Spanish food for Christmas

Christmas time, ho ho ho. I'm quite traditional about the whole yuletide thing, particularly when it comes to food. Each year I fend off suggestions of a goose, chicken, pheasant or duck for Christmas dinner because turkey's just what you must have. Similarly, satsumas, sprouts, chocolates and cheese are the order of the day (not necessarily together, but certainly in rapid succession).

This year, however, we decided to create our own hamper for Christmas full of indulgent things we love. And for me that means breaking slightly from tradition. The things I love includes Spanish ham, olives, marcona almonds and cava.

So, this afternoon I went to Brindisa in Borough Market to stock up on luxury Spanish food for Christmas. I've never been there before - clearly a serious oversight! It's the best shop in the world, bar none. I mean, I love Fortnum and Mason, particularly at Christmas, but they don't feed you samples of ham, cake and olives the second you walk through the door!

Brindisa smells like a delicatessen in Spain and every surface is heaving with bottles of olive oil, pulses or nuts. There's an obliging young man expertly carving a leg of delicious ham on one side, a young girl handing out cake on the other and a stack of chillies in the middle. My eyes were on stalks the second I arrived. I bought some of the delicious ham, carved for me and lovingly wrapped. I also bought melt-in-the-mouth olives, almond cake and some plan marcona almonds. Simple food, not messed-with or fussed-over.

So, this year we'll have a little slice of Spain in with our ever-so-English Christmas fayre. Feliz navidad.

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New year, new treats

I have tasted some wonderful things over the past few weeks, some of which I craved all last year. So one of my resolutions is not to save absolutely every treat for Christmas.

High on my list is the fabulous Brussels sprout, one of my favourite vegetables. Sprouts taste amazingly right with a traditional Christmas dinner, followed a very close second by the taste of a sprout in my Boxing day bubble and squeak. These are both meals, however, with close equivalents in my year-long repertoire; I think I will certainly start buying sprouts to eat with roast chicken or with sausages and mash, too.

Mince pies are lovely little things. I tend to start eating them at the beginning of December and indulge until January when, for some reason, they disappear completely from our shops. It's still winter in January and February, and I see no reason not to enjoy the seasonal spicy flavours. What better way to combat the early-February blues than with a yummy mincie and a warming glass of mulled wine, after all? If I can't find them in shops I shall make my own.

Chestnuts - there's another one. They'd be great in a salad or with pasta, so i'm going to keep them in mind all year round as an alternative to walnuts, which I tend to stick in everything without even thinking.

Finally, the whole ethos of Christmas eating is something I don't want to lose. I like cooking a huge lunch and making it the focal point of the day. It brings a family together, frees up whole afternoons and evenings and makes some use of our dining tables! I also like the idea of having odds and ends around to graze upon, whether it's nuts, satsumas, cheese and biscuits or the odd chocolate. It doesn't have to be unhealthy: substitute the salted nuts for natural roasted ones, swap the Quality Street for good-quality dark chocolate and go easy on the cheese. But retain the no-guilt, non-scheduled, celebratory, healthy attitude to food - go on, treat yourself!

Crunchy Christmas

Everyone keeps saying the words credit and crunch in conjunction as if it makes a well-known saying. I'm not entirely convinced that 'credit crunch' really is a proper thing, or that I actually need to economise, due to the extraordinary sales taking place everywhere. I may be the exception, however, so here's some thoughts on having a crunchy Christmas!

Now - turkey is a fairly low-cost meat (as well as being low-fat) and can be eaten for about a week after the event, so we're already off to a good start. Choose an extra-massive turkey for Christmas day and you're already economising on meat for the festive period. Buy a jar of Stokes Coronation sauce to whip up some tasty Coronation turkey sandwiches, salads or jacket potato toppings.

Christmas dinner seems to be made up largely of vegetables, which you can buy in large quantities in most supermarkets, making the most of the 2 for 1 deals. Either stick them in the fridge drawer in bags, or freeze them. If you cook vast mountains of vegetables all in one go for Christmas lunch, you can also enjoy bubble and squeak for the next couple of days, either with cold meat and pickles or with omelette and baked beans.

For me. Christmas is all about being able to eke out the supplies for days on end until the shops open again. I don't care if they're open all the way through these days - it's the spirit of the thing! Who cares if lunch is one sausage, some crackers and the last of the brie? It's Christmas!

Winter killing

It nearly happened again! Last Monday, at the first proper whiff of winter, I very nearly said "oh, it's my favourite season!"

I got as far as "oh, it ..." before remembering my solemn vow of loyalty to its older brother autumn.

I've been roasting parsnips til the cows come home (to be made into lovely fillet steak and eaten with redcurrant sauce and roasted parsnips!) and I caught a glimpse of some wonderful sprouts in the supermarket the other day. I've also got cupboards full of pickles, biscuits for cheese, nuts and chutneys for Christmas, so I'm all set for a happy, healthy, warm winter.

Christmas, Christmas, ching, ching, ching

Oh, those sleigh bells! That roasting turkey smell! The constant feeling of bloatedness and indigestion ... yes, Christmas time is here again!

My traditional dinner didn't disappoint. This year I added some sort-of mulled red cabbage (from Nigella's Feast book, but massively changed to suit my own tastes and ingredients!). I shredded some red cabbage and cooked it in a saucepan with red onions, red wine, sultanas, cinammon, black pepper, nutmeg, brown sugar and a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar. I have no idea of the quantities - just keep bunging it in and tasting as you go along! It's great because you can just put the lid on, leave it on a very (very, very) low heat and come back in about an hour and a half! Also, I tend to leave it in the saucepan overnight and heat it up again for Boxing day, to go with the cold meat and bubble & squeak.

My other exciting discovery this year is champagne cocktails, made by heating a little bit of brandy with cinammon, cloves, nutmeg, a bit of sugar, some star anise perhaps ... all the things normally used to make mulled wine, basically. You then leave it to cool before adding a teaspoon to each glass of chilled champagne, with a splash of Angostura bitters. It gives champagne an extra Christmassy kick and looks really pretty in the glass, too!

I also discovered Loyd Grossman's nuts. He doesn't show them on his website so I can't provide you with a link, unfortunately. For about £3 one can purchase a decent-sized bag of mixed roasted nuts with caramelised red onion; I bought them from Tesco but I think most supermarkets probably sell them. They've probably got a lot of added salt, but they're delicious and it *is* Christmas, after all!

The goose is getting fat and he's not alone

Christmas = food, in my world. I'm always wildly excited about all the possibilities and new recipes, then end up having the same stuff year after year. Not that I'm complaining - traditional Christmas dinner is one of my favourites, closely followed by bubble and squeak with leftover turkey and pickles!

But, ever the adventurer, I've been through all the supermarket magazines and good ole Nigella's book to find some new stuff to try.

What's your favourite Christmas dinner or recipe? What are you most looking forward to eating over the festive period? Or do you hate it all and long for the traditional January cut-down?!