Welcome to our Vintage Christmas!

December 25th, 2012 by Not Quite Nigella
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I was having dinner with my friend Mystery Guy one evening when he regaled me with a story that had me bent over in laughter. At him, of course. He had signed up to a neighbourhood martial arts school after being beseeched by a door knock appeal. Arriving at the studio, he surveyed the crowd of potential class mates and combatants. There was a man in crisp white martial arts gear kicking and slicing the air with his hands and a crowd of small kids. Everyone looked at each other warily because they knew that they’d be paired up and you didn’t want to go for the man in the white who was clearly more advanced.

christmas dinner

christmas dinner

Mummy turkey

A young boy near Mystery Guy was doing the same. The young lad surveyed the crowd, saw the man in white, saw the gaggle of young kids and his eyes settled on Mystery Guy standing nearby him. He pointed at Mystery Guy and said “Mummy, he looks weak!” The mother, mortified at the insult to Mystery Guy told the child that he could “clock him if he wanted to” but the damage was done to Mystery Guy’s ego. “This child had ascertained that I was the weakest out of everyone, children included”, he said to me while I was laughing with tears in my eyes.

christmas dinner

Peppermint Iced Chocolate

Picking the perceived low hanging fruit is common in human nature. After all, the idea of expending the least effort for a gain is appealing. I decided this year for Christmas, I would do something similar to that. The first item I decided to choose was the turkey after seeing it on Angela’s blog Spinach Tiger. It was a turkey that didn’t need any basting at all through an ingenious method of cooking it which still left it tender, golden and utterly delicious. After that, the rest of the food seemed quite easy. It was all in the vintage theme of Christmas with traditional turkey accompaniments and the dessert was a chocolate peppermint cake based on a vintage snow globe design.

christmas dinner

Home made cranberry sauce

And in the spirit of vintage, home made cranberry sauce. Way back before cranberry sauce came in a jar!

christmas dinner

Hasselback Potatoes

Although we never grew up eating potatoes, I seem to have developed some sort of odd knack for cooking potatoes. A friend once said “you’re known for your potatoes” which seemed as random as hearing that I was known for a rounded bottom – just totally out of the blue. Anyway, I feel the need to do potatoes all the time now after hearing that (and how embarrassing if she were only being polite!).

christmas dinner

Pan buttered rice

One thing that I grew up eating was rice. I wasn’t sure what my father would say to what I thought might be a travesty to his plain steamed white rice but he gave this a thumbs up. And my father never gives thumbs up. In fact I never knew he had thumbs they were used so sparingly :P

christmas dinner

Sweetcorn coleslaw

Coleslaw is a staple in our fridge and there’s no such thing as too much crunchy, healthy salad. We served two at Christmas dinner, a regular sort of sweetcorn coleslaw…

christmas dinner

Wedge Salad

As well as another salad called a Wedge Salad with iceberg lettuce cut into wedges, served with bacon, blue cheese dressing and green onions.

christmas dinner

I also got into some low level crafting too. You perhaps won’t believe how low level a crafter I am but I don’t even own a hole punch-that’s how low. But I figured with some pipe cleaners and some wire (i.e. bent paper clips), I could make a herb wreath. I first saw the idea for this on Celia’s blog via HeidiAnnie.

I asked Mr NQN. “Why don’t my things ever look as good as the stuff in the shops or one other people’s blogs?”

“I don’t know” he said sighing deeply with a shake of his head. Perhaps even this low hanging fruit was not low enough for me :P

christmas dinner

And no Christmas is complete without a tray of my lovely reader Matilda’s cookies! Every year I hope that I’m on her list of good girls and boys and cross my fingers that these lovingly made beautiful Italian home made biscuits ends up on my doorstop.

Before we get to the recipes, I just want to say a very big thank you to all of you for reading my little blog. It’s been such a pleasure to share ideas, recipes and food with all of you and your curiosity, good nature and helpfulness towards each other makes me so proud to think that you have chosen to read this blog! I’ve always said that my readers are truly the nicest people around! I wholeheartedly wish all of you and your families and friends a wonderful Christmas, full of love and laughter and joy and of course good food!

