Any ideas for christmas season meals that aren't christmas dinner ?

[maryfarquhar]

Although we don't have to host christmas dinner this year we have ended up offering several christmassy dinners - a substitute christmas with the in laws. Christmas eve with relatives overseas and another subsitute christmas with my brother and his family.

We do have a lovely house for christmas (if I say so myself!) so I am really looking forward to it but my cooking skills don't quite match the backdrop!

So what kind of meals would you serve for subsitute christmas so everyone feels suitably festive..

Or how about a sausage casserole.

You could get some lovely pork and apple bangers, cook em in the oven, then whack in a casserole with onions and some stock and maybe some cider would it the right register.
Mash tatties and some green veg and you're done.

Excellent thanks everyone. Definately ham in coke for one meal.

And nice posh sausage casserole v good idea for brother and family. SIL is an amazing cook so on reflection I think I shall stick to something safe. They will also have their tiny twins so perhaps more relaxing for them if I do something casual and homely rather than something I have obviously slaved over. Then an amazing cold decorated desert (am very good at these as am somewhat of an expert on eating them).

Am considering the Chestnut pork fillet or something with venison or pheasant for our overseas guests.

Second what litchick said about the red cabbage with the ham in coke. It is delicious. And easy. If you scroll down to hulababy's post in the link I posted she includes the recipe for the red cabbage, cook for 40 mins.

Red cabbage also goes well with duck confit. :)

You can also make it in advacne and freeze it.

The easiest Christmassy pudding I know is mincemeat and apple jalousie.

Puff pastry rolled into two rectangles, lay the bottom one on a baking tray, spread with mincemeat & cover with sliced apples.

Fold the other rectangle in half lengthways, and cut slits in it kind of like you were making a paper chinese lantern (leaving a good border round the edge). Lay gently over the mincemeat & apple & stick down.

Cook in a hottish oven 20 mins or so, or until it looks done - 5 mins before cooked you can take it out & brush with beaten egg then sprinkle with demerara sugar to finish it off nicely.

Gorgeous with icecream, and about 10 mins work to make (so long as - unlike me usually - you remember to defrost the pastry in advance, otherwise it is very hard work flattening it )

Duck confit is absolutely lovely cooked to a crisp in the oven and eaten with chips.

Lidl sell it in tins for about ?5 for 5 pieces, and there's enough fat for roast potatoes for about a year.

Why not do lamb stew or chickpea curry? Lamb stew takes longer to cook, but chickpea stew can be ready in about 35 minutes.