Do you tart up your Christmas veg?

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Inspired by the thread about what veg are served by law in each house, my question is - do you tart up your veg? Eg stir fry sprouts with bacon and chestnuts, create flavoured butters to melt over your carrots and so on? . . . . It tends to be plain boiled the life out of if my DM is cooking in our family

Ohh yes. They all get tarted up for Christmas. This year doing the sprouts with veggie bacon (or facon as I like to call it) bits, chestnuts and maple syrup. Parsnips and chanteney carrots are roasted in cinnamon honey, roast potatoes are done in truffle oil. Braised red cabbage with Apple. Oh I can't wait .

Just the sprouts and the red cabbage - other than that it's just a bit of seasoning. I think there tends to be so much flavour on the plate it's nice to have a bit of blandness to form a backdrop.

No I like vegies-they don't need tarting up. Except sprouts which should just be avoided because they are fatty.

And double triple yes to think of vegetarians it is very frustrating to not be able to eat even the potatoes.

How on earth are sprouts fatty!?

Oohh discussion of the day and on my birthday too!

Sprouts are only fatty if done in bloody boring bacon\pancetta and butter IMO. (Tom Kerridge has a lot to answer for!).

If you buy them on the stalk and keep them like flowers in a vase outside they stay fresh and taste A MAZ ING without anything extra except a bit of olive oil and maybe small chopped up onions.

No, prefer them plain

Yes and no.

Always do a mixed green dish which will just be various steamed greens with a smidgen of butter and some salt and pepper.

But then... crunchy mustard roast parsnips, orange and honey glazed carrots, cauliflower cheese, mashed peppery swede and garlic brussels.

No - yuck, I can't stand it when the veg is ruined by an over zealous cook. It's lovely to have something fresh on the plate to counter balance the rich xmas food. Adding a load of bacon or butter makes everything taste the same. Fatty.

Plain is the order of the day here, I like my roast dinner traditional and savoury. Cranberry sauce is the only concession to sweetness, otherwise it's no herbs, no spices, no cheese and definitely no fruity or honey glazes. Just rich, savoury meat and roasties and plain veg to offset it all. Maybe a bit of pepper in the mashed swede.

I use plenty of herbs and spices the rest of the time, but roast dinners just don't need them. And honey/fruit glazes on veg are not something I like at all, ever. As for cauliflower cheese, it's great comfort food on it's own, but doesn't go with a roast.

Yes it's not like there's not enough stress involved in just making the whole meal FGS.

Lidl are doing good value very cheap sprouts on the stalk this year

Usually only see them in other poncey shops

Mamapain I'm inviting myself to yours for Christmas. I may only eat the veg and nothing else :o

Munning That's brilliant I couldn't believe how nice they were when I had them; they are like a different veg. when they're fresh (on the stalk) and then they keep for a bit too.

Carrots and peas are simply steamed and them given a spot of butter.

Parsnips, however are coated in a mixture of oil/maple syrup then roasted.

Yep. I'm doing -

Sliced Brussels sprouts with whole sage leaves, crispy bacon and butter
Leeks and peas in garlic butter
Carrot sticks roasted in goose fat with rosemary
Red cabbage and apple braised
Savoy cabbage carbonara with cream and bacon

:-)

We had tarted up veg once about 15 years ago, it has gone down in family history as the year Christmas dinner was ruined so plain all the way in our house !

Plain veg here. DH will put some vinegar on his sprouts and I do occasionally like cauliflower cheese, but will do it plain, because my DM can't have too much milky/cheesy food. The rule here is just as many veg as can possibly be cooked.

and Happy Birthday

Thanks HSM

With the richness of stuffing, roast potatoes/parsnips, gravy etc. we also tend to keep other vegetables fat/oil free. We'll have steamed sprouts (DH will eat three, no-one else will touch them so not worth tarting), carrots with a little caraway seed and purple sprouting broccoli.

plain veg here -

roasted sprouts (must be very fresh - split in half, roasted for 25 mins in olive oil and salt - delicious)
roasted parsnips, sweet potato, butternut squash
steamed carrots and broccoli

except for ( slightly more effort) : my braised red cabbage (with a dash of balsamic vinegar) - yum!

Brussels - simmered with grated fresh ginger and honey until reduced.
Potatoes - lemon juice, oil (sunflower oil - am I the only person who can't stand goose fat potatoes?) and salt. Garlic bulbs chopped in half and roasted with them sometimes.
Parsnips - roasted with honey and thyme.

Sprouts with pancetta (although may try chorizo this year for a change)
Carrots cooked in fresh orange-amazing! Ooh can't wait!

Oh yes, do love veggies as nature intended with just a bit of butter but at Christmas it's time to go bonkers!! Sprouts with pancetta, slow cooked red cabbage, carrots done in stacks of butter with star anise - cannot wait!