The Nigel Slater Christmas Chronicles Readalong 2025 - Part 3

[RainbowZebraWarrior]

Hello all, and welcome to Part 3. We Continue our CC journey.

For anyone who has not already had the pleasure, the annual Nigel Slater Christmas Chronicles read along is a real time annual MN tradition.

The Christmas Chronicles (Notes, stories and 100 essential recipes for midwinter) book began on 1st November.
We continue to read along and comment with the book which is set out in diary form. I will make a post each day (or let you know if there is no entry on a particular day)

For anyone new, it's a challenge to see of you can pick up the book as a bargain. Vinted has come up trumps in the past, as has ebay. A rare and precious charity shop find is always a bonus. Don't forget, you can also listen along to Nigel's dulcet tones via Audible.

So, welcome to old friends and new, and don't forget that reading by candle light is particularly enjoyable. Cire Trudon may be one of Nige's candles of choice, but it's somewhat pricey. We don't discriminate against other less expensive brands - even if they are NVN (Not Very Nigel)

Pull up a chair, light a candle, grab a cosy blanket and join in!

26 December - Boxing Day

A pig in a blanket, a crisp salad

Boxing Day could, just could, be the very best day of the year. I could elaborate, but what is the point when all is said and done in one, vast, magnificent, glorious sandwich. There is, I venture to suggest, no finer sandwich than the one built from the contents of the fridge on the day after Christmas. Thin folds of roast turkey, beef or goose, generously salted, cold stuffing, cold sausage, cranberry or apple sauce. A few sharp, possibly fiery Pickles. You will need some rather good bread of course, a dollop of mayonnaise, some leaves of sprightly lettuce or a tangle of watercress. You will almost certainly want to crisp a handful of rashers of smoked streaky bacon, too.

Today’s entry pretty much exactly describes the sandwich my DS constructed for himself last night (minus the streaky bacon!). He described it as tge best sandwich of the year. I’m hoping we still have leftovers after his raid on the fridge.

I love the Boxing Day sandwich. Best meal of the year.
The double birthday in our house today (DH and Dd1) so we have been up early and done present opening before DD1 goes off to the football with her Dad. DH and I plan a long frosty dog walk and a pint, and not much else :)

I have a picture in my mind now @LillianGish of a huge sandwich containing all of your festive leftovers!

Hope they have a good double birthday @piscofrisco

I've had a leftovers sandwich for breakfast (not sprouts though, even though I have loads of those) and come back to bed where I intend to spend most of the day. It's very frosty out so the view is nicely sparkly.

I do mostly share Nigel's views on the Boxing Day sales, and even more ridiculously the just-pre-Christmas sales, and the Christmas Day emails about sales - although it's easy to get sucked into buying lots just because it's cheap. I try to get more intentional these days and I have picked up a couple of things that I'd been intending to get anyway, at a bargain price.

Wishing everyone a lovely boxing day! Yesterday was its usual chaos of a family day, noise, DGS, elderly parents, too much food/wine and mess. So many thoughtful and wonderful presents (I GOT A TRUDON CANDLE FROM DH!!!!!) Today is pretty much the same. Love it.

btw, one of the most thought gifts I have ever been given, from a friend of dds who is now part of the family and always spends the day with us gave me a box of chocolates, we had a conversation before Christmas about how I remembered wonderful old fashioned boxes with a picture of a cottage of bouquet of flowers, tied up with ribbon and inside nestled in tissue paper were things like violet creams, decorated with little flowers etc. He scoured the interweb, found a vintage box and filled it in Fortnums with the most wonderful sweets. He will make a superb husband one day if he would only stop philandering 😂

How have so many of you got frost? I'm up on the usually bleak NE coast of England and its 5 degrees! Most disconcerting.

I used to have a full Christmas dinner at about 3pm then The Christmas Sandwich at about 7pm each Christmas day. The sandwich was indeed the best thing I ever ate in the whole year. For the past five years or so, dinner has gotten later and smaller and I never have any room for the sandwich, a mince pie, chocolates or Christmas pud. All things other folk seem to enjoy on the day. I don't know if it's a sign of getting older, though DD said she felt the same yesterday.

I'm thinking of making a turkey curry today. I've made a note of what to buy again next year: Waitrose Honey and Rosemary Chipolatas (bought tons and froze them) and what not to buy; Waitrose No 1 stuffed turkey breast wrapped in bacon and gilded angel dust or some such nonsense. Largely very dull, dry, boring and overpriced. Luckily my Mum and I buy different turkeys and swap half. I'll be getting the one I got her next year (Frozen crown from M&S)

Happy joint birthday day to your DD and DH @piscofrisco and happy boxing day all round to you all. I'm doing very little. Gentle pottering, fridge rearranging and clearing room for new gifts.

We’ve got a hard frost here in Chester - beautiful. My children got up at 8 to watch the new episodes of stranger things before the internet spoils it for them. DH still in bed. I’m lolling on the sofa enjoying not feeling like I should be doing something. Mum and dad mostly behaving quite well. Will try to muster for a walk later

Actually I take that back about the waitrose angel turkey thing. It's just sliced up beautifully as a cold cut. I must have just hacked the dry end bit off last night for my dinner.

Good morning! Hard white frost here in the Highlands. -4 I think? Very very pretty indeed.

We've had a walk and now I'm by the fire with a box of violet creams and the dog on my knee whilst the child is playing charades with her uncles and aunties.

Lovely post @thebabessavedme - which candle do you have?

Yuletide felicitations all! I have just spotted the St Eval sale has commenced and, going by the love on this thread, I have purchased a tealight advent calendar in preparation for Christmas 2026!

I shall write a note in my phone to remind me not to buy any other advent calendars next year because I'm bound to forget about it (out of sight, out of mind and all that...).

https://www.st-eval.com/collections/winter-sale-2025-up-to-50-off

We spent Christmas Day at my parent's, which was nice but trying in various ways - why does my mother need the volume on her phone to be SO LOUD?!?! Anyway, this means no leftovers for the magic Christmas sandwich but DH has nipped out to Tesco to get some ingredients for our own mini Christmas Dinner! 👌😋

I do mostly share Nigel's views on the Boxing Day sales, and even more ridiculously the just-pre-Christmas sales, and the Christmas Day emails about sales - although it's easy to get sucked into buying lots just because it's cheap. I try to get more intentional these days and I have picked up a couple of things that I'd been intending to get anyway, at a bargain price. I completely agree with this @martha79 - my test tends to be, would I have been interested in it at full price? I’m less and less interested in picking through all the stuff that no one else wanted in the hope of a so-called bargain.

I didn't get to the thread yesterday, but Merry Christmas and Happy Boxing Day to you all.

It was cold and grey when I got up this morning but for the last hour we've had the most glorious sun. Still bloody cold though!

Absolutely agree with @martha79 and @LillianGish I’m also super curious about what flavour Cire the totally excellent Mr @thebabessavedme gifted.

We have had a lovely swim with mum and ds2 as the pool is allowing members to take a friend in today. Great idea and so lovely to see mum and ds2 chatting in the bubbly pool. I’d made a huge pot of roast veg and lentil soup which, along with bread in ds2’s new bread maker, was ready on our return.

I will take a peek at the St Eval sale - thanks for the heads up. We know what we like and our candle cupboards will take a few more guests ahead of the next festive season!

DH totally aced it this season as he had found a beautiful aquamarine pendant in one of the local antique jewellery shops. We don’t usually do much but he has cottoned on to the “something special after all the crap”. The stones are in the shape of a forget me not. So pretty and meaningful.

@RainbowZebraWarrior It was -3 this morning up in sunny Chester and very pretty as the frost pockets remained on our later canal walk. I rather like Boxing Day dining as it tends to be a procession of soup, cheese and fruit.

Ah @Bimblesalong 'Something special after all the crap' sounds lovely, and Aquamarine is a gorgeous stone. I bought myself a lovely hammered silver ring from a trader called Tutti Frutti Silver at our lovely market and may be treating myself to something else from her as her jewellery is beautiful. We are a bit lost for the next couple of weekends though as the market is off until 10th Jan.

I saw the St Eval sale yesterday, but have decided against it. Toasted Crumpet is my new favourite and they also have a sale on. I can highly recommend their National Trust Winter Noir candle which also comes with a packet of seeds in the bottom of the box. Currently £9 down from £16

Very cold but lovely light in Versailles today for a big walk.

How beautiful, @Comtesse . We have frost already this evening, it’ll be chilly and, I hope, clear tomorrow.

@RainbowZebraWarrior no more candles for me now! I’ve dipped into the White Co and St Eval sales. That’s it!

it is Les Albatres Ernesto Tbh, I'm very in awe and the instructions go over 2 pages😯It's a beautiful Alabaster holder which I can refill (from where?, when? and how much does this cost?) Some years ago he gave me a Fornisetti candle, very lovely but I knew it was over £100 so it's never been lit (I know, I know) Just so chuffed he thinks I'm worth it.

Frost before 9pm tonight is bizarre when the forecast for much of the UK was around 5 degrees for this point in time this evening. Something very strange is going on with the forecasting! (Possibly the forecasters are all still on holiday?)

I'm totally done with St Eval. Have burned a number of their candles this week and have never been so disappointed - @PrizedPickledPopcorn I'm with you; I thought I'd lost my sense of smell with Inspiritus. There's just no throw at all. Felt like I was going mad!

I've just started reading The Secret World of Weather by Tristan Gooley.

Only a few pages in and my mind has been blown by the distinction between the weather and microclimates including one side of a bush compared to the other side.

He makes the point that it remains very difficult to forecast accurately and even more so to say if it's going to rain in your garden.

What an absolute treat @thebabessavedme - you absolutely must light your candles. I know what you mean when they cost so much, but pick a moment when you know you can relax and enjoy them. Trudon candles burn for 60 hours so I reckon it costs me a couple of euros every time I burn mine for an hour so which I think is pretty good value for what feels like an indulgent moment. The important thing is to let the wax melt across the whole surface to avoid tunneling. I remember when I first treated myself to some Santa Maria Novella soaps and could hardly bring myself to unwrap them, but someone on this very thread told me to go ahead and indulge myself and I’ve never looked back.

I was VERY disappointed with St Eval candles until I took the wicks out and used them as wax melts.

On the candle theme- The Yorkshire Candle Company have a sale on their Christmassy range at the moment.

I think I will look out for a tealight advent calendar for next year. DH got me a replacement Bethlehem tea light burner, so I will repeat my daily candle with it.

It’s been so busy, I’m behind with book and thread. I hope things have run smoothly for everyone, and the poorly people are feeling a bit better.

I’m proud of myself for only having a few moments of irritation with DM. She’s hard work- ‘high maintenance’ was invented to refer to her. However, things have gone well. DS brought his GF for the first time, and she’s lovely.

Oh, and I have been given a lovely room scenting set from white company, including a winter scented candle. Delicious. I haven’t been in White Company shops- I was rather impressed by the bag. Ribbons to tie it shut, and ribbon handles.