Lots of Love,

Lorraine (and Mr NQN dressed as Santa!)

xxx

P.S. I’d love to know Dear Reader, what are you having for Christmas lunch or dinner?

Anyway, enough of this crazy crafting! Onto our vintage Christmas!

Peppermint Hot or Iced Chocolate

christmas dinner

I would say every Antipodean (that’s Australian and New Zealander if you didn’t know) wishes for a cold Christmas at least once in our lives. It’s supposed to snow according to every movie and television show and festive roasts are served. However, our weather is usually stinking hot around Christmas time and that’s why the smarter folk have seafood and salad for Christmas. This recipe is a bit bipartisan to address this issue. You can serve this as an iced chocolate or a hot chocolate. Tell me Dear Reader, do you think any Northern Hemispherans ever dream of a hot Christmas?

Makes six cups

  • 1.5 litres full cream milk
  • 300g dark chocolate (plus a little extra to shave over the whipped cream)
  • 3 teaspoons cocoa powder
  • 1.5 tablespoons sugar
  • A few drops peppermint oil
  • Whipped cream, candy canes and glace cherries to serve (optional)
1. In a small saucepan heat the milk until almost boiling point but not quite. Add the chocolate and stir until melted and then add the cocoa powder and sugar. Do not boil the milk as you don’t want the cocoa butter to separate.
2. Pour into a cup or glass. Top with whipped cream (the one in the can is fine) and then top with candy canes and a maraschino cherry.

Mummy Turkey

When I first told my hairdresser Elly at Stevie English that I was cooking a mummy turkey, she grimaced and asked if I was going to stuff a turkey with something ancient and rotting. I realise that trying to sell any food as a “mummy” theme isn’t exactly going to get people excited. But anyone that has roasted a turkey will realise how genius Angela’s idea for a mummy turkey is. Originally from chef Michael Symon, this turkey needs no basting whatsoever, which is the thing that makes this delicious, lean meat really quite attention seeking. And given that Christmas is a time of heightened familial dramas and tension, let’s not have another diva needing attention in the oven.

The trick is to wrap the turkey in muslin or cheesecloth and then pour stock over the muslin soaking it. It means that there’s no half hourly dash to baste the thing with a contraption that makes you think of artificial insemination (or is that just me?) and it just sits there in the oven being good until it emerges golden brown underneath the strange looking layers of muslin. I would have served this at Halloween (and maybe I will) but I couldn’t wait a whole 10 months. But if 2013 goes like 2012, it will be here before I know it!

  • 1 fresh turkey
  • Salt to dry brine turkey
  • 2 cups chicken or turkey stock
  • Cheesecloth or muslin (enough to wrap around the turkey three times over)
  • Stuffing of choice (see recipe below)

1. Clean turkey, removing everything inside. Check all cavities to remove included gizzards, liver, turkey neck, etc.
Salt turkey generously, wrap in plastic, refrigerate overnight.

2. When ready to roast, wash salt off. Pat dry. Allow to sit at room temperature 1 hour.

3. Use warm/cool stock. Heat up first if taking out of refrigerator. Allow to cool. Preheat oven to 318C/425F. Pat inside of turkey dry. Season with salt and pepper. Stuff turkey with your stuffing.

4. Place turkey in roasting pan, over a rack. Cover entire turkey with cheesecloth. Pour all of the turkey stock over the cheesecloth. Roast for 45 minutes at 218C/425F. Lower to 180C/350F, and roast until the internal temperature of the thigh reaches 82C/180F. I used this site to calculate the time needed to roast my turkey and it was spot on and the turkey cooked through but still moist inside. Allow to rest 30 minutes before carving.

Cutting open the cheesecloth to reveal a golden turkey

Cornbread and ham stuffing

I know the idea of baking a perfectly delicious cornbread only to crumble it up and then stuff a turkey with it sounds ludicrous to many. I happen to be on the wrong side of crazy so to me, it sounds perfectly sane. Of course you can dispense with this whole recipe and make double of the apricot stuffing or if you have leftover cornbread (I find I don’t like it nearly as much the next day after baking it), then absolutely use that. But this cornbread stuffing is rather special.

