The Nigel Slater Christmas Chronicles Readalong 2025/6 Part 4

[RainbowZebraWarrior]

Hello all, and welcome to Part 4. We Continue our CC journey. We are almost at the end, as there are only four chapters of the book left, but there will be a year round thread for those who wish to continue.

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, (and it's never too late to join in) 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!

Sorry new oven was @LatteLady!

@piscofrisco DH and I did that on Thursday, I had got so far as putting my dressing gown on when we got a 'distress' call from DSIL, he was dj-ing and the pub was so quiet he needed 'bodies', so off we went like young people ( I did get dressed again) saying we would just stop for one, got home at 12.30 and I went to bed without removing my make-up 😯

Dreaming of a new oven now 😄.

A friend organises a wassail/tree toasting at her allotments every January - they have morris dancers and folk musicians and usually get a write up in the local paper. Rained off this year but a bit of tree bashing still happened.

Morning! I was DarkEyedSailor on the last thread.

I know I am a bit late on the bread pudding post - but this is a great recipe if you fancy trying s savoury version. You can halve it if you need to make a smaller one. https://smittenkitchen.com/2009/12/spinach-and-cheese-strata/

Thanks @Comtesse, never tried savoury bread pudding so I might have a go.

Today's jobs are to make a chocolate Guinness cake for DS' birthday (Nigella not Nigel, sorry Nige) and buy DH a dinner jacket for a ball we're going to in a few weeks.

The last ball we went to (2 years ago) I squeezed into a size 26 dress, this week I bought a size 18 dress in the same brand which I tried on this morning...it's too big! Now have a size 16 on its way to me.

I'm also off to the launch party for a local radio station tonight. I may be hosting my own show, with a friend, meeting her next week to discuss ideas.

That's exciting @petitpasta!

Happy new oven @LatteLady

Enjoying your various tales of impromptu nights out. Pre-lurgy I was going to a few daytime disco/club events and very much enjoying getting up on the dancefloor (but also getting home for 8pm 🤣😴).

@Comtesse that looks really tasty. I used to make something like this https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/val_daosta_cabbage_soup_08762 quite often which turned out a bit like a soft savoury bread pudding.

I’m very impressed by the kitchen discos and actual discos- it’s been a while since I’ve been up for that! Though I have a little bop if there’s a mammoth kitchen session underway, purely because it makes everything hurt less. Movement is better than being still.

@PricklyBob i meant to say earlier and forgot, I had a similar confusion to yours about the Hebrides- Timbuctoo, I think it was, that turned out to be a real place.

The sewing went well. After next week I’ll have something worth photographing. I’m now recovering on the sofa as concentration and being around people can be quite wearing.

Wow! You lot have been up to so many exciting things. Also, some of the recipes look gorgeous. I'm all for a savoury / cheesy version of a b & b pudding. Tonight I have leftover crockpot stew made with beef skirt last night. It is deliciously rich, and like a curry, is sure to be even more delicious on day 2.

Fairly uneventful day today. We got the rain eventually and my joints are complaining massively of the damp weather. My evening will largely be spent lying on my bed watching my failsafe Detectorists which is my gentle go-to when my brain and body can't concentrate on anything new.

Took DD to have her hair restyled this morning. She is now the proud owner of a very funky mullet!

Just made it back in time for my waitrose order after trying to sort out my Mum's food order which didn't turn up. It's due around 6pm which will be 5 hours later than booked.

I've been researching and previewing nature books on Audible. I did look for the book recommended by @martha79 but it isn't available on Audible, though the author's forthcoming title is available for pre order.

DD also made a couple of loaves of wholemeal seeded bread, so one of those was dispatched to my parents.

Have a lovely evening, all.

Lovely bread and recipes.
That’s so exciting @Petitpasta!And I’m sure you will look amazing in your dress. I would love a ball to go to.
we walked 8 miles around Rutland water this afternoon and what a gift of an afternoon it was, after a morning of torrential rain, warm sunshine and a flat calm lake. It looked beautiful and we sat for a while watching the boats and the birds.
About to make some Chinese food from scratch, which I’ve never attempted before, so we will see how it goes!

Also, I was going to 'toast the trees' this evening, but I'm not really up to larking about at the bottom of the garden on a cold, damp night. The wreath was also supposed to come off the front door, but that ain't happening, either. I've just noticed a stray Christmas card blu-tacked to one of the panes in the kitchen door. That will likely still be there in March. We will gloss over the fact that there's still one tree up, too. It doesn't actually matter really in the grand scheme of things. Feels like bed time to me already as I've been up since 3.40am. This was me huddled up to the stove with a cuppa with the nisser before the birds were even up this morning!

@RainbowZebraWarrior.@Bimblesalong you are both so right. I'm afraid I'm rather behaving like a toddler over it all, and need to be more sanguine, especially given everyone's health challenges, but the companionship is indeed deeply appreciated.
Lovely bread and stove there Rainbow, tomorrow is our twelfth night but our Armenian friends have their Christmas day today, and will have their tree up until the end of the month.
In our book as long as all greenery is out by Candlemass it's all good

@Bimblesalong Congratulations on the certificate.

@petitpasta that sounds very exiting.

@PrizedPickledPopcorn Hope the course is enjoyable. So many part done projects here too.

@Confusedmeanderings There was indeed though it wasn't one I knew well.

@leporello Tonight is wassailing night for us. I've done ours and a couple of neighbors, but am not able to stay the course. The rest have gone to a bigger event which can get a bit rowdy as it involves a forest, and a pub or two.

If they're still standing when they get back, I'll be up for the final wassail which is the important one that acknowledge the hands of women behind it all:

And here's to the women in their good twelvey frocks
who slipped down the stairs and slid back the locks,
who let us all in, and shared all the good cheer
who made all the lambswool, and brewed all the beer.
Wassail, wassail, wassail, to you my dear,
Wassail, wassail, that we'll greet you next year!

I’m sat here with my popcorn waiting for the knickers story. 🍿
We’ve had an impromptu day out, supported by a reasonable train timetable that involved only one train each way and only a couple of hours.

One of my favourite ballets is playing at the Opera House (Woolf Works) and I decided to invited dh on an extreme date - we’ve had a lovely day. We took a packed lunch and tea, sat and held hands and had a little weep at the ballet - the brilliance of the second act with lasers set me off with the tissues! The music by max richter is just wonderful. They use the only known recording of Woolf’s voice, with the three acts mirroring her life and three of her works. After the couple of years we’ve had, I felt it was a carpe diem thing and it was lovely.

We did drop into the BM first as I wanted to see the Tudor Heart which is on display there - I think another poster may have posted about this before Christmas. Speaking of the shops opposite the BM, I spent all my Christmas money in the ceramics centre. Pictures to follow when they’re unwrapped. A quiet day for us tomorrow as I think we’ve both used a week of spoons!

@RainbowZebraWarrior we always have a few bits that are accidentally left out. We have a shelf in the kitchen that’s got a wooden nativity and some fairy lights.
A nativity in the lounge, and the tea light nativity dome. The cards are in a pile for me to read and write back to all the people I didn’t send to. There’s a tree topper that was momentarily left in a pot because it wasn’t stable on the tree. And it’s still there. That will all stay all year, I’ve decided.

But the outside tree big baubles… the rest of them will come down when DS brings our ladder back 😁

The Sherwood Oak is getting wassailed tomorrow. I just maybe might go along, as I never have before. But I probably won’t because I will be knackered after church.

@PrizedPickledPopcorn wassailing the Sherwood Oak sounds wonderful. We must wassail our russet apple. It was dad’s favourite apple so the immediate family all have one in their gardens.

I forgot to say, DH and I spotted the actual Stanley Tucci today (be ready for the ponciest sentence I’ve said for a long time!). We stood next to him on the Opera House Terrace during the ballet’s second interval - I managed to dissuade DH from interrupting Stanley’s afternoon out. So tempting though!

@Bimblesalong your day sounds wonderful! I noticed that particular ballet was being streamed to the cinema but I wasn't able to go. On a ceramics note, I have just spent a small fortune on late Victorian / Edwardian ceramics in an auction, about 15 items in total. Most will go straight into my shop cabinets but there are a few I might keep for a while and enjoy them.

Delicious looking bread @RainbowZebraWarriorand a lovely cosy looking fire. We have no open fire so I have to make do with the Netflix and sky ones when I have a rare moment alone with the tv.

Lovely photos @EphemeraleEudemoniaI had heard of wassailing before I joined this thread and started reading the book but didn’t know much about it. To be honest I thought it was simply a christmas drink!

@Bimblesalongthat sounds like a lovely day out. I have never seen a ballet performance in real life but would love to experience one. An opera too.

I made my own attempt at wassailing and put some bread on our apple tree. I had no apple drink or cider to soak the bread in but I did put a piece of cheese with it. Our robin wasted no time in scoping out the morsel! So I am hoping our apple tree is now blessed and will bring forth a bountiful harvest.

Here is the cheeky chap and sorry for yet another robin photo!

18 January

Crumbs

At first glance, a visitor might think my long, thin, green-upon-green garden wouldn't be especially friendly to wildlife, but listen and you will know better. The birdsong in this little urban space is relentless and delightfully so.

Morning all.

It always makes me feel a little bit sad posting the penultimate chapter. Sorry for the shoddy image, too. I've left my CC book on the dining table in the conservatory and it's too dark and cold to venture there just yet. The image is a screenshot of last year's entry. I usually photograph images from the book the evening before posting, but, tired.

I'll have to get up soon as Mr Darcy is howling in the hallway, occasionally wandering in and out of my room to protest loudly that it is Breakfast Time, Mama!

I'm going to put the wreath storage thingy next to the front door this morning, then when we open the door to go out later, it can be taken off the door and popped in. Job's a good un. I just need to wipe my chalk pen doodlings off my windows and that will keep the neighbours concern at bay.

Off to the market today as usual. I have some seaglass samples to take to the silversmith lady. Hopefully there will be one or two pieces good enough for her to work her magic with. If i still have enough energy, I'm going to visit our antique pine dealer. I've been after something for my hallway for ages, like a settle. I'll probably end up with something totally random instead!

I've googled wassailing near me and a couple of things popped up that I didn't know about (some community orchards and a vegan fruit farm in Seaham) some events have been and gone, and some are later this month. I've made notes for next year and also plan to try and persuade my local NT property to think about one.

Ooh Stanley Tucci @Bimblesalong How marvellous. His book, What I ate in One Year keeps popping up on my Audible as a recommendation, which is very much VVN. I must admit, I was so tired when I read your post last night that I thought you'd popped to B&M before the ballet, not the British Museum. I had to rub my eyes and read again as my brain told me that the juxtaposition of 'popping to B&M' and then the Opera House wasn't Quite Right 😁

@EphemeraleEudemonia amazing photos. Also, you aren't behaving like a toddler at all, you are just not ready to have to give up things, which is a sign of your incredible tenacity and strength of spirit.

Robin photos are always very welcome as far as Im concerned. Pleased he promptly performed his 'duty' @ObstinateHeadstrongGirlie he sounds like a good little lad who will look after the trees.

I lovely Stanley Tucci-excellent spot @Bimblesalong
You don’t end to apologise for anything at all @RainbowZebraWarrioryou do an amazing job on this thread and I’m very grateful for it. Hope your silvery lady can come up with the goods for you :)
lots of lovely wassailing going on. We will surely be overrun with apples come Autumn!
Woken up to what looks like living actually in a rain cloud. So yesterday afternoons beautiful weather was a blip. Off to Cambridge today to meet some dear friends for lunch. It’s about 20 odd miles away but will take nearly two hours to get there on trains (and of course rail replacement buses) and somehow cost £35 each. Nothing winds me up more than the state of public transport in this country. It’s the first thing I will sort out when I get elected :) As it won’t be fixed today however much I curse it, I suppose I had best get up and get ready.

have a lovely Sunday all….

That sounds like a fabulous day out @Bimblesalong

There is a wassailing event near me this afternoon but I'm going out to attempt my first musical rehearsal for over a month. Apprehensive as the last time I tried this was the point I realised I really wasn't 'right' and went back to the GP. But I feel ok-ish so far today and have given myself permission to leave any time I need to, even if that might not be popular with others.

I gave the birds in my garden the leftovers of some overnight oats that had dried out a bit, but I don't think they've shown much interest so far. I get a lot of birds, including wrens in the bushes sometimes, which I love. There's at least one robin around locally which seems to be singing almost constantly at the moment. But even it seems to be quiet this morning with the disgustingly damp, dark weather.

Love all the wassailing stuff. :) Getting to like the New Year again, a bit more light (even today) and things look up.

Apropos of nothing: "(QI - Quite Interesting) The phrases: ‘shut up’, ‘dirt cheap’, ‘dog tired’, ‘dinner-party’, and ‘brace yourself’ were all first recorded in the works of Jane Austen.

What a wonderfully cultured start to 2026 you have had @Bimblesalong. I love the Stanley Tucci spot - I am hopeless at spotting celebrities, DH is eagle-eyed (my favourite one was Grayson Perry, as Claire, browsing in Liberty’s on a quiet morning). Exchanging a knowing smile is obviously much cooler than going full-on super fan - though it is very exciting to see an actual hero. I think I have already mentioned my spotting of Samuel Beckett in the audience at a performance of one of his own plays shortly before his death. I’ve rather failed to keep up with the CCs though I usually pride myself in keeping up the momentum right to the end. I think part of the reason has been that this week has just felt so spring-like and especially today. Something about the quality of the light, the days noticeably feeling longer and the warm temperatures - very uplifting and making me feel Christmas is well and truly behind us. Attaching a photo of the magnificent sunset that greeted me as I emerged from the metro this evening.

Good Evening lovely Nigelistas Just thought I would show you all my Hallway, I'm keeping the mash up of Autumn/Winter/Christmas until we have had real signs of spring.

Yesterday was a VERY long shift, Football crowd, then Theatre crowd then a special birthday party. My legs were on fire by the time I got home.

Hoping everyone with trying health problems are feeing a little better today x

btw @LillianGish Your photos are inspiring me to try harder with my trusty phone before I buy an actual camera