christmas lunch

This classic roast pork recipe with lots of delicious crackling is great for Sunday lunch with the family. Top with our tasty apple & cider gravy

Roast pork with crackling

garlic cloves,sliced into thin slivers

rosemary,broken into small sprigs

bay leaves,torn

onion,roughly chopped

carrot,chopped

Bramley apple,peeled, quartered, cored and roughly sliced

sunflower oil

tbsp plain flour

milliliters cider

stock

If you have time, rub salt in the pork skin 2 hours before cooking and leave it uncovered in the fridge. Heat the oven to 230C/210C fan/gas 8. Turn the pork rind-side down and with a small knife make about 6 deep incisions along the meat. Poke a sliver of garlic, a piece of rosemary and bay in each incision and turn the pork the right way up. If you didn’t salt the pork earlier salt the skin now.

Mix the carrot, onion and apple and scatter along the middle of a shallow roasting tray to make a bed for the pork to sit on. Sit the pork on the vegetables and rub the skin with the oil. Place the pork in the oven and leave for 15 mins then turn the heat down to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and continue to roast for 1hr 30 mins. If after this time you don’t have brilliant crackling turn the heat up again and check every 5 mins until the skin has crackled.

Remove the pork from the roasting tray to a board to rest and pour off all but about 2 tbsp of fat from the tray. If your tray is robust enough to go on the heat then do so, if not scrape the contents into a shallow saucepan and place on the heat. Stir the flour in with the veg and cook until you have a mushy, dark amber paste then splash in the cider and bubble down to a thick paste again. Pour in the stock and simmer everything for 8-10 mins until you have thickened gravy. Strain the sauce into another saucepan pushing as much puréed apple as you can through the sieve. Simmer again and season to taste.

Carve the pork loin with crackling attached into slices using a serrated knife and serve with your favourite vegetables and the apple and cider gravy.

Oven-cook your favourite soft cheese until gooey for this last-minute crowd-pleaser. An easy recipe for a dinner party or when entertaining at Christmas

Baked camembert

camembertor brie, cheese

tbsp vermouth,or dry white wine,

thymesprigs

dried chilli flakes

crackers bread,to serve

Unwrap 250g camembert, brie or similar from its packaging, then place back into its box. Tie string around the box to secure.

Slash the cheese a few times and top with 1 tbsp vermouth, dry white wine or kirsch, 2 thyme sprigs and a pinch of dried chilli flakes.

Bake on a baking tray for 20 mins until gooey. Serve with toasted bread or crackers for dipping.

This warming, spiced and delicious Vegan Ginger and Pear Sticky Toffee Pudding is delectable. Not your usual, it has been festive-ed it up (is that a word? It is now!) with spicy ginger, and added pears for that winter feel. Incredible with vegan ice-cream or vegan cream!

Vegan Ginger and Pear Sticky Toffee Pudding

pears

ginger

225 g pitted dates (1 cup)

ml water (2/3 cup)

g brown sugar (bit more than 1/2 cup)

vanilla essence

tsp bicarbonate of soda

lemon juice

175 g self raising flour (plus extra for dusting) (1 1/3 cups)

ml any non-dairy milk (bit less than 1/2 cup)

g coconut palm sugar / brown sugar (2/3 cup)

tin full fat coconut milk (400 milliliters) (1 2/3 cups)

Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas Mark 4.

Use a large baking dish / baking tin, and lightly grease with margarine / coconut oil, then dust with flour.

Put the dates in the hot water, leaving to soak for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, start making the rest of the dessert. In a mixing bowl combine the margarine / coconut oil, sugar, ginger and vanilla.

Add the bicarbonate of soda and lemon juice.

Fold in the flour and non-dairy milk a bit at a time.

Blend the dates with water until they form a thick puree. Then mix into the pudding mixture.

Wash and peel the pears. Cut each pear in half then slice long ways going around the half pear so you have a fan shape (see photo).

Take the slices from 2 of the pears and arrange in a fan shape at the bottom of the baking dish, with the thinner end in the middle.

Pour the cake mixture in the baking dish, covering the pears. Pour carefully so as not to change the position of the pears that have been evenly spaced out. 

Then take the slices from the final pear and put in a fan on the top of the cake mixture, again with the thinner end in the middle.

Bake for around 30-35 minutes. Before taking the dish out, check it has cooked through using a skewer. Cook for longer if needed. The skewer should come out pretty much clean.

Once done pour half of the toffee sauce over the whole dish. Use the rest of the sauce as extra to pour on each portion once served.

For the Pudding Mix

Place sugar and coconut milk in a heavy-based saucepan. Stirring or whisking continuously, bring to the boil on a medium heat. Once boiled, turn down the heat.

