Joyeux Fetes!
On Christmas Eve, the French sit down to a sumptuous feast, the Reveillon, often including snails and seafood, before opening presents at midnight.
As a Brit, I prefer a lighter meal followed by mulled wine and hot mince pies, ideal after an evening of carol singing or once we get back from church.
Delicious!
Mulled wine
To make mulled wine, you will need:
- Two bottles of red wine (do not use cooking wine!)
but any reasonable table wine will do - 2 sliced oranges
- 2 sliced lemons
- 1 orange with 10 cloves embedded in the skin
- 6 large spoonfuls of honey or granulated sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 teaspoon of freshly grated ginger
Simply mix and heat all the ingredients slowly on a stove. The smell will fill the house! Do not allow to boil. Serve hot in warmed glasses.
Mince pies
You can buy mincemeat, the filling for these lovely pastries, on Amazon! This year I’ve made my own, but the proof will be in the eating. As it has to be made 2 months in advance, it’s best to buy ready-made now.
Then make a batch of my Christmas pastry to make miniature pies in your muffin tin. Each pie needs about 2tsp of mincemeat so one jar should see you through the festive season!
My Christmas pastry, ideal for sweet and savoury dishes alike:
- 250 g plain flour
- 200 g lard, pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 small egg
- 65 ml milk
Combine the vinegar, egg and milk with a fork then combine all ingredients to make a sticky mess!
Chill in the fridge for at least 20 minutes before using.
Cut out circles to form the base of the pies, add the filling and then cover with a second pastry circle.
Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar before baking at 200°C.
Serve warm, but not hot.
Be careful as the filling can burn your tongue!
Be careful as the filling can burn your tongue!
On Christmas day, we enjoy a range of dishes.
A typical starter in our home is
Creme brulée au fois gras
- 200 g raw fois gras
- 100g thick cream
- 10 cl milk
- 2 egg yolks
- salt and pepper
Simply combine all the ingredients in a mixer to obtain a smooth paste. Place in ramequins and cook in the oven at 105°c for 10 minutes. Then sprinkle with brown sugar and brown under a hot grill or with a creme brulee flame.
Serve with small toasts.
The main course: Roast Turkey
In Europe we always wrap the bird in bacon to prevent the skin cooking too quickly during the initial heat, and remove it for the last 45 minutes of cooking to allow the skin to brown. The resulting crispy bacon is delicious, and rarely makes it to the table!
An extra meaty touch:
To make pigs in blankets European style, encase sausages in bacon, then bake in the oven along with the turkey. They take about 30 minutes to cook.
As well as fresh and roasted vegetables, I love to serve Yorkshire puddings, a really homely addition to the meal.
Yorkshire puddings
- 75g plain flour
- 1 egg
- 75ml water
- 75ml milk
- salt and freshly ground pepper
Place the flour and salt in a bowl, make a hollow and add the egg. Gradually mix together using a wooden spoon, then add the water and milk slowly until all ingredients are combined to make a very smooth batter. Season with pepper. Heat a muffin tin in a very hot oven with a small amount of fat in each hollow. Remove from oven and in a swirling movement, add batter to each hollow to about half way full. Replace immediately in very hot oven. Cook for about 15 minutes.
Bread sauce!
My son’s favourite, and in all honesty, I don’t know why we don’t have this more often as this home-made version is wonderfully aromatic.
You’ll need:
- 75g of bread crumbs: stale bread is ideal!
- 425 ml milk
- 1 medium onion studded with 15 cloves of garlic
- 6 black peppercorns
- 1 bay leaf
- 50g of butter
- 2 tablespoons of double cream
You can prepare this sauce in advance.
Put the studded onion, bay leaf and peppercorns into the milk and leave to infuse in a warm kitchen for 2 hours. Bring slowly to the boil. Remove the onion, bay leaf and pepper corns and place to one side. Add the bread crumbs and 25g of butter, plus a little salt. Stir well over a very low heat until the bread swells to make a thick, creamy sauce. Now remove from the heat, replace the onion and spices and keep in a warm place until needed. Re-heat thoroughly, remove onion and add cream and 25g of butter just before serving. Perfect!
Put the studded onion, bay leaf and peppercorns into the milk and leave to infuse in a warm kitchen for 2 hours. Bring slowly to the boil. Remove the onion, bay leaf and pepper corns and place to one side. Add the bread crumbs and 25g of butter, plus a little salt. Stir well over a very low heat until the bread swells to make a thick, creamy sauce. Now remove from the heat, replace the onion and spices and keep in a warm place until needed. Re-heat thoroughly, remove onion and add cream and 25g of butter just before serving. Perfect!
The Christmas pudding
Made at least two months prior to the big day and with a hidden treasure within, this delightful fruit pudding is brought to the table amid great ceremony, doused wth brandy and then set alight! We serve this with brandy sauce. One fortunate diner will find a lucky coin in their pudding. Traditionally a silver sixpence was used.
After such a feast, the evening meal tends to be much lighter.
Cheese and savoury biscuits are popular. In England, Stilton is a favourite cheese, while here in France, we tend to favour Camembert, Brie and Roquefort. This year we’ll be serving fresh walnuts too, from our very own tree!
While many serve Champagne, a Burgundy Cremant equally good and easier on the budget! Either serve chilled or with Creme de Cassis for a lovely Kir.
While the Creme de Cassis is quite pricey, it lasts for ages as you only need a little in each glass.
Christmas cake
The evening ‘tea’ always includes a slice of this much awaited finalé.
This is a dense fruit cake, topped with marzipan and icing, which has set. I make my cake in September, add regular doses of brandy to keep it moist until mid December, when the marzipan goes on. One week later, I add the icing complete with decorations and a red or green ribbon.
So that’s how we do it!
Wishing you all fun in the kitchen.