for 15-18 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Drain and return to the pan to dry off any excess moisture. Mash the potatoes, then add the butter and cream. Beat with a wooden spoon until smooth. Season to taste with salt and ground black pepper.
Boil the cut cabbage in salted water for 10-15 minutes or until tender but still with a bite. Drain and return to the pan, add the butter and season with ground black pepper.
Serve with crusty bread for mopping up the gravy and an Argentinian Malbec.