Let the sugar and coconut milk thicken on this low heat, stirring or whisking as much as possible. This may take around 10-15 minutes. It will be ready when it is a caramel consistency.

Once it is cooled, it can be stored in an airtight container or jar in the fridge (if it doesn’t get eaten immediately!).

For the Toffee Sauce

Try a new presentation style - this nutty, bacon-wrapped log is designed to save space in the oven. Serve in thick slices

Chestnut stuffing roll

butter

onions

pack sage

pack cooked chestnut

hazelnut

breadcrumb

mace

eggs

tbsp butter

rashers streaky bacon

sage leaves, to serve (optional)

To make the stuffing, melt the butter in a large non-stick pan, add the onions and gently cook for 10-15 mins until very soft. Stir in the sage for 1 min, then tip into a large mixing bowl. Pulse the chestnuts in a food processor until chopped into small bits, then tip these into the bowl with the onions and repeat with the hazelnuts. Add the breadcrumbs, mace, beaten egg, 1 tsp salt and some pepper, and mix everything together well.

Tear off a very large sheet of foil. Smear the butter in the middle, making a rectangle about 30 x 40cm. Lay the bacon rashers over in a row, overlapping a little. Use a rolling pin to slowly but firmly roll down the length of the bacon strips to stretch them a bit. Shape the stuffing into a log along the rashers. Using the foil to help you, roll up the stuffing so that it is completely wrapped in the bacon. Overwrap with the extra foil and twist the ends to tighten and seal. If it’s not very round, give it an extra roll or two on your work surface. Chill until ready to roast. Can be made up to 2 days ahead and kept in the fridge.

To cook, bake at 200C/180C fan/gas 6 (when you turn up the heat for the turkey) for 30 mins. When the turkey comes out, turn up the heat to 220C/200C fan/gas 7, unwrap the stuffing and continue to cook for 30 mins more until crisp. Keep warm, then slice and serve with sage leaves fried in butter, if you like.

With no bones to contend with, a turkey crown is so much easier to carve than a whole bird and the pancetta slices keep the roasted meat succulent

Turkey crown with roast garlic & pancetta

turkey crown

olive oil

bacon

rosemary

onion,

tbsp olive oil, plus extra to drizzle

onions,

garlic cloves, finely chopped

pine nuts

grated parmesan

pancetta, chopped

breadcrumbs

tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped

eggs, beaten

whole bulbs garlic, halved horizontally

lemon,

tsp plain flour

medium-sweet marsala

turkey stock

Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Rinse the turkey then pat dry with kitchen paper. Weigh it to calculate the cooking time, allowing 20 mins per kg, plus 70 mins (or 90 mins when roasting a crown over 4kg). Sit the turkey on a board, very lightly rub all over with olive oil and season with pepper. Lay the pancetta or streaky bacon over the top of the turkey, slightly overlapping to cover it. Tuck the slices under the bird to secure at the bottom. Insert small rosemary sprigs haphazardly between the slices. Season with pepper. Tie the crown across in 2-3 places with butcher’s string, to hold the shape together. Put the onion wedges in the middle of a large roasting tin and sit the crown on top. Cover the turkey with a loose tent of foil, then roast following your calculated time.

Make the stuffing. Heat 3 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan. Tip in the onions and garlic, and fry for 5-8 mins until softened and starting to turn golden. Push the onions to one side of the pan, then add the pine nuts and continue to fry for 1 min more, stirring the nuts until golden. Remove from the heat and cool slightly. Stir in the remaining oil, all but a small handful of the Parmesan and the remaining stuffing ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Loosely spoon stuffing mixture (don’t pack it down) into an oiled ovenproof dish, drizzle with a little extra olive oil, sprinkle with remaining Parmesan, then lay a sheet of baking parchment on top. Set aside. Can be made 1 day ahead and chilled.

Thirty mins before the end of the cooking time, remove the turkey and increase oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. If you are roasting potatoes put them in now. Roast the garlic. Remove the foil, place the garlic halves and lemon wedges around the turkey, then baste them and the turkey with the cooking juices. Return the tin to the oven and continue to roast for the final 30 mins. To test if cooked, pierce the fattest part of the crown with a skewer – the juices should run clear, not pink. If they are pink, continue to roast, checking at 10 min intervals.

Remove the turkey, garlic and lemon from the oven, transfer to a warm serving platter and rest, covered loosely with foil, for 30 mins before carving. Meanwhile, increase oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Put the stuffing in the oven and bake for 20 mins, then remove the paper and bake for a further 5 mins until the stuffing is golden.

