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Original poster

Delia Smith Christmas.

135 replies

LucilleBluth · 02/12/2018 19:08

I'm watching her old Christmas series from the 90s. So far she has cooked some very random stuff, handled a raw goose then touched the salt and pepper grinders and given an explanation about what pesto is.

I was 10 in 1990...was good really this grim, I don't remember.

Prunes in almanac anyone? Gravlax tartlets with a rolled out bread base?

OP posts:
TonTonMacoute · 02/12/2018 20:18

Still use Delia's Christmas book!

Tom Kerridge was singing her praises on Desert Island Discs this morning.

GoldenSyrupLion · 02/12/2018 23:28

I always use her Christmas pud recipe.

PoutySprout · 02/12/2018 23:29

Her cheese and parsnip roulade is xmas for me.

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Myselfonashelf · 02/12/2018 23:34

I'm a huge Delia fan. I always found her books easy to read and follow. I'm mid 40s but she taught me to cook.
Wish I had Sky to watch these. My Delia Christmas cook book is still up in the attic from when we moved in but I must get up there this week to find it.
I agree so e of her recipes sound grim and must be do dated but there are some things that I'm still churning out without any complaints.
Her Christmas cake recipe is very easy to follow and always gets me lots of compliments.
I can only imagine the jumper/fashion situation you are faced with!Grin

PickAChew · 02/12/2018 23:40

This reminds me that I was wanting to unearth my Delia Christmas book.

I need the cranberry and onion confit recipe. It's probably online, but that page in the book has all the right sticky patches.

Who-moose does make me giggle though. If I catch her on tv i usually reply with me-moose.

Thymeout · 02/12/2018 23:42

I'm a big Delia fan. As pp said, her recipes are fool-proof - unlike Nigella's which can sometimes be a bit hit or miss. And she was an innovator. She had to explain what pesto was because most people hadn't heard of it - but then they tried it for themselves and now it's a staple.

Off topic, but I went to the People's Vote rally and got talking to a man from Norwich. She'd paid for coaches to bring local supporters down to London.

PickAChew · 02/12/2018 23:47

This reminds me that I was wanting to unearth my Delia Christmas book.

I need the cranberry and onion confit recipe. It's probably online, but that page in the book has all the right sticky patches.

Who-moose does make me giggle though. If I catch her on tv i usually reply with me-moose.

TheRealJoseph · 03/12/2018 00:16

The drinks expert was fabulous, all big blonde hair and shoulder pads.

Would that be Jilly Goolden? , If so, I remember watching her with Oz Clarke on "The Food Program" (which IIRC was on after "The Clothes Show" every Sunday?)

Tom Kerridge was singing her praises on Desert Island Discs this morning.

"The Hairy Bikers" has a soft spot for Ol' Delia too.

scaryteacher · 03/12/2018 00:21

I make her American Turkey stuffing every year, and have since the Christmas book was published. Prunes in Armagnac are available here in the supermarkets in Belgium, and I am very partial to the bloody great jars of cherries in jenever that dh puts in my stocking every Christmas. Who needs Benylin?

Those bread bases work, as do the pitta bread bases, and are quick and easy. The pickled shallots are great too.

The revised Christmas book is also great, and as pps have said, her recipes work first time, every time.

Food in the 90s was much better than food in the 70s, so don't knock what Delia did.

MeetOnTheSIedge · 03/12/2018 00:23

I miss her on the TV and still use her books. I use her Christmas dinner timetable every year. Also, she replied to my question on a MN webchat many years ago Smile

Juanbablo · 03/12/2018 01:59

We were watching this last night. We got to the part where the blonde lady was making some cocktails and recommending wines and ds1 says "why's that lady got such big elbows?" He meant the shoulder pads! Made me laugh.

ShovingLeopard · 03/12/2018 02:16

I wouldn't be at all surprised if it was largely down to Delia that pesto became a big thing shortly after. She was wildly influential back then, virtually the only 'celebrity chef' (cook, in her case) we had.