For starters it’s studded with a generous amount of super sweet corn and sweetened lightly with honey. Then it is crumbled up (channel any inner Christmas shopping rage) and mixed with cubes of ham. If I am to be honest, I used a couple of those strange ham steak things that come four to a packet. The last time I ate one was with a ring of pineapple at a countryside diner about 8 years ago. I think an 8 year gap between ham steaks sounds about right.

For cornbread-enough to stuff a giant turkey and then some

  • 1 cup plain all purpose flour
  • 1 cup cornmeal or polenta
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup grated cheese
  • 1 cup buttermilk (or regular milk soured with a tablespoon of lemon juice)
  • 1/4 cup oil (plus extra to grease tin, I used a Grove avocado oil which is why it is green)
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 egg
  • 420g/14.8 oz. tin of corn kernels (I like the super sweet variety)
For the rest of the stuffing
  • 3 large onions, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons butter for frying
  • 1 cornbread (above)
  • 375g ham steaks, diced
  • 3 eggs
  • 100ml cream
  • fresh lemon thyme or thyme (to taste)
  • Salt and pepper
1. Preheat oven to 220C/440F. Line a loaf tray with parchment paper or grease with oil. In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients (flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt) and then stir in the cheese. In a jug, whisk the buttermilk, oil, honey and egg together and using a spoon mix it all together. Add the drained corn kernels and stir to combine. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 25-30 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool so that it can be handled (you can make this up to 3 days ahead of time).
2. In a frypan, heat some butter and fry the onions and garlic until soft on low to medium heat, stirring so that it doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pan. It takes about 10-15 minutes to get them soft and sweet.
3. Meanwhile, crumble the cornbread and add this to a large bowl along with the diced ham. Beat 3 eggs with the cream and add this and then add herbs, salt and pepper. Add the onions and garlic when they are done.

Home made cranberry sauce

christmas dinner

It never occurred to me to make my own cranberry sauce because of course that’s one thing that you can easily buy and save about 15 minutes of your time. But I have a sickness and that involves suddenly deciding in the midst of everything that making your own cranberry sauce would be a great idea! And that was even before I hit the eggnog!

  • 100g/3.5 ozs dried cranberries
  • 3/4 cup orange juice
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • a pinch salt
1. Place all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. Allow to cool

Wedge Salad

christmas dinner

The first time I heard of this was on Modern Family. A whole episode was devoted to the Wedge Salad (was there a Wedge Salad Association that had sponsored the show?). I know iceberg lettuce is a bit last century but then again, so am I so I continue to love the crunch and freshness from a good iceberg. The Wedge Salad is usually served with a blue cheese dressing and bits of bacon and spring onions. If blue cheese isn’t your thing, a caesar-y dressing is suitable. If that isn’t your thing, then I can suggest eating a lettuce like Mr NQN’s family used to eat cabbages for dinner. That is, his mum would set a whole cabbage down on the dining room table and each child would peel a leaf off and eat it straight. See, blue cheese doesn’t sound so bad does it? ;)

Serves 6

  • 120g blue cheese
  • 2/3 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon chardonnay or wine vinegar
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 ice berg lettuce
  • 120g cooked bacon, chopped
  • 1/2 cup shallots, chopped
  • Parmesan cheese
1. In a food processor, place the blue cheese, buttermilk and mayonnaise and blend. Add the vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.
2. Cut the lettuce into six wedges and gently separate the leaves a little. I place the dressing in one of those squeezy bottles which allows you to get the dressing a bit between the layers. Dress the lettuce between the layers (wedge salad is really best served per person as it’s hard to divide at the table). Sprinkle with bacon bits, shallots and parmesan cheese.

Sweetcorn Coleslaw

christmas dinner

I always have a batch of coleslaw in the kitchen and this week it is cabbage coleslaw instead of cauliflower as I bought a massive 5.5 kilo cabbage. When I was walking to the car holding my cabbage in plain view because there was no bag big enough to hold it, people stopped and stared at me and some commented on the humongous size of my appendage. I felt a bit sexually harassed until I realised that it was really just the cabbage and not me…

  • 5-6 cups of cabbage, thinly shredded
  • 2 medium carrots (about 180grams)
  • 1 cup tinned sweet corn (use the Edgells super sweet one)
  • 1 cup chopped green onions/shallots
  • 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 4 tablespoons milk (not soy)
  • 1/2-1 tablespoon mustard (depending on how hot your mustard is)
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • salt and pepper to taste
1. Grate the carrots into a large bowl (you can peel these first but I like to keep the skin on, just wash them well). Then remove the stem from the cabbage and with a large knife, slice thinly. Add this to the bowl. Add the onion to the mix and with two spoons, mix the vegetables so that they are evenly distributed.
2. In a bowl, add the mayonnaise, milk and mustard and using a small whisk or fork to combine. Pour this in two batches over the shredded vegetables and toss between additions. Add the lemon, salt and pepper and toss some more to combine and taste for seasoning. I like this best when it has sat for a little while but you can eat it straight away too.

Pan Buttered Rice

This was for my father who once left a holiday in Japan because he couldn’t find the right kind of rice there (I wish I were kidding). Although he has relaxed and now enjoys Thai Jasmine and Basmati on occasion, I thought I’d expand his horizons even more with this garlicky pan buttered rice. The inspiration for this pan buttered rice was from the shrimp trucks on the North Shore of Oahu that serve a fantastic garlic butter rice with their shrimp (prawns).

  • 2.5 cups chicken stock, hot
  • 4 teaspoons chicken powder
  • 100g/3.5 ozs. butter
  • 1.5 cups jasmine or basmati rice
  • 4 garlic cloves, chopped
1. Dissolve the chicken powder in the hot chicken stock. Melt the butter in a saucepan and then top with the stock and rice and then turn down the heat and place the lid on the pan tightly so that the liquid evaporates. After about 10 minutes, it should have disappeared. Stir around the rice moving the rice from the top to the bottom and add the garlic in and keep the lid on for another 5 or 10 minutes.

Star Lavosh

christmas dinner

“Will we have enough food?” I asked in panic. It’s a question I ask before every time guests come over and no guests have ever starved. Still, I continue to make food as if it were the last days on earth (which was supposed to be only a few days ago). This is a chilli and sesame lavosh shaped into stars to go with the baby cheeses (aka baby Jesus, a Kath & Kim joke, did anyone get that?).

  • 1.5 cups plain all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon white sugar
  • Pinch of chilli flakes (more if you like it spicy)
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1/4 cup oil
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
1. Preheat the oven to 175C/347F. Line two trays with baking parchment (you will make four lots but you can make them after each other but line four trays if you want) and take out a rolling pin and a butter knife. In a bowl, add the flour, sesame seeds, salt, sugar and chilli flakes and with a fork, stir to combine. In a jug, measure the warm water, oil and sesame oil and add this to the flour mix. Using a fork combine these and knead gently for about 30 seconds.
2. Divide the dough into four pieces. Roll these out with the rolling pin and cut out using a star shaped cutter. The dough is best when rested for about 10 minutes or more although you can roll it again straight away. Bake until golden-about 15-20 minutes depending on thickness but check for colour after 15 minutes. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Hasselback Potatoes

Inevitably, I think of two people whenever I make these potatoes: David Hasslehoff and Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Which is why I only make them once every ten years or so. I used the goose fat from last year’s Christmas goose and I know we already have rice but Christmas is also about lulling everyone into a carb coma. They’re less likely to fight that way…
  • 2 kilos of small chat potatoes
  • 1/2 cup goose fat (or a 50:50 combo of butter and oil)
  • 2 tablespoons polenta
  • Salt and pepper
  • Sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon Rosemary or coriander, chopped
  • Chilli flakes to taste
  • Salt and pepper
1. Preheat oven to 200c/400F. Wash the potatoes but don’t peel them. Using a large spoon as a cradle, make parallel cuts through each potato being careful not to cut all the way through the bottom. Heat the goose fat in a large bowl and gently toss in the melted goose fat. Sprinkle with polenta.
2. Roast in the oven alongside the turkey for about an hour (check to see doneness) and then serve with a dollop of sour cream mixed with rosemary and chilli flakes.

