Table of contents for Christmas 2020 in Easy Cook

TURKEY CENTREPIECE Booths The Ultimate Turkey Feast, £85 (3.5kg), Booths This truly is a feast, covering turkey, stuffings and pigs in blankets all in one go! It includes a succulent turkey crown stuffed with moist, well-flavoured pork, sage & onion stuffing, as well as boneless, bacon-wrapped turkey thighs with a pork & cranberry stuffing. GRAVY M&S turkey gravy, £4 (500g), M&S Described by our judges as a gravy that ‘could pass as homemade’, this has an appealing colour, good depth of flavour with a rich taste of roasted poultry, nice saltiness and good consistency. CRANBERRY SAUCE Asda Extra Special cranberry & port sauce, £1.57 (230g), Asda This sticky sauce has proper chunks of cranberry and a sharp tang, and isn’t sickly-sweet – perfect for serving alongside the Christmas meal, or…

Hard: Lincolnshire Poacher This contemporary English classic marries a traditional bold, grassy cheddar with the smooth, sweeter nuttiness of the Alpine giants, such as gruyère and emmental. Lincolnshire Poacher appeals to all palates on a cheeseboard; it’s a robust cheese that stands up to a variety of wine styles, though we love it with a West Country cider. Goat: Golden Cross A goat’s milk cheese produced by Kevin and Alison Blunt in East Sussex. It shows off the quality of the raw milk produced by their herd of hay-fed goats, all bred on the farm. Clean citrus flavours burst from this pretty, charcoal-rinded, bloomy log. It pairs beautifully with a minerally sauvignon blanc from the same county. Blue: Mrs Bell’s Blue Judy Bell created this ewe’s milk blue in the…

1 CRISTMAS PIZZA ■ Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Prepare 145g pizza base mix following pack instructions. Once rolled out, leave to rest for 10 mins, then top with 6 tbsp tomato pasta sauce. Scatter over 100g sausage stuffing and 100g leftover cooked turkey, then top with 100g sliced mozzarella or grated cheddar. Toss some sage leaves with the 1 tbsp oil, then scatter over the pizza, drizzling over any remaining oil. Bake for 10-12 mins until the crust is crisp and the cheese has melted. Serves 2. 2 TURKEY & MANGO NOODLE SALAD ■ Combine 375g cooked rice noodles, 1 thinly sliced red onion, ½ sliced mango, 300g leftover turkey, shredded, and a handful of coriander leaves. Mix 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce with the juice and…

DRINKS Whether they’re a drinks aficionado or craft beer newbie, this set is sure to please. It includes four lower-alcohol, vegan beers that are sustainably made – the brewery uses 80 per cent less water during brewing, and its packaging is 100 per cent recycled, among other environmentally friendly measures. Small Beer gift pack, £15, theoriginalsmallbeer.com STOCKING FILLER Kids and adults alike will love watching these chocolate ‘bombs’ melt into a cup of steaming milk, revealing a centre of indulgent mini marshmallows. Hot chocolate bombes, £8.99 (set of three), firebox.com CHEESE LOVERS Help them create a festive cheeseboard with this set, complete with knives for cutting stiltons, cheddars and hard cheeses, plus jars to neatly serve chutneys, nuts and fruit. Cheeseboard set, £10, Wilko DIY COOKS Learn to make spaghetti,…

Roast pork with sage & double onion stuffing, baked apples & roasties Bone-in pork loin is a prime cut, and you’ve got two options when carving. Firstly, the whole thing can be taken off the bone and the bones can be served separately like ribs, or you can carve the joint into chops and the meat in-between into thick slices. ■ Serves 8 ■ Prep 50 mins plus overnight salting ■ Cook 2 hrs 30 mins 2kg pork loin on the bone (see butcher’s talk, right), chined and French-trimmed, skin scored 1.5kg Maris Piper potatoes, cut into chunks sunflower oil, for roasting 8 small dessert apples (like Braeburns) 50g butter large bunch of sage, leaves picked FOR THE STUFFING 25g butter 1 small onion, finely chopped 1 tbsp dried sage…

Stem ginger & mustard glazed ham ■ Serves 10-12 ■ Prep 20 mins plus 10 mins cooling ■ Cook 3 hrs 40 mins FREEZABLE cooked and sliced 5kg boneless gammon joint (smoked or unsmoked) 2 litres ginger beer 1 onion, quartered 2 clementines or satsumas, halved horizontally, plus extra to decorate (optional) 20 cloves 3 bay leaves, plus extra to decorate (optional) 2 tbsp English mustard 3-4 balls stem ginger from a jar, thinly sliced, plus 4 tbsp syrup from the jar 1 Put the gammon in a deep saucepan (if tied, leave it as is). Tip in the ginger beer, onions, clementine halves, 5 cloves and 3 bay leaves. Top up with enough water to just cover the gammon. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 2 hrs,…

Espresso shrub martini A ‘shrub’ is a syrup, usually made with fruit sugar and vinegar. This one uses coffee and vinegar, taking the place of the standard coffee liqueur. ▪ Pour 100ml espresso into a jug with 50g sugar. Stir to dissolve, then leave to cool completely before adding 50g balsamic vinegar. Chill along with two martini glasses. Half-fill a cocktail shaker with ice, then add 50ml of the balsamic mix, 30ml vodka and 50ml strong cold espresso. Shake well, then strain into the glasses. Top each with 2 coffee beans and a cardamom pod. Serves 2 Pomegranate & vermouth mulled wine This mulled wine is mostly juice-based, but the addition of vermouth keeps it grown-up and stops it becoming too sweet. ▪ Pour 500ml pomegranate juice, 100ml red vermouth…

Mini nut roasts with candied carrots Prefer to make one large nut roast? Bake in a 900g loaf tin at 200C/180C fan/gas 6 for 1 hr. ■ Makes 6 ■ Prep 35 mins plus resting ■ Cook 40 mins VEGETARIAN FREEZABLE 250g thin baby carrots, trimmed, cut in half lengthways (or quartered if large) 3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for the tin 5 tbsp maple syrup 2 tbsp milled flaxseed 1 large onion, finely chopped 1 celery stick, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, chopped 350g mixed mushrooms, finely chopped 3 rosemary sprigs, leaves finely chopped 1 tsp tomato puree 2 tsp tamari or dark soy sauce 1 tbsp smoked paprika 100g pecans 50g hazelnuts 400g can green lentils, drained and rinsed 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed 40g ground…

Caramel orange mousses ■ Makes 8 ■ Prep 45 mins plus setting and cooling ■ Cook 5–10 mins 4 sheets leaf gelatine 3 oranges, zested, 2 juiced 4 eggs, separated 100g golden caster sugar 2 tbsp orange liqueur (optional) 300ml double cream FOR THE CARAMEL ORANGES 50g golden caster sugar 3 oranges, cut into segments 1 Put the gelatine in a small bowl, cover with cold water and leave to soften. Microwave the orange juice in a heatproof bowl for 1 min. Squeeze the excess water from the gelatine, add to the orange juice and stir until the gelatine has dissolved. Leave to cool. 2 Put the egg yolks, sugar and orange zest in a heatproof bowl over a pan of hot water and whisk for 10 mins until thick…