Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2016 i Good Food

Christmas should be all about spending time together and enjoying the festivities rather than endless to-do lists. That’s why we’ve packed this issue with recipes and advice to make the season’s meals both simple and special. Our easiest-ever Christmas dinner (p42) requires absolutely no prep in the days ahead: the entire meal (including amazingly crispy roast potatoes) is ready in just three hours. So you can lie in on Christmas morning, have a leisurely breakfast (the kids will want a Rudolph pancake (p76), put the turkey in the oven at noon, and sit down to lunch with all the trimmings at 2pm. If you’re entertaining, our contributing editor (and party queen) Rosie Birkett has wise words to share (p27). With years of experience as a home and professional cook, she…

Winter roof bars Enjoy a cosy hot toddy al fresco – check out Selfridges Forest on the Roof pop-up in London (selfridges.com), or the terrace at Headrow House in Leeds (headrowhouse.com). Crisps on the menu New London venue Hipchips serves crisps made from five potato varieties, straight from a conveyer belt (hipchips.com). Skinny prosecco The lower-sugar version by Thomson & Scott has just 7g sugar per litre (regular prosecco has 12-15g) – currently available at Harrods and amazon.co.uk, expect to see it in supermarkets soon.…

Eastern breeze ‘The lead-up to Christmas is very hectic, so my cocktail couldn’t be simpler to make and is perfect for large groups,’ says Sabrina Ghayour, award-winning food writer ( sabrinaghayour.com  @Sabrina Ghayour). Her latest book is Sirocco (£25, Mitchell Beazley). SERVES 6 PREP 10 mins NO COOK Fill six highball or big wine glasses with ice and divide 300ml vodka between them. Add 24 mint leaves, seeds from 1 pomegranate (about 1 heaped tsp per glass) and 600ml apple juice, then stir with a straw or chopstick to muddle. GOOD TO KNOW vegan • gluten free PER SERVING 167 kcals • fat none • saturates none • carbs 11g • sugars 11g • fibre 1g • protein none • salt none Spice 75 ‘This is a sophisticated, aromatic…

Ottolenghi: The Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi (£27, Ebury Press) Re-edited to celebrate the pair’s incredible journey since opening Ottolenghi in Notting Hill in 2002, the book reveals what they’ve learned over the years. Bold flavours, plus even more colour and vibrancy – these updated recipes are ideal for entertaining. If you don’t have the original, this is a must-buy. When I’m cooking for friends, this is the first book I turn to. Chelsie Collins ScandiKitchen: Fika & Hygge by Bronte Aurell (£16.99, Ryland Peters & Small) The Scandinavian words ‘fika’ and ‘hygge’ (pronounced who-guh) signify cosiness, treats and conviviality. All three are celebrated in this gorgeous book, packed with pastries, cookies, cakes, breads – even homemade crispbread – to share all winter and…

Fennel & chilli cheese sablés, £3.75 (80g), cravedlondon.com Seriously cheesy and studded with fennel and chilli, I couldn’t get enough of these moreish Scottish sablé biscuits – good with a glass of wine. Daylesford organic garlic & herb olives (185g), £3.99, ocado.com Fragrant basil and wild garlic give these Greek green olives a strong flavour without being overpowering. Cobble Lane cured coppa, £4 per 80g, cobble  lanecured.com My favourite charcuterie from London-based charcutiers Cobble Lane is the coppa – slices of cured marbled pork collar with flavours of black peppers, cloves, nutmeg, mace and garlic. The Snaffling Pig Co sage & onion pork crackling gifting jar (300g), £15.99, ocado.com Crispy double-cooked pork crackling meets limited-edition flavouring sage…

MASTERCHEF: THE PROFESSIONALS Catch the final week of MasterChef: The Professionals on BBC Two later this month. The remaining four will cook for a table of Michelin-starred chefs and former champions, then fly to Oslo to cook at the ground-breaking Maaemo restaurant, before returning for the final cook-off. ALSO ON THE BBC THIS MONTH Sheila Dillon (right) is baking a fruitcake in her kitchen for a cake-themed episode of the Food Programme, the first in a four-part series called Tradition. In the show, on Sunday 18 December, Sheila meets bakers and cooks with Great British Bake Off champion John Whaite. Danish chef Trine Hahnemann joins Sheila for the second show on Christmas Day to discuss wild boar – once a popular celebration dish in Britain. The series will also focus…