Snow Globe Cake

christmas dinner

I really started off with the best intentions for this cake. It was a simple enough idea, a cake layer on the bottom holding up an upside down fish bowl with a snowman and a tree inside. The cake was an easy enough mud cake flavoured with peppermint as that’s a little bit of a theme here with the hot or iced peppermint chocolates. I iced it with ganache (not very well but I was having a serious moment in this heat) and then the chocolate plastique modelling chocolate layer struck. I had faced it before during a Daring Bakers Battenberg cake challenge but I determined to find a way to make it work.

After almost giving up again I realised my error-not putting enough glucose syrup into the mix. I thought back to the Daring Bakers challenge and it was either a love or hate relationship. You either got an icing that looked like dried dog poo or the proper icing. If you don’t add enough syrup, then it’s mostly hard poo-like chocolate once set so you really need the syrup to make it pliable. Once I got it, I loved the icing and it’s truly one of the easiest to make once you get the ratio down.

For chocolate peppermint mud cake

  • 300g butter
  • 200g chocolate (milk or dark)
  • 2.5 cups caster or superfine sugar
  • 1 1/3 cups water
  • a few drops peppermint essemce
  • 2 cups plain all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 eggs, beaten lightly
  • You will also need two tins, one slightly smaller than the other. I used a 19cm and a 22cm cake tin.
For chocolate ganache
  • 350g dark or bittersweet chocolate
  • 6 tablespoons pure cream (not light)
For chocolate plastique modelling chocolate*
  • 400g dark or bittersweet chocolate
  • 2/3 to 3/4 cup corn syrup or glucose syrup
  • Please note: is best made a day or a few hours ahead
To decorate
  • A clear fish bowl (don’t ditch your fish for this, you can buy them at discount stores for about $15)
  • 100g white fondant for snowman
  • a tiny amount of orange fondant for his nose
  • A rainbow sour for his scarf (you can also use fondant)
  • I also used extra modelling chocolate for his eyes, hat (brim was made using a chocolate melt)
  • 1 ice cream cone
  • A small quantity of buttercream (or butter if you don’t have buttercream ready!)
  • Desiccated coconut
  • Green food colouring
  • A bird. A bit random but I wanted something colourful under the snow globe and it sort of fit proportion wise (sort of)
  • Sugar for snow inside globe
1. First of all make the figurines as they, particularly the snowman, will need to set. Make the snowman by rolling two large balls of white fondant and securing them together with a toothpick. Use the sour leather as a scarf and shape a little carrot nose out of orange fondant and use the chocolate modelling fondant for the hat and a chocolate disc for the brim (these can be done later once the modelling chocolate has been done). Make the tree by spreading an ice cream cone with butter. In a ziplock bag mix the desiccated coconut with green food colouring, seal and shake. Then roll the buttered cone in the coconut (please note, if it is very humid like it is in Australia at the moment, do this at the last minute as the cone may wilt).
2. Preheat the oven to 170C/340F. Line the two tins on the base and sides with parchment. In a saucepan, melt the butter, chocolate, sugar and water over low heat until melted and smooth. Cool for about 15 minutes and whisk in flour, baking powder and eggs. Add peppermint essence according to taste.
3. Divide into tins-I put two thirds of the batter in the larger tin and the remaining third in the smaller tin. Bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes for the smaller tin and about a total of 1 hour 30 minutes for the larger tin. Cool in tin and wrap in cling wrap once completely cooled. When ready, trim the tops of the cakes which will have crunchy edges.
4. Make the ganache by melting the chocolate over a double boiler or in a microwave on 60 second 50% power bursts. Stir in the cream until well combined and if necessary, refrigerate until spreadable. Spread the ganache on the bottom cake filling in any crevasses and then place the second cake on top and spread ganache over this one too. Refrigerate and allow ganache to set (about 30 minutes or so). Then take a clean angled palette knife dipped briefly in warm water and smooth again using firm strokes to give the ganache a glossy finish. Refrigerate until needed.
5. To make modelling chocolate, melt the chocolate over a double boiler or in a microwave on 60 second 50% power bursts. Stir in the glucose or corn syrup-it will become grainy and pull away from the sides of the bowl which is good. Place in a zip lock bag at room temperature for at least two hours. Knead with your hands as the heat will make it soft. I’ve also put it in a mixer with a dough hook and that works too although hands are better albeit messier.
6. Tear out a large sheet of baking parchment and roll the modelling chocolate into a ball. Roll out as thin as you can get it without it breaking-it’s a large cake so you don’t want to go too thin. Gently turn the parchment with the modelling chocolate on it upside down and ease it over the cake. With clean hands gently massage the modelling chocolate-it moves and melts easily under the hands and trim away any excess pieces. Make sure the edges are cut away and what’s left is tucked in.
7. With a plain water spray set on the “mist” setting, spray inside the fish bowl on the sides and top leaving a space unsprayed as this is where the front of the snow globe will be and where everyone will see your figurines. Sprinkle with white sugar and allow to set. Place figurines on top and carefully lower the bowl onto it. Place a ribbon on top if you like. Fall asleep on the couch while guests arrive and prop yourself up from exhaustion with a glass of peppermint hot chocolate while vowing never to host Christmas again. Until next year of course…
A kiss goodbye from my nephew Jason!

