Pre-Christmas party meal.

Oh, lovely, thank you. I’ve got all the ingredients in and will have a practice run over the weekend. Tried Mary Berry’s Minted Lamb but was very underwhelmed. A practice tagine is next on the cards and will have a go at Chicken Divan. I am also, for the novelty value, going to have a go at Good Housekeeping’s version of F/Rocher chocolates.

Looking at the recipe, I think that is one that DD makes which she said is always successful.
I've yet to taste it so I'll buy the ingredients and hand over the kitchen to her when she comes 😃

teabagwoman

You mentioned deserts Pigma, I find Nigella Lawson’s Clementine cake useful. It’s dairy free, can be gluten free and tastes delicious. What’s more leftovers can be enjoyed with a coffee later. I’m going to try and add a link, haven’t done it before so here’s hoping. It also tastes better if made in advance and will take gentle reheating.. I serve it with crème Frau he and a substitute for dairy free friends.

www.nigella.com/recipes/clementine-cake

👍

I'll save that recipe, thank you teabagwoman.

teabagwoman

You mentioned deserts Pigma, I find Nigella Lawson’s Clementine cake useful. It’s dairy free, can be gluten free and tastes delicious. What’s more leftovers can be enjoyed with a coffee later. I’m going to try and add a link, haven’t done it before so here’s hoping. It also tastes better if made in advance and will take gentle reheating.. I serve it with crème Frau he and a substitute for dairy free friends.

www.nigella.com/recipes/clementine-cake

I have made this cake a few times, very Christmassy, easy to make and virtually foolproof. Delicious

teabagwoman - you are more than welcome !
Pigma - I would have some trial runs -just to see if it works out and is to your taste .

I like your style Esmay, that one’s going in my folder.

Some fantastic ideas, thank you all so, so much. I was in a real panic but it’s all taking shape in my head now. I’ll have a few practice sessions of your suggestions and then make a final decision which might be hard as they all sound delicious! Some lovely ideas for side dishes and pudding too.

Ive lost count how many times I've served this .
Here's my cheat dessert :
Some nice fresh fruit ie strawberries and raspberries .
Wash your chosen fruit and cover with a squeeze of lemon and some castor sugar and refrigerate .
Whip up some whipping cream .
Open a thawed Victoria Sponge from the freezer cabinet in Iceland .
Split open .
Arrange the fruit on top of the whipped cream .
Hide the packet !
Serve .
I've also made this with drained , tinned apricots marinaded in some brandy and sugar .
One of my friends made it with sliced bananas drizzled with chocolate over the cream .
The possibilities are endless ...

Crème Fraiche!

You mentioned deserts Pigma, I find Nigella Lawson’s Clementine cake useful. It’s dairy free, can be gluten free and tastes delicious. What’s more leftovers can be enjoyed with a coffee later. I’m going to try and add a link, haven’t done it before so here’s hoping. It also tastes better if made in advance and will take gentle reheating.. I serve it with crème Frau he and a substitute for dairy free friends.

www.nigella.com/recipes/clementine-cake

Normandy chicken has become my favourite recently (using cider as stock). And perhaps beef goulash? You can get both recipes from Google.

Additional ideas to look up on www.allrecipes.com : Chicken and Rice Bake, Chicken Tetrazzini (w/spaghetti noodles, mushrooms), Chicken and Stuffing Bake, Chicken Divan (w/broccoli and cheese).

If you don’t have oven space, many of these can be adapted and made in a slow-cooker. Some are quick baked in the oven. Many or most use cubed pre-cooked chicken. Chix and Rice as I know it (my recipe) uses raw chix breasts. All delicious and festive too🎄. They will love anything you make!

Cheat and get cauliflower cheese and red spiced cabbage ready made from M and S. Both delicious

Yes, that’s my ‘go to’ as well, Bijou, it’s such a useful staple but it’s been gone to just a few too many times so looking for a change. Really should proofread better- teal cream of course should read real cream!

Boeuf Bourgignonne. Burgundy beef. I had some friends who always requested this every time they visited.

Ramay - your French-style beef sounds interesting, I’ve put horseradish cream in a beef casserole before but not ‘teal’ cream. Does that recipe have a named do you know? I agree chicken can break up but want to give people a choice so a red meat and chicken seemed the obvious choice. May have to rethink that one!

I also make a lamb tagine like Ziplock .
I skim off the fat when cold .
I reheat it slowly and I think that the taste is unbeatable .

I think that beef casseroles are wonderful and versatile :
I either make it English style flavoured with a rich stock , carrots ,onions and mustard with dumplings .

Or French style cooking it in stock with carrots , onions and garlic. Then adding
red wine , sautéed mushrooms and cream to finish .
I'd use a bouquet garni for both .

I find that chicken tends to break up and doesn't have a good flavour when reheated :
I tend to cut it up , marinade it and cook it on the day.

Thank you for the suggestion, Grannybuy, but sadly I made a similar trifle for our last ‘do’ but with chocolate custard instead of pink fluff - will give your version a try some time though.

Black Forest trifle. Chocolate sponge base, soaked with frozen (defrosted) cherries, black cherry conserve and alcohol of your choice, topped with a layer of pink jelly fluff, then whipped cream and grated chocolate. It can be frozen.

I second venison casserole, it’s so easy in the slow cooker . Or Spanish chicken with chorizo, red peppers, tomatoes, onions and paprika. With mash for the venison and rice with the chicken .

Some more great suggestions, all very welcome, thank you. Yet more for a trial run! A friend suggested Lamb Kleftiko and I had forgotten so will have a look. I’ll have no qualms now about offering to host the pre- Christmas do for many years to come. Now, puddings…….

I do cauliflower with some coconut oil and curry powder mixed in at the end.

What about going Greek eg Lamb Kleftiko or Beef Stifado ?
I’m sure both could both could be done in advance and put in a slow cooker .

Or this one, I use cubed venison. It lovely with braised red cabbage and mashed potatoes.

www.deliaonline.com/recipes/collections/easy-entertaining/venison-braised-in-guinness-and-port-with-pickled-walnuts

I often do Nigella Lawton’s Greek Lamb and Pasta for big family occasions, it’s a one pot dish. I will try and post a link.

www.culinarytravels.co.uk/blog/10122015123319-greekish-lamb-pasta/