As a food writer and stylist, I spend most of my days cooking, writing and thinking about food, and by 25 December I’ve already cooked a few Christmas turkeys for photoshoots – usually during the blistering heat of high summer. So you might think that I would be sick of the whole thing by the time it gets to Christmas. Actually, the opposite is true. At Christmas I can share my favourite dishes, and the skills I’ve learned along the way, with those I love the most. The festive period should be one long, merry feast as far as I’m concerned. But as much as I adore entertaining, food is my job and I don’t want it to feel like work at this time of year. So here’s my advice…

Finest Sloe Gin (£16, Tesco) This has undercurrents of maraschino and pine – try it shaken with lemon juice, ice and egg white to make a sloe gin sour. What to eat with… Aldi Exquisite Limoux Chardonnay 2015, France (£6.99, Aldi) Quite rich, all lemon curd and barbecued banana, this Chardonnay’s creaminess is a match for the richness of the buttery Faux gras on p117. Chateau de Pizay Morgon 2015, Beaujolais, France (£10.99, Majestic) Light-bodied refreshment among all the heavy festive food, its juicy red berry flavours go with the roast goose on p58.…

Oregano halloumi with orzo salad Any leftovers make a great take- to-work lunch for the next day. SERVES 4 PREP 10 mins COOK 8 mins EASY V 350g orzo 15g pack oregano, leaves picked, larger ones roughly chopped 3 tbsp olive oil 250g halloumi, sliced 200g plum cherry tomatoes, halved handful pitted black olives, chopped 140g tub fresh pesto 1 Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the orzo following pack instructions. Meanwhile, mix the chopped oregano in a small bowl with the oil and brush some over the halloumi. Heat a large, non-stick frying pan and cook the halloumi for a few mins each side until golden and soft. 2 Drain the cooked orzo and mix with the tomatoes, olives and pesto. Season to…

‘New York supermarkets remain baffling to me: 20 types of tortilla chip, but no baked beans’ So my New York food adventure is over. My family spent a year living in Manhattan, eating our way around the city and never going to the same restaurant twice because we had 12 months and there were 24,000 to get through (NB: we may have missed out a few). There are so many foods I will miss, but so many UK tastes I’m excited to meet again. I’ve hugely enjoyed the ‘single food’ restaurants here. I felt proud to have consumed the menu at Macbar, which serves 12 types of macaroni cheese. And I appreciated, though then regretted, each of the 24 flavours of rice pudding at Rice To Riches’. Strangely, I’m unbothered…

Rainbow beet slaw with pecans & maple dressing This is a goes-with-everything side salad. If you want to serve it over a few days, leave out the soft herbs as they will wilt in the dressing. SERVES 8-10 PREP 25 mins NO COOK V 2 tbsp Dijon mustard 1 clementine, juiced 1 large lemon, zested and juiced 2 tbsp maple syrup 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or rapeseed oil 50g pecans, roughly chopped 8 beetroots, a mix of colours, peeled and halved 1/4 celeriac, peeled 1 dessert apple, halved 1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced small pack dill, roughly chopped small pack parsley, roughly chopped 1 Mix the mustard, clementine and lemon juice, zest, maple syrup, oil and some seasoning in a large bowl. Toast the pecans in…

Double bean & roasted pepper chilli If you’re cooking for more than eight, a big bowl of long-grain rice is a great way to bulk up their plates and stretch this chilli. Serve Tabasco sauce, extra soured cream or natural yogurt alongside, if you like. SERVES 8 PREP 30 mins COOK 1 hr 15 mins EASY V * 2 onions, chopped 2 celery sticks, finely chopped 2 yellow or orange peppers, finely chopped 2 tbsp rapeseed or sunflower oil 2 x 460g jars roasted red peppers 2 tsp chipotle paste 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp each cocoa powder, dried oregano and sweet smoked paprika 2 tbsp ground cumin 1 tsp ground cinnamon 2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes 400g can refried beans 3 x 400g cans kidney beans,…

Sourdough starter kit 500g bag organic rye flour 1-litre glass Kilner jar muslin wooden spoon To use the kit Write the instructions, below, on the gift tag (or print out the handy PDF on our website). 1 Put 200g flour in the Kilner jar with 200ml cool water. Mix well, then cover with the muslin, leaving the lid off. Leave the mixture somewhere warm but away from direct sunlight for 2-3 days until it has swelled and is frothing with bubbles. 2 To ‘feed’ the starter, throw half of it away, then top up with 100g flour and 100ml cool water. Mix well and leave for two to three days more. Once the starter is puffy and foamy again, it is ready to use. 3 When making sourdough bread, use…

Barney, our Food editor- at-large, has worked as a chef internationally and is a pro at adapting restaurant recipes to make at home. @barney_desmazery CHEF SWAPS Port for red wine Both are made from grapes, but port is fortified with brandy, which stops the sugar fermenting into alcohol, leaving port with a much higher sugar content. The high alcohol content and sweetness means you wouldn’t swap port for red wine at the table, but it is useful for adding richness to cranberry sauce and marinades for game such as venison, achieving sweet-salty combinations with steak and blue cheese, or to replace wine in stews. Use it in moderation – a third port to wine is best, so simply make up the rest of the liquid with stock to ensure the…

• Always read the recipe thoroughly before starting, and use standard measuring spoons for accuracy. • Where possible, we use humanely reared British meats, free-range chicken and eggs, and sustainably sourced fish. • We help you to avoid waste by using full packs, or suggesting how to use leftovers. Helping you to eat well Our nutritional therapist analyses our recipes on a per-serving basis, not including optional serving suggestions. You can compare these amounts with the Reference Intake (RI), the amount an adult should consume daily: Energy 2,000 cals, Protein 50g, Carbohydrates 260g, Fat 70g, Saturates 20g, Sugar 90g, Salt 6g (please note, RIs for saturates, sugar and salt are maximum daily amounts). How we label our recipes Our vegetarian (V) or vegan recipes are clearly labelled, but check pack…

This month, Jenny Morris recommends Porter & Rye in Glasgow. Located smack bang in the middle of Glasgow’s super-hip Finnieston strip, Porter & Rye delivers an unforgettable dining experience. The restaurant itself has an old-meets-new style – bare brick walls, cabinets filled with cured meat, an open kitchen, craft beer – which adds to its cool vibe. It uses local produce from Gaindykehead Farm, Airdrie, Scotland, and serves up beautiful Scottish meat and seafood – the bone marrow mac & cheese is stunning, especially when poured onto their burger! Know somewhere good in your area? Tell us what makes it stand out – we’ll publish a recommendation in every issue. Let us know on Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #gfeatsout…

INTRODUCING Halloumi fries As a nation we love halloumi, with online searches increasing by nearly 100% in a year at bbcgoodfood.com, to upward of 230,000 searches this August alone. This salty cheese from Cyprus has become far more than a BBQ staple. Now we cook it all year round in salads, burgers, wraps – and this month deep-fried, as chips. They make a great party snack. Why they’re on-trend Following on from courgette fries, sweet potato fries and avocado fries, it was only a matter of time before the food world was going to find a new ingredient to fry. Halloumi is particularly good as it has a high melting point, so keeps its shape. Where to find them? Highly Instagrammable, you’ll find halloumi fries at Oli Baba’s (@oli_babas) at…

barometer Noisy theatre food Rustling and chomping in cinemas and theatres could be a thing of the past as ticket firm TodayTix (todaytix.com) launches silent snacks, including ‘muffled truffles’ and ‘quiet (pop)corn bites’. Plastic cutlery France is the first country to ban plastic cups, cutlery and plates. Any disposable crockery must now be biodegradable or recyclable. Selection box toffee Nestlé recently announced it was replacing its Toffee Deluxe with a Honeycomb Crunch in its Quality Street selection.…

The Silver Spoon for Children: Favourite Italian Recipes (£12.95, Phaidon) This beautifully illustrated book has been especially adapted for children aged eight and over. Kids will love getting stuck into dishes like tomato bruschetta, rigatoni with meatballs and hazelnut cake. Making Bread Together by Emmanuel Hadjiandreou (£16.99, Ryland Peters & Small) Step-by-step recipes for fun, simple breads. You’ll find breakfast and lunchbox recipes, as well as tips for perfecting your kneading and plaiting skills. Cook School by Amanda Grant (£14.99, Ryland Peters & Small) This clever book is packed with clear advice and recipes that will give your child confidence to tackle a variety of dishes in the kitchen. You’ll find recipes for kids aged 3-5 years, 5-7 and 7-11. Eat your Greens, Reds,…

Shop-bought dips are often packed with fat and salt, according to a recent study. Despite being marketed as a ‘healthy’ option, researchers found that 75% of houmous tubs carried a red ‘traffic light’ warning for fat, while some contained more salt than four packets of ready-salted crisps. For the healthiest options, make your own. Find recipes at bbcgoodfood.com, including this butternut & harissa houmous.…

• 10 NOV-20 DEC Manchester Christmas Markets manchester.gov.uk/christmasmarkets • 11 NOV-18 DEC Leeds Christkindelmarkt leeds.gov.uk/christmasmarket • 24 NOV-11 DEC Bath Christmas Market bathchristmasmarket.co.uk • 8-18 DEC Oxford Christmas Market oxfordchristmasmarket.co.uk • 9-11 DEC BBC Good Food Festive Fayre, Hampton Court Palace, London bbcgoodfoodfestivefayre.com• 10-11 DEC Shrewsbury Winter Festival shrewsburychristmas.co.uk  • 11 DEC Abergavenny Food Festival abergavennyfoodfestival.com…

DO • Use Christmas entertaining as a way of purging your cupboards, fridge and freezer. That big bag of lentils at the back of the cupboard – cook it and combine it with caramelised onions, lemon juice, fresh herbs and plenty of olive oil to have as a side, or use them in a big sausage casserole. • Love your freezer. Have a good clear-out before the festive onslaught. Prep stews, chillies, pie fillings and braises ahead, then freeze them. • Save on washing up, stress and planning with sharing plates. Think crudo, ceviche or carpaccio: super-quick to throw together and a real treat. Try giant sausage (or venison) rolls you’ve baked until golden and then cut up for sharing (easy to make with pre-rolled puff), or crispy roast Jerusalem…

‘From a vivid mutabal to tuna tartare with passion fruit & avocado cream, this is bright, high-definition cooking’ WHERE The Refuge, Oxford Street, Manchester, M60 7HA, 0161 233 5151; refugemcr.co.uk COST Dinner for two around £80 BEST DISH Smoked feta with beetroot, hazelnut & dill VERDICT The food is pretty fantastic, it's a cracking space and any flaws will be ironed out Like many Mancunians, I owe much of my misspent youth (and worn knee cartilage) to the Unabombers. In the 1990s, this DJ duo ran the hugely influential club night Electric Chair and I was, briefly, a resident DJ at its spin-off, Homoelectric. Today, Justin Crawford (below left) and Luke Cowdrey are bar owners and restaurateurs, most notably at Didsbury’s Volta. Drawing inspiration from places they loved on DJ…

Good Food contributing editor Diana Henry is an award-winning food writer. Her tenth book, Simple (£25, Mitchell Beazley), is out now. Each month she creates exclusive recipes using seasonal ingredients. @ DianaHenryFood The first meal I eat when I get to Ireland is always smoked salmon. It’s a tradition that mum greets us with a platter of the stuff, buttered wheaten bread and wedges of lemon. My response to the peaty smell of smoked salmon is almost Pavlovian – my mouth waters and I slide into celebratory mode. Smoked salmon is all about celebrations. The really good stuff is expensive, and used to be kept for Christmas and any event where champagne corks were popped. Quality smoked salmon provides high-end, easy eating. It’s great in a warm potato salad (drizzle…

Gingerbread pancakes MAKES 10 PREP 10 mins COOK 15-20 mins EASY V 150g self-raising flour 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp cinnamon 2 tsp golden caster sugar 1 egg, beaten 1/2 tbsp maple syrup, plus extra to serve 200ml full-fat or semi-skimmed milk vegetable oil, for frying 100g pitted dates, chopped, to serve 100ml crème fraîche, to serve 1 Put the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon and sugar in a large bowl with a pinch of salt. Combine the egg, maple syrup and milk in a jug. Gradually add to the dry ingredients, whisking until a smooth, silky batter forms. 2 Heat a drizzle of oil in a large, non-stick pan over a medium heat and ladle 2-3 small rounds into the pan. Cook for 1-2…

Since going solo, singer-songwriter Melanie Chisholm – aka Sporty Spice – has released seven albums and sold over 12 million records. She has also become an award-winning musical theatre actress having starred in Blood Brothers and Jesus Christ Superstar. Her latest album, Version of Me (£8.99, Red Girl Records), is out now. @MelanieCmusic The recipe I grew up with: scouse My mum, Joan, always found time to cook from scratch when I was young, even though she worked full time and sang in a band. She was really organised: she’d do her shopping and would know what we were going to have every day, and used leftovers wisely. A lot of people from Liverpool will know scouse. It is basically Irish stew and I think it originally came to Liverpool…

‘A buffet doesn’t have to be the retro kind with cheese-and-pineapple hedgehogs and soggy sandwiches. You can go to town with an exciting and varied array of food’ Chef Gizzi Erskine is a food and travel writer and best-selling author, known for her stylish, informal take on food and fashion. Her latest cookbook, Gizzi’s Season’s Eatings (£25, Mitchell Beazley) is out now. @gizzierskine @GizziErskine Christmas ceviche with guacamole The sweetness of smoked salmon gives ceviche a new, festive spin. I’ve used lightly smoked fresh salmon fillets and cut them into cubes, as most sliced smoked salmon will be too thin, and likely to disintegrate into the dish. Alternatively, if you’ve bought a whole unsliced smoked salmon fillet for Christmas, this is a brilliant way to use up leftovers. Scoop…

Good Food contributing editor John Torode, a chef, food writer and TV presenter, has been a judge on MasterChef for 11 years. Each month he reinvents one of the most popular recipes from our website. @JohnTorode1 I am a sucker for pastry, and when I decided to give beef Wellington a makeover, I had many an idea going through my head. Should I stay classic or return to the Eighties, when individual beef Wellingtons were all the rage? Or should I consider a different meat? Well, that was how I started, and this is how it ended. My pork Wellington is like a grown-up, posh and delicious sausage roll. It works well for a special dinner or as a good Sunday roast alternative. All the preparation can be done the…

BEST INNOVATION Magimix vision toaster, £145.79, amazon.co.uk Watching your toast brown in front of your eyes is rather thrilling! Novel idea aside, this is one impressive gadget, and created a totally even piece of toast. It’s easy to use and comes with plenty of added functions like a lift lever. An absolute winner. BEST FOR A GIFT Russell Hobbs glass line toaster, £59.99, uk.russellhobbs.com Where Magimix lead, others follow. Russell Hobbs’ clear-sided toaster is reasonably priced and looks great. Again, we loved the fact that we could watch our toast brown. BEST FOR SMALL HOUSEHOLDS Kenwood kMix toaster, £49.98, kenwoodworld.com/uk This two-slice toaster with warming rack is ideal for small families and compact kitchens. An efficient piece of kit, it toasts…

My three children, Tom (12), Ellie (10), and Hattie (seven), made themselves the raspberry lemonade slushies (Oct). Rosalind Mullin, Devon My husband and I got married in August and as soon as I got back from honeymoon the wedding diet went out the window. I cooked the low & slow steak, frying pan pizza and the no-knead grape & rosemary focaccia (Sept). I think my husband will soon get used to married life with a little help from Good Food! I made the courgette, lemon & thyme cake (Sept). It was delicious and a real showstopper. Sue Rait, Devon You’ve been posting our recipes… #bbcgoodfood @johnstimps John baked our spooky spider’s web cake (Oct) for Halloween and did a brilliant job. @justaddawesome Winner winner, meatball dinner. Steph…

SERVES 2 PREP 10 mins COOK 25 mins EASY 1 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil 4 chipolatas 4 rashers streaky bacon 200g chestnut or button mushroom, sliced 200g can haricot beans, drained 200ml passata 6 cherry tomatoes 1 tbsp tomato ketchup pinch of chilli flakes (optional) 2-4 eggs (depending on how hungry you are) small handful parsley, chopped buttered toast, to serve 1 Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan. Add the chipolatas, cook until brown all over, then push to one side of the pan. Add the bacon to one part of the pan and the mushrooms to the other. Fry until the bacon starts to crisp and the mushrooms are golden. Tip the contents of the pan onto a plate. 2 Tip the beans, passata and…

SERVES 6 PREP 10 mins COOK 10 mins EASY V 170g pot Greek yogurt 1 lemon, zested, then cut into wedges for squeezing 1 tbsp rose harissa 3 tbsp za’atar, plus extra for sprinkling 75g plain flour 2 x 250g blocks halloumi, cut into fries oil, for frying handful mint, leaves torn 1 Mix the yogurt with the lemon zest and some seasoning, then swirl through the harissa so that you have pockets of hot and cool in the dip. 2 On a plate, stir the za’atar into the flour, then roll the halloumi in the mixture so that it’s evenly coated. Heat the oil in a shallow, heavy-bottomed pan or casserole dish until 180C on a cooking thermometer, or a piece of bread browns in 20 secs. Working in…

Cocktail club Cut the peel from 1 preserved lemon and chop very finely. Stir in 1 tbsp Campari and 2 fresh orange juice. Stir, then add to 6 freshly shucked oysters and serve immediately. Japanese inspired Very finely chop 3 sprigs coriander, 1 small red chilli, deseeded, and 1 tsp sushi ginger. Stir in the juice of1/2 lime, then spoon over 6 freshly shucked oysters. Top each with a pinch of crispy onions. Scandi-style Mix together1/4 pack dill, chopped, with 1 tsp small capers and the juice and zest of 1 lemon. Add to 6 freshly shucked oysters and serve straight away. Middle Eastern Combine 25g pomegranate seeds, the zest and juice of 1 lime and 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses. Serve alongside 6 freshly shucked oysters to drizzle over before…

Mulled wine, cranberry & apple crumble This is the perfect Boxing Day dessert – a spiced wine-infused fruity crumble to follow the cold meats and salad. Cranberries work well with cooking apples and, along with the mulled wine, tint the fruit filling a ruby-red colour. SERVES 4-6 PREP 20 mins COOK 40 mins EASY For the mulled wine 150ml red wine 4 tbsp demerara sugar 1 cinnamon stick 1 clementine, stuck with 2 cloves good grating of nutmeg 2 cardamom pods For the crumble topping 50g plain flour 50g ground almonds 50g blanched hazelnuts, toasted and ground 50g unsalted butter, chilled and diced, plus extra for greasing 50g demerara sugar For the filling 1kg cooking apples (preferably Bramleys or Howgate Wonders) 75g fresh or frozen cranberries fresh vanilla custard or…

In the beginning It’s believed that wine from the prosecco-producing area of Italy was enjoyed in Roman times, but it wasn’t until the late 19th century that it underwent secondary fermentation to become sparkling wine. Then Prosecco broke into the UK market around 2010 and became an instant hit thanks to its thrifty price tag, crisp and dry flavour, and similarity to champagne. Now Sparkling wine sales have increased 80% in the past five years, according to tax office figures. Mainstream UK sales hit £338m this year, up 72% on the previous year, according to retail analyst IRI. And the bubble shows no sign of bursting – this Christmas it’s been used to flavour everything from cheese to panettone. Enjoy it yourself There are three types of prosecco to try:…

VEGETARIAN CHRISTMAS MAGAZINE Featuring more than 100 delicious recipes – including a new all-vegan Christmas Day menu. On sale now for just £3.90. GF SHOWS Discover a BBC Good Food Show near you – find out more on page 86. Readers save 30% on tickets! GOOD FOOD ON YOUR PHONE OR TABLET Download our interactive app at the Apple App Store. SHARE THE FUN! Tag your festive prepping, decoration and party photos #christmasmoments for your chance to feature on our social channels.…

I’m excited about my Christmas wine. Not the bottles I’ve put aside for the turkey lunch, or the Boxing Day free-for-all, or even for New Year’s Eve. The best Christmas wines are never the big-occasion bottles, or the ones that have been planned and budgeted for catering purposes (and, in some cases, maybe for awkward relative sedation). They're what I like to think of as The Stash: the wines – or wine, because often it’s just one bottle – that you buy at exactly the point when you think you have all you need, and that you pick for pure pleasure alone. We do actually have one Stash-worthy planned bottle in our house, and that’s champagne. My dad is anosmic – he has no sense of smell – mum can’t…

‘My lightbulb moment came when I stopped searching for healthier sugar substitutes’ During the Christmas festivities, when British households are awash with cakes, desserts, biscuits, chocolates and dried fruits, any prospect of making a dent in our sugar consumption seems daunting. However, anyone who cares about their health knows they have to face up to this challenge at some point, given the mounting scientific consensus that it is the prime culprit for obesity and associated illnesses. I began to consciously reduce sugar in my household about two years ago. We were off to a flying start, I thought, because we rarely have soft drinks, which are by far the easiest way to glug down lots of sugar without even noticing it. Nevertheless, we were still managing to get through bags…

Good Food contributing editor Tom Kerridge is chef-owner of The Hand & Flowers and The Coach pubs – both in Marlow, Buckinghamshire. Every month he creates exclusive new seasonal recipes for us. Tom will be presenting a new BBC show, Fast Food Britain, next month. @ChefTomKerridge Slow-cooked goose with cranberry salsa The salsa’s fruity, delicate heat is a good contrast to the richness of the goose, and makes a fresh alternative to the traditional cranberry sauce. SERVES 6-8 PREP 35 mins plus resting COOK 4 hrs MORE EFFORT 1 whole goose (about 6kg), giblets removed, trimmed of excess fat For the spice mix 8 whole cloves 3 star anise 2 chicken stock cubes 2 oranges, zested 2 tsp ground cinnamon For the salsa 2 onions, finely chopped 2 tbsp olive…

Good Food contributing editor Joe Wicks is a former personal trainer. Now an Instagram phenomenon with 1.5 million followers, his #Leanin15 videos focus on quick, easy cooking. His 90 Day SSS (Shift, Shape and Sustain) Plan has inspired men and women nationwide to sign up to his programme of healthy recipes and workouts. thebodycoach.co.uk @thebodycoach Joe’s book Lean in 15: The Sustain Plan (£16.99, Bluebird) is out now. His DVD, The Body Coach: Lean in 15, is out on 26 December Gobble & squeak The Christmas season can be excessive, so you might find yourself with loads of food in the house this month and no idea what to do with it. This easy turkey recipe uses up some of that leftover meat and any veg kicking around. It’s lean too,…

‘I have been cooking since I was small, and started writing my own recipes as I got older,’ says 14-year-old Bree, from Wiltshire. ‘I mainly cook cakes, desserts and other sweet things. I created this recipe after a busy day at school and just used ingredients I could find in the kitchen. I designed it to be quick and easy, as it’s always good to have a simple cake recipe to hand.’ Super - simple fruitcake SERVES 8 PREP 20 mins COOK 25 mins EASY 175ml olive oil, plus extra for greasing 100g light brown muscovado sugar 2 eggs, beaten 225g plain flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp allspice 1/2 orange, juiced 1/2 lemon, juiced 200g mixed dried fruit 200g apricot jam icing sugar, for…

Malted milk melting snowman cake We used a hemisphere tin to make the snowman’s head (ours came from lakeland.co.uk ). You can buy malt extract from health food stores or online. SERVES 25-30 PREP 1 hr plus chilling COOK 1 hr 25 mins MORE EFFORT * sponges only For the sponges 500g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing 500g golden caster sugar 10 eggs 200g plain flour 200g full-fat natural yogurt 460g self-raising flour 4 tbsp malt extract (or 2 tbsp vanilla paste) 1 tbsp full-fat milk (or 2 tbsp if using vanilla paste) For the buttercream 400g unsalted butter, softened 700g icing sugar 2 tbsp malt extract (or 1 tbsp vanilla paste) 1 tbsp full-fat milk For the drippy ganache 100g white chocolate 1/2 tsp vegetable oil To…

Marina O’Loughlin is one of the UK’s most knowledgeable food writers, and undercover restaurant reviewer for BBC Good Food and The Guardian Weekend. An intrepid culinary traveller, she researches the most exciting places to visit at each destination, so you’ll know exactly where and what to eat when you get there. For more from Marina, visit bbcgoodfood.com. @marinaoloughlin @marinagpoloughlin ‘The clean, sweet air and life-enhancing views of the area have an unexpected effect on me’ Up above the clouds, dominated by the gasp-inducing peak of Wilder Kaiser, Angerer Alm (angereralm.at), the first stop on our adventure in the Austrian Tyrol, is – a word I rarely use – unique. Owner Annemarie Foidl fell in love with this enchanting 200-year-old wooden Alpine ‘hut’ aged just 19, and has been dedicated to…

‘The ragù di manzo (beef ragu) was shown to me by a cook, Maria, in Bologna – where ragu comes from. As it’s a dairy-producing region, they cook with butter as well as olive oil, and traditionally use three types of meat – veal, beef and pork. This is a traditional lasagne, which would be made with love and served at a special occasion – perfect for this time of year!’ Theo’s classic lasagne Don’t serve this piping hot – it needs to sit for at least 20 minutes to settle, and is best served just warm. SERVES 6-8 PREP 40 mins COOK 2 hrs 50 mins MORE EFFORT 250g pack fresh lasagne sheets olive oil, for greasing large handful grated parmesan For the ragu 110g unsalted butter 1 celery…