christmas dinner

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73 Comments | Add your own

  • 1. Rosa | December 25th, 2012 at 4:28 am | #

    Gorgeous food and lovely table! Merry Christmas to you and your family.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  • 2. angela@spinachtiger | December 25th, 2012 at 4:57 am | #

    Lorraine, I’m honored to have helped with the main non-diva turkey. I love that you call it Mummy turkey. So cool. You say you have the nicest readers…that’s because like attracts like and you are truly one of the nicest successful bloggers in the world. I mean it. Such a pleasure to read your blog, get my happy and connect. Merry Christmas to you and all of your family, and an early Happy New Year. xoxo

  • 3. Evelyne | December 25th, 2012 at 6:30 am | #

    A most incredible and scrumptious table. I want to try everything. Happy Holidays to you too, enjoy family and food time!

  • 4. Jan | December 25th, 2012 at 7:17 am | #

    Happy Christmas Lorraine – thank you for enlightening us each and every day with your stories and yummy recipes . Christmas cheer to everyone !

  • 5. MartynaWholesomeCook | December 25th, 2012 at 7:23 am | #

    Ok this is going to be a long comment Lorraine! Firstly, Merry Christmas to you and your family :-) hope it’s also filled with love, joy and laughter. Love that cake – i first thought it was a cake then I thought it “surely” couldn’t be! As for the dishes you’ve prepared love them all and keen to try a hasselback except I think I have a potato intolerance :-(
    This year for lunch we’ll be having a fancy salad buffet and for dinner we are doing roasted chickens with seafood and more salads. Yum!

  • 6. Sergio | December 25th, 2012 at 7:27 am | #

    A very merry Christmas to you all.
    I am off to Forresters Beach to party with my friends.

  • 7. Hannah | December 25th, 2012 at 7:28 am | #

    Merry Christmas, dear Spay Lady, from an Australian who is getting her third cold Christmas tomorrow but who simply doesn’t think it “feels” like Christmas!

    And is it strange that I’d be proud to be known for a rounded bottom?

  • 8. Nerida | December 25th, 2012 at 7:31 am | #

    Thankyou for sharing your wonderful “foodie” self with all of us Lorraine. Your stories are a joy to read. Happy Christmas and best of luck in the New Year.

  • 9. sanne | December 25th, 2012 at 7:32 am | #

    Your christmasdinner looks very beautifull! The weather here in Holland is rainy and windy. Not very Christmassy either :-) I wish you a merry christmas and lots of creativity and love for 2013 xx

  • 10. Annie | December 25th, 2012 at 7:33 am | #

    Merry Christmas to you and your family too! Thank you for your wonderful posts which I look forward to reading every morning and I hope you keep up the great work in the new year as well! Can’t wait for your book!

    My Xmas is a small gathering but all day eating and again at a friends place tomorrow!

    Have a great day!! Xoxo

  • 11. Hotly Spiced | December 25th, 2012 at 7:36 am | #

    Wow! What a feast. I love the look of your potatoes. And that snow globe is such a wonderful idea. I think it worked out very well – unlike my gingerbread house which also suffered horribly in the heat. I like to make my own cranberry sauce but I make it using frozen cranberries and this year I couldn’t source any. I should have used dried! Merry Christmas to you and Mr NQN. And now I must away to my 6.1kg turkey that is demanding an exhaustive amount of attention xx

  • 12. kirgibg | December 25th, 2012 at 8:19 am | #

    Simply fantastic!
    Regarding Christmas dinners… I remember 2 years ago, when my 15 year old daughter and I spent all of Christmas Day making Zumbo’s 7 layer chocolate cake together. (It’s her birthday on Boxing Day, and an ‘ordinary’ birthday cake just WOULD NOT DO!) Daggy Christmas aprons on (the Aussie version of the tragic Christmas sweater?), we played in the kitchen all day to the tunes of Christmas carols with our arms up to our elbows in chocolate! SO much fun…
    This year, we’re making Heston’s lemon tart from Heston Blumenthal at Home. Not your ordinary Christmas, but isn’t that why we buy a leg of ham (just to fend for yourself and cut another slice?)
    Merry Christmas all!

  • 13. celia | December 25th, 2012 at 8:45 am | #

    Merry Christmas, darling! What an AMAZING post! And how cool that you made the wreath – thank you for the shoutout. Can I just say how cute Mr NQN looks in his Santa suit? You, of course, are looking completely gorgeous.. xxx

  • 14. Theresa | December 25th, 2012 at 9:34 am | #

    Mega Post! What a feast!! It all looks fabulous. I especially like the wedge salad because I remember making a salad for a family gathering a while back that had semi dried tomatoes and crispy bacon and it was such a hit with the family that I declared all my salads would have bacon from now on. So your recipe adds to my arsenal of recipes :D Merry Xmas :)

  • 15. Cakelaw | December 25th, 2012 at 9:47 am | #

    Merry Christmas Lorraine! It all looks great. I especially love the cake.

  • 16. Marina@Picnic at Mar | December 25th, 2012 at 9:58 am | #

    Dear Lorraine, Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family! Thanks for all the great recipes you share with us, and all places you take us to! :) We love you too!

  • 17. Eha | December 25th, 2012 at 10:00 am | #

    As it’s 10 am on Xmas Day just a big hug and all the warmest wishes to Mr NQN and you of the ‘little blog’ ;) ! Don’t think one of us would agree with that description! Thank you for your spin on the classics: loved Hasselback potatoes in the past and yours look better than mine ever did. Can also see that way of cooking turkey being more than applicable to all poultry: hope you enjoyed or will enjoy!! Thanks for the year . . Had fun, learned lots, am looking forward to 2013!

  • 18. Matilda | December 25th, 2012 at 10:23 am | #

    Merry Christmas Lorraine and to your lovely family. What a lovely post to wake up to and brighten up this rather cool, wet,blustery and un-natural Christmas weather.
    I’ve just had my breakfast but would eat a whole tray of your Hasselback Potatoes, I love it when they’re crunchy and golden.
    Your Snow Dome cake is adorable and I didn’t realise it was a cake until I started reading, that’s how good it looks and kudos for your herb-inspired wreath and bonus you can use the herbs when needed!
    So glad you like my biscottini and I’m chuffed that they have a special place on your Christmas table. :-) Great pics of you and that cheeky Santa, hehe.
    Looking forward to many more of your funny and witty stories and delicious recipes.
    Today we’re off to my sister-in-law’s house for a late lunch of Roast turkey, Biryiani, oysters, prawns, Salmon Rilettes (Andy Allen’s recipe)Leg ham, salads, Lasagna and mixed array of Christmas sweet treats. Buon Natale ;-)

  • 19. ChopinandMysaucepan | December 25th, 2012 at 10:59 am | #

    Dear Lorraine,

    Somehow, I always choose a leg ham over a turkey every year. Those hasselback potatoes are awesome! Merry Christmas to you and Mr NQN.

  • 20. Margaret | December 25th, 2012 at 11:01 am | #

    Lorraine thank you for being so kind to share your Christmas feast with us. I adore your blog and look forward to many more entertaining and informative posts.
    Merry Christmas
    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  • 21. Julia Dawn Mason | December 25th, 2012 at 11:08 am | #

    We are having a Prime Rib roast, baked potatoes, and salad. That is it. WE are not stressing out this year .

  • 22. Joanne T Ferguson | December 25th, 2012 at 11:31 am | #

    A VERY Merry Christmas to you and Mr NQN and your family too!
    For all the food armchair travels throughout the year, I want to thank YOU!
    So many places to see,
    So many foods, dishes, spices that continue to INSPIRE me :) WHOO HOO!

  • 23. Victoria of Flavors | December 25th, 2012 at 11:50 am | #

    What fun to share your glorious feast with you! And you look particularly beautiful in the photos. I love to see what others are having. We are having the full turkey spread at our dear friends. Because I was traveling until right up to the weekend, my friend excused me from cooking, but I am making Muhummara, not because it has anything to do with Christmas, but because my friend loves it! Happy Holidays!

  • 24. Radhika | December 25th, 2012 at 1:28 pm | #

    Merry Christmas to you!
    What a lovely cake :)
    R

  • 25. Eha | December 25th, 2012 at 1:55 pm | #

    Laughing twixt courses: I actually had to look up Muhummara, Victoria! Don’t think I’ll be allowed near the kitchen for the rest of the year!!! Enjoy, everyone :) !

  • 26. Sarah | December 25th, 2012 at 2:26 pm | #

    Merry Christmas!

    Wow, what an epic feast! I love the idea of a mummy turkey – very clever.

    All the best for the year ahead. :)

    xox Sarah

    PS I always giggle when I see turkey basters too!

  • 27. SereneBee | December 25th, 2012 at 2:47 pm | #

    I wish my wreaths -and I’ve tried doing an herb one- looked half as good as yours!
    Season’s greetings from a stinking hot Perth.
    Last year was very pleasant, the first Xmas I’ve ever spent alone, I had smoked salmon and different coloured lettuces from my garden with different coloured tomatoes. The salmon is a good deal more expensive this year, so this year I’m having turkey supreme, smoke flavoured and the father of my only child (who’s working in Tx, USA) is having ham & pork( to which I’m allergic ). Plus home made spud salad with home grown eggs, of course different coloured tomatoes and salad leaves!
    Merry Christmas to you NQN and your Santa — plus all your blog readers!
    SereneBee ~ ~

  • 28. Pearl Prakash | December 25th, 2012 at 4:07 pm | #

    Merry Christmas to you Lorraine and Mr NQN ( What’s his real name by the way ? )
    I read your blog regularly and very often try out your recipes .I live in India , and my husband loves some of the recipes I try out . Thanks alot
    Pearl

  • 29. Tandy | December 25th, 2012 at 4:28 pm | #

    Merry Christmas from a lovely hot Gordons Bay. It’s much better than snow for sure :)

  • 30. Laura (Tutti Dolci) | December 25th, 2012 at 6:22 pm | #

    I love it all, especially the peppermint hot chocolate. Merry Christmas, Lorraine! :)

  • 31. Sherrie @ Crystal No | December 25th, 2012 at 6:26 pm | #

    What a beautiful dinner you served up! Those potatoes look so good – what an ingenius way to cook them! Thanks for sharing so many recipes as well as your travelling and dining adventures with us all year. I’m excited to see what the new year will bring to your blog! :D

  • 32. Susanne | December 25th, 2012 at 7:17 pm | #

    Merry Christmas Lorraine, thank you it is a pleasure to read your blog. We started with glazed ham on toast with verve champagne and strawberries. Then moved onto my sisters where lunch was amazing. Pork, baked vegetables, ham, fried turkey, cranberry sauce, apple sauce. Then followed by home made rocky road and trifle for the few who could fit it in and strawberries. We had Anna amazing day with family.

  • 33. Cath @ Confessions o | December 25th, 2012 at 8:29 pm | #

    I’ll have to try the recipe for the potatoes.. and the Snow Globe Cake looks absolutely