Jamie’s Family Christmas featured a recipe for stuffing which, as soon as I saw it, thought would make for a comforting and nourishing meatloaf. I wasn’t far off but I roasted it too quickly – a slower roast next time, so the juice doesn’t get wringed from it.
Meatloaf:
500g pork shoulder
Grated nutmeg
Grated zest of an orange
handful of sage leaves
1 onion
Handful of breadcrumbs
Good pinch of salt, pepper
Blitz all the ingredients in a food processor. Pile into a baking dish and top with bacon. Roast for 45 minutes at 180°C.
To make his stuffing Jamie blitzes pork shoulder, sea salt, pepper, lemon zest, nutmeg, orange, sage and smoked bacon before adding onion and breadcrumbs.
Some days of the year call for pure luxury, and I think New Year’s Day should be one of them. This renegade of the 70s is a favourite of mine in a decent old-fashioned restaurant, and is complete indulgence. In essence it’s fillet steak, sitting on pate and a crouton, in a red wine sauce. Traditionally it calls for foie gras but I’ve scaled it back to good old chicken liver pate. It’s absolutely delicious and great for a real treat. The tender meat, al dente mushrooms, smooth pate and crisp crouton, all going down with a savoury sauce… yum.
Tournedos rossini:
500g fillet steak, at room temperature
5 – 6 closed cup mushrooms, sliced
Slightly stale bread, cut to rounds (preferably the same size as the steak) and toasted
Pate, cut like the bread
For the sauce:
1 garlic clove, unpeeled
Small glass of red wine
Splash of balsamic vinegar
500ml beef stock
Fry the mushrooms in a little oil and butter. Get on with the steaks while they cook. You want them to be fairly soft. Don’t season them until right at the end to make sure they don’t release water early.
In another pan season the beef with pepper and fry in a very hot pan for 3 minutes either side. You’re looking for a nice bounce to the meat when pressed with a thumb – please keep it medium – rare. Leave the meat to rest on a hot plate while you make the sauce.
Add the garlic clove to the steak pan and deglaze with wine. When this has reduced to a nice syrup add the stock and vinegar and bubble fast to reduce this liquid down.
Check for seasoning, remove the garlic and throw in the mushrooms.
Season the meat with salt and add the meat juices to the sauce.
Assemble the dish with bread, then pate, then the meat, finally top with sauce.
I really enjoyed Jamie Oliver’s Family Christmas, a programme which dealt with making Christmas as easy and stress-free as possible. There was plenty to enjoy and loads of bits that I took from it, such as his roast potatoes. However I was drooling at the sight of his winter pudding bombe, and thought it looked absolutely fantastic. I had to make my own. It’s a spin on Summer pudding, with panettone as the bread base, filled with ice cream and preserved fruit, then topped with melted chocolate.
I didn’t fancy faffing with glacé fruits and went straight to a shortcut: leftover Christmas pudding. I used Sainsbury’s Basics Christmas pudding, which sounds absolutely rotten but I’ve used them before and been completely happy with them. I wasn’t disappointed. I also managed to find a chocolate chip panettone which was a really nice touch; chunky bits of choc punctuating the beautifully bland ice-cream. But to my surprise it’s the jam that makes this. Such a vibrant flavour sings out loud when you’re chewing through it, it’s quite exciting. If you have any of these bits laying around, I really recommend you make one – takes no time at all and can be left quite happy in the freezer until required.
Winter Christmas pudding bombe:
5 – 6 slices panettone (I used a chocolate chip one)
500ml good vanilla ice cream
300 – 500g Christmas pudding (I used 4 x Sainsbury’s Basics ones)
3 – 4 tablespoons fruity jam (I used raspberry)
Some good splashes of marsala wine
125g melted dark chocolate
Leave your ice cream out of the freezer for 30 mins beforehand to let it soften.
Lay some clingfilm in a bowl with plenty of overhang so you’ll be able to cover it over the top afterwards. Layer the panettone in a mixing bowl, overlapping slightly but don’t let it get too thick. (Make sure your bowl can fit in your fridge!)
Spread a thin layer of jam all around the bread.
Spoon in half the ice cream, then top with broken up Christmas pudding. Add the remaining ice cream.
Top with more panettone, then drizzle marsala all over the base and down the sides for a little Christmas cheer.
Wrap the cling film over the top, then cling film again. Take a plate and press down on it to squish it all together. Leave in the freezer until needed.
When serving, remove to the fridge for an hour to let the ice cream soften. melt some chocolate in a bain marie and pour over the top.
maple sprouts with lardons, chestnuts and maple syrup
Yet another ode to the sprout. This one is my king of sprout recipes, decreeing that anything inedible to some can be rendered palatable if paired with bacon. I wouldn’t be without these on Christmas day; salty, sweet, chewy, with the greenery providing an excellent foil for all that indulgence.
Merry Christmas!
Maple sprouts with lardons and chestnuts:
About 20 sprouts
200g bacon lardons, pancetta or streaky bacon
1 vac pack of chestnuts, bashed up
1 tablespoon maple syrup
Parboil the sprouts until just tender. Drain.
In a frying pan cook the bacon in a little butter until turning crisp. Add the chestnuts and sprouts and cook for a couple of minutes, then season – watch for the saltiness of the bacon here.
Add the maple syrup, stir briefly and serve alongside a lovely fat roasting joint.
