Ham

The Christmas Ham

Preheat the oven to 160C

I always used to boil our ham, which is really tricky when it is the size of a small child, and it is hard to get the timing right as it takes so long to come back to the boil. This year, Michelle said to look in Delia, and of course, Delia knows best – bake it. So this is thanks to her and thanks to the organic farmer who grew it and thanks to Dorset Farms for curing and smoking it to perfection.

Soak the ham about an hour if you trust your butcher not to have made it really salty (I did), if in doubt, soak over night.

Wrap well in 2 sheets of foil, one one way, one the other way, loose enough to make a pocket above the meat – “an oven within an oven”.

Make sure the oven is well heated, bake for 20 mins/454g/1lb - which for our 6.7kg “baby” was 5 hours. Half an hour before the end of the cooking time, take the ham out of the oven. Turn it up to 200C. Remove the foil, cut off the net, carefully peel off the skin by cutting across the skin and using a tea towel to hold the corner, peel it off but keep as much fat on as possible. Cut diagonal diamonds across the fat and plant a clove into each diamond. Then mix: 3 heaped tablespoons of Colman’s hot English mustard and smear over the ham. Add 3 or 4 handfuls of Demerara sugar over the mustard and press it onto the wonderful mustardy “glue”.

Bake for up to half an hour, watch it carefully, don’t burn it! It should be pale golden with a few caramelised spots.

The juice from the pan (pints of it) makes amazing soup. Put it in the fridge to settle the fat for skimming. The stock can also be added to the parsley sauce to give it extra dimensions, and the glazing pan can be de-glazed with white wine (flat cava), and added to the parsley sauce too.

Our ham weighed 6.7kgs, it fed 15 of us (13 adult portions), and there was 1.5kg left, which was enough for sandwiches all round, so I would say about 30 portions in all – and we have been quite greedy with it. The mustard did not in any way make it ‘hot’, just added to the most bootiful flavour ever. Mmm. Amazing, and too good to just have at Christmas.

Amanda

Nantgwynfaen Organic Farm

Turkey

Christmas Turkey

We have given up trying to eat Christmas dinner at lunch time, 5pm seems to be optimum for us, everyone is up, has had lots of presents and cava, and we have not had to get up at 3am to cook the turkey… and it gives us an excuse to eat smoked salmon and scrambled eggs and Chelsea buns for brunch too, with bucks fizz, naturally…

Boil the giblets and stuff the turkey the day before. Chestnuts the small end, thyme and parsley the big end, and sew it up. Cover with streaky bacon and wrap loosely in 2 sheets of foil, one one way, one the other.way. Leave out of the fridge overnight to get to room temperature. Cook as follows:

Preheat the oven 200C

1 hour on 200C

4-5 hrs on 170C for a 6.57-9kg turkey (2.5-3 hrs for 3.5-4.5kg turkey) (3.5 hrs for 6.5kg turkey)

Last blast, 15 mins just to brown (no foil) on 200C

Rest 1 hour at kitchen temperature.

It is cooked when the meat button says it is when poked into the widest part of the thigh, and also when the juices run clear and there is no blood.

After resting, carve it Jamie Oliver’s way, by cutting the limbs off first, then cutting down the side of the breast bone, to remove the breasts and slicing each breast fillet on a board in thin (ish) slices. Arrange on a platter with the dark meat around the edge. This is a great way to carve 2 turkeys very quickly (before everyone has died of boredom).

Chestnut Stuffing

Allow hours for this, and make sure there is plenty of sherry to keep everyone interested:

3kg Chestnuts (15 adults)

Put a cross on the top of each nut and boil for about 20mins. They are done when the inside comes out easily, don’t include the brown skin. You don’t need to add any salt or pepper. Au naturale is fine.

Thyme & Parsley Stuffing

Mum makes this and she doesn’t really know how she does it, but it always involves:

Lemon, juice and zest

White bread crumbs

Streaky bacon

Fresh parsley

Thyme (dried)

Suet

She never knows how she does it, so it’s a case of going for it and hoping for the best!

In 2011, we had 2 turkeys, one was 7.8kg, the other 4.2kg. This was enough for 30 adult portions.

Amanda

Nantgwynfaen Organic Farm

Mince Pies and Brandy Cream

Mince Pies & Brandy Cream

Oven 180C Fan

I only use Robertson’s mincemeat (you’ll need 2 jars) or the kids walk around with long faces - which is just not Christmassy. Put 2 tsp of whisky in each jar and stir. This gives a good kick and makes them succulent.

16oz plain fine flour

10oz unsalted butter

1 level tsp salt

A drop vanilla (optional)

2oz icing sugar

Mix in food processor until ‘crumbs’

Add:

2 egg yolks and quarter to half a glass of cold water while whizzing until forms a playdough ball. Do not over mix or handle. Mixture should be quite moist.

Turn half onto floured board and avoid touching too much (use fingertips). Roll out in one direction, rotating patty, using plenty of flour. You should make about 30. If you make less, the pastry could have been rolled thinner. Use a good tsp of mincemeat, it should be just under the rim of the base of the pie, too much and it will overflow and make them sticky and hard to get out, too little and they will be dry and thin.

I use a bigger cutter for the base, and smaller cutter for the lid. Wet the rim of the lid to glue the top to the base, press down gently. Use an egg cup to squash down. Make a little cut in the top. Bake about 15 minutes until pale golden. Serve warm. They heat up well and keep for a good couple of weeks in a airtight box.

Serve with:

Brandy Cream

Double cream, whipped gently, so just thickened

Courvoisier Brandy, just a splash (it’s really worth it)

Icing Sugar (sieved), a desert spoonful to taste

Amanda

Nantgwynfaen Organic Farm

Mince Pie Frangipane Tart

Oven 180C fan

Thank you to Rowena, and Mary Berry and You Mag, and bakewell tarts in general. This recipe is half mince pie, and half bakewell tart, It is very seasonal and very delicious.

Put 2 tbsp brandy/whisky into a jar of Robertson’s mincemeat and stir, leave to one side.

For the pastry bottom:

8oz plain fine flour

5oz unsalted butter

half level tsp salt

A drop vanilla (optional)

1oz icing sugar

Mix in food processor until ‘crumbs’

Add 1 egg yolk and quarter of a glass of cold water, while whizzing, until it forms a playdough ball. Do not over mix or handle. Mixture should be quite moist. Turn out onto a floured board and avoid touching too much (use fingertips). Roll out in one direction, rotating patty, using plenty of flour Line a quiche dish with the pastry. Bake blind for 15 minutes, remove greaseproof paper and bake until golden, about 5 minutes. Take out the oven to cool.

Meanwhile, make the frangipane in the unwashed pastry bowl:

4oz butter

4oz caster sugar

Mix until smooth and creamy, add:

2 eggs

It might look curdly, mix well, don’t worry. Add:

4oz ground almonds

1 level tbsp plain flour

½ tsp almond essence

Mix these in quickly, don’t over beat.

Put most of the jar of mincemeat into the pastry case. Smooth on the frangipane, sprinkle over a few flaked almonds, and bake for about half and hour – watch it carefully. Take it out the oven and glaze with warmed apricot jam in lemon juice - if you are feeling really fun.

You can make mini tarts too, don’t par-bake the pastry, cook for 15-17 mins.

Amanda

Nantgwyfaen Organic Farm

Manda’s Mulled Wine

48 Glasses

When you decide to invite 80 people to your house a couple of days before Christmas and you have lots of turkeys to sell and you have 17 guests for Christmas itself and you have decided to have a 60 minute makeover on your daughters room that day, you really need a good mulled wine to settle your nerves, make the house smell inviting and not be too strong so that you loose the plot and peak too early..…. Mary Berry’s inspired recipe was tweaked here to include more fresh orange juice, which I think is the secret weapon:

8 bottles of red wine (plonk)

5 large lemons juice (400ml) and zest (use the potato peeler before juicing)

4 oranges juice (300ml) and zest

64 cloves

6x6 inch cinnamon sticks snapped in half

1.5 pints of freshly squeezed orange juice (10 oranges)

6.5 pints of water

600g sugar

1 orange cut up for serving garnish (optional)

Warm, don’t boil for 1-2 hrs. Strain it.

Goes well with mince pies and party dresses, but might stain when worn at the same time.

Amanda

Nantgwynfaen Organic Farm

Millionaire's Shortbread

For the Royal Wedding we all dressed up and had a party. A big garden party and the theme was 'Royal'. Well it wasn't just the bunting and the throne, everyone brought such yummy things, and not just cucumber sandwiches. Julie brought these very appropriate treats. As there were 81 people there, and I'm terribly selfish and greedy (and they were a bit warm) I put them in the fridge and 'forgot' about them. Well, the next day having retrieved the glasses out of the flower beds I discovered a paper bag in the fridge with a lovely yellow heart on it, and oh wow, oh boy.... it is too good not to share, so thank you to Helen who's recipe this is, and thank you to Julie for bringing them, and emailing this to me:

"The tray I use is about 24cm x 33cm and I line it with baking paper.

Base
4oz butter
4oz caster sugar
6oz plain flour

Cream together butter + sugar until light and fluffy. Fold in flour. Press into lined tray (always seems like it won’t be quite enough but it needs to be thin) Bake at 180º C for about 15 mins or until golden.

Caramel
4oz butter
4oz caster sugar
1 small tin condensed milk
4 tablespoon golden syrup

Melt all the ingredients together in saucepan (after carefully licking out the condensed milk tin / mind your tongue!). Boil for about 10 minutes stirring constantly (it can burn really easily – you might find that you get slightly darker flecks of mixture – these seem to disappear when the caramel has set). After it has boiled for 10 mins beat vigorously for a few minutes off the heat. Pour on to shortbread base, spread around and cool.

Chocolate
150g dark chocolate

Melt in bowl over pan of slightly boiling water. Pour over cooled caramel and leave to set. I usually put it in the fridge for a while.


Lots of love,

Julie x

PS I can’t believe there were 81 people at your party – that was so many!"

Dinosaur Cake

Ben was 3 on Saturday, and Cathy made a very good cake. It was a genius dinosaur, green with blue M&M spots with white Maltesers for claws and teeth, and all made from a little round cake which I noticed only used half the butter and eggs of a regular cake.... handy for low fat treats, and handy when the hens are on strike and handy for when one forgets to put butter on the shopping list...

So, she forgot her recipe book (my fault as I wanted the recipe), and now she might need it for Joe's cake next Saturday, and the book is too big to scan and I won't lose this recipe if I blog it, so here goes.

A Rich Chocolate Cake from DK

Set the oven to 180C. Line a 22cm round tin with non stick baking parchment.

Lemon juice, 1 tbsp

Milk, 250ml

Stir lemon juice into the milk.

Butter, 4oz

Sugar, 4.5oz

Eggs, 2

Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time.

Flour, plain, 8oz

Cocoa powder, 2oz

Bicarbonate of Soda, 1 tsp

Sift the dry ingredients together. Beat in half the dry ingredients and half the milk. Add the rest of the milk and then the rest of the flour, mix until smooth. Pour the mixture into the cake tin and bake it for one hour. Then tip the cake out of the tin and leave it on a wire rack to cool.

Butter Icing

Butter, 4oz

Icing Sugar, 8oz

Colouring, if you like that sort of thing

Chocolate Icing

Butter, 2oz

Icing Sugar, 3.5oz

Cocoa Powder, 2 tbsp

Did a birthday party of 14, with some left over for coffee on Sunday and a few pieces to take to school!