Make the gravy. Pour off any excess fat from the roasting tin but leave the juices and onions. Stir all the sticky bits from the bottom of the tin into the juices. Set tin over a medium heat, add the flour and cook, stirring continuously, for 2 mins. Pour in the Marsala and simmer for 2 mins. Pour in the stock, bring to the boil, then simmer for 5-10 mins or until reduced to your liking. Season with pepper if needed. Strain the gravy into a pan, warm through, then pour into a jug. Serve the turkey garnished with rosemary sprigs, surrounded with the roasted garlic and lemon, and accompanied by the gravy and stuffing.

What's Christmas without a tasty pork dish fringed with crackling?

Brined pork belly with farro salad and plum sauce

pork belly, skin scored at 1cm intervals

(190 grams) farro

plums,

marinated labneh, drained

(80 grams) roasted almonds, chopped

Micro basil and parsley, to serve

(170 grams) brown sugar

(165 grams) sea salt

garlic cloves, crushed

black peppercorns

cloves

bay leaf

thyme

plums, halved, stones removed, chopped

(125 milliliters) maple syrup

(125 milliliters) red wine

(125 milliliters) Campbell's Real Stock Chicken

tbs red wine vinegar

https://resources.newscdn.com.au/cs/video/vjs/stable/build/index.html?id=5348771529001-5977443724001&=domain=del

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Queen of the Barossa, Maggie Beer creates an all round delicious cake, filled with fresh, juicy raspberries that’s perfect for any relaxing weekend baking.

Fresh raspberry cake with sangiovese verjuice syrup

(200 grams) plain flour

1⁄2 tsp baking powder

unsalted butter, softened

caster sugar

vanilla extract

1⁄4 cup (60 milliliters) buttermilk

(135 grams) raspberries,

Icing sugar, to serve

Whipped cream, to serve

(250 milliliters) Sangiovese Verjuice

(55 grams) caster sugar

https://resources.newscdn.com.au/cs/video/vjs/stable/build/index.html?id=5348771529001-5977456928001&=domain=del

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King Prawns on the barbecue… these sweet and succulent King Prawns are extra vibrant thanks to lemongrass flavours.

Barbecued King Prawns with Lemongrass Butter

x large king prawns, shell on

vegetable oil

Nuoc cham dressing

tbsp fish sauce

tbsp white vinegar

tbsp sugar

lime juice

red chilli, finely chopped

Lemongrass butter

(4 oz) unsalted butter

lemongrass stalk, white part only, finely chopped

lime

tbsp coriander leaves

tsp sea salt flakes

Step 1

Clean prawns by removing the outer shell, leaving the tail and head on. Carefully run a small knife down the spine side of the prawns and remove the intestinal tracts (or, as I like to say, poop shoots!) and discard. Gently rinse the prawns under some water, then drain on some paper towel. Place prawns into a bowl and drizzle over some oil. Leave aside

Step 2

To make the nuoc cham dressing, mix together all ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Set aside until ready to serve. (To save time, you could make this the day before and keep it in the fridge until needed.)

Step 3

For the lemongrass butter, add butter, lemongrass, lime zest, chopped coriander and salt to a small saucepan. Place over a low heat and until the butter has just melted (you don’t want it browning, so keep a close eye on it).

Step 4

Turn a gas barbecue onto medium-high heat (if your BBQ has a lid, close it to allow the heat to settle at a nice temperature). Place prawns into the centre of the barbecue. Using a pastry brush, brush the prawns with some of the lemongrass butter and, continuing to brush, cook on one side for 4 minutes or until the prawn meat starts to curl up and become white in colour. Don’t move the prawns as you want some beautiful char marks on them. Flip prawns over and repeat until the other side is cooked.

Step 5

Remove from heat and transfer onto a serving plate. Drizzle over any remaining butter. Serve with dipping sauce.

Top 8 christmas lunch recipes from across the web

The most viewed christmas lunch recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

Top Tags

Roast pork with crackling

Baked camembert

Vegan Ginger and Pear Sticky Toffee...

Chestnut stuffing roll

Turkey crown with roast garlic & pa...

Brined pork belly with farro salad ...

Fresh raspberry cake with sangioves...

Barbecued King Prawns with Lemongra...

Top 8 christmas lunch recipes from across the web

The most viewed christmas lunch recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Roast pork with crackling

Baked camembert

Vegan Ginger and Pear Sticky Toffee...

Chestnut stuffing roll

Turkey crown with roast garlic & pa...

Brined pork belly with farro salad ...

Fresh raspberry cake with sangioves...

Barbecued King Prawns with Lemongra...

The most viewed christmas lunch recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine