Eating my way through Christmas

It's true, I will be. Are you going to?

Last night I sat planning what I was going to make this Christmas. It's the time of year when I love cooking and like to plan meticulously what I am going to whip up.

Obviously there is the standard Christmas dinner and we never stray from it. I am under strict instructions from Mr M to "not mess with the turkey", meaning he likes it as it is - unstuffed, no flavouring, nothing. He nearly had a major freak out once when I bought one of those lemon and herb chickens from Sainsburys.  There are other standards too that never change - roast potatoes cooked in goose fat, peas, carrots, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, sausages wrapped in bacon and yorkshire pudding.  The things I do get to "mess with" is the stuffing, the parsnips and the sprouts. (Mr M hates sprouts but there are ALWAYS sprouts).

I'm trying two different types of stuffing this year - a sausage and cranberry one and an apricot and chestnut one.  I have no idea how these will turn out but fancy trying something different and surely, at least one of them will be edible? Last year I made the chestnut and cranberry roll from BBC Good Food which whilst tasty didn't hold together to well (for me) and I was just a little underwhelmed by it for the effort and I also made Nigella's Gingerbread Stuffing which I thoroughly enjoyed as did Father-in-Law but I think we might have been on our own.  I'm hoping this years effort has a better result. 

I'm also going to stray from my usual creamed sprouts and make a sprout gratin. That sounds gross doesn't it? I hope this won't turn out to be a gooey green mess. I'll clearly be the only one eating it anyhow so it won't be too disastrous if it doesn't turn out well.

Other things I will be making over the festive period include Nigella's ham in cherry coke, little mince pie cakes, sausage rolls, cranberry & soy sausages, turkey and cranberry pies, Christmas morning muffins, a cheese and onion slice and we'll be having a cheese fondue night.  They'll also be a dessert which is undecided yet and some kind of stew/casserole on Christmas eve, normally served with dauphinoise potatoes.

Writing it down, it all looks a tad ambitious. What's the betting I do nothing but get a load of food from M&S and sit back with a large glass of something naughty.  So tell me, do you cook up a storm over Christmas, or will you take an easier (and lets face it, more sensible) route?

love & kisses
Mrs M x