Bloodybridget · 03/12/2018 04:21

Her chunky apple cake is one of my favourites, I made one yesterday, absolutely delicious (I leave out the mixed peel as I don't like it).

drigon · 03/12/2018 04:37

Yes, Delia's books helped me learn how to cook in the late 70s to 90s, aged say 10 to 30. Her recipes are my basics and never go wrong. Agree the programmes are usually dated and slow now, though. Jamie is my go-to for the last 15 years, excellent stuff that always works as well.

MaidenMotherCrone · 03/12/2018 05:02

I remember this series when it was first on TV and looked forward to each weeks episode. Lattice pastry cutter anyone😁.

If you want to see how food has changed watch Fanny Craddock’s Christmas (possibly on YouTube) from the 1970s, I watched the original series of that too....grim.

wowfudge · 03/12/2018 05:57

Hmm saying that Delia's food is old-fashioned does suggest you a. haven't eaten it, and b. don't know how much influence she has had. She is single-handedly responsible for updating a lot of what people eat in this country and what's available to buy in the shops. There was a time when if she cooked with a specific ingredient it sold out everywhere in days.

I think she's a great example of someone who creates recipes for things you want to eat. Her cookery course has very little in it that isn't appetising now and it must be over 30 years old. As others have said, her recipes work.

AwkwardSquad · 03/12/2018 06:06

We made banana bread yesterday from my 35-year old copy of the Complete Cookery Course. Great recipe. I learned how to cook quite a few basics from that book, including white sauce and the best way to boil potatoes.

BookMeOnTheSudExpress · 03/12/2018 06:17

I am currently binge watching Christmas cookery programmes.
I will only make Delia's cake after the fiasco that was Nigella's Christmas cake with prunes, coffee and orange (iirc)
Not all of Delia's recipes work, especially her old stuff (complete cookery course, she's in a red jumper on the front) but I saw a lovely documentary (well worth digging out) where she explains that when people say her recipes haven't worked she goes back and redoes them to see why. (Her mum of the famous sausage rolls is in it as well iirc)

She was fab on the webchat on here and really talked to people. Nigella, meanwhile, just answered every question with " it's in my book on page..."

It surprised me, because I love Nigella's books and programmes, but Delia was much more human and approachable.

Jellycatspyjamas · 03/12/2018 06:26

I love Delia, reliable recipes and straightforward basics. Her complete cookery course still sits on my bookcase along with her cake book - I still turn to her to check timings for a roast. Maybe less showy than some of the others but totally dependable.

Bittermints · 03/12/2018 06:30

Delia can do no wrong in my eyes. I have and still use most of her books. Her Christmas pudding and mincemeat are great. Prunes in Armagnac is a classic French dish and I believe prunes and apples are a traditional accompaniment to goose.

kalinkafoxtrot45 · 03/12/2018 06:37

AwkwardSquad I still use that recipe too! Delia’s Complete Cookery Course is my first go-to when I need a recipe. My parents gave me a copy when I left home. Off to google prunes in Armagnac now as that sounds well lush.

coffeeagogo · 03/12/2018 06:41

I love Delia, when I was little in 80s I was obsessed with watching her cooking on TV (my mum found it really weird) and even now I have all her books. Her complete cookery course is my go to book. The only time I have messed up one of her recipes is when she has suggested using a certain size dish or pan and I've not had the right size. I find her very relaxing even now to watch

nottakingthisanymore · 03/12/2018 06:54

I use her Christmas cook book every year. I love her timings for Xmas day, her gravy tips and I just love how it’s written with suggestions of where to order food. Her recipes never fail.

IDismyname · 03/12/2018 07:15

Delia was a real trail blazer in her day, introducing us to all sorts of stuff we now take for granted. I remember a chocolate cheesecakey flan recipe that included liquid glucose. I must look it up again.

Shelves of stuff would just disappear once she’d mentioned it. She looks so dated these days, but huge chunks of the population learnt to cook with her.

I was given her Complete Cookery Course as a 21st present. I still use it today.

Coniferhedge · 03/12/2018 07:20

I love Delia and remember watching the Christmas shows with my Mum. I would have been 18 at the time. I remember that was the first time there was a ‘Delia effect’, in that one particular ingredient she’d used would fly off the shelves and be particularly sought after. In this case it was fresh cranberries to make your own cranberry sauce. Before then, everyone had just had a jar of Ocean Spray from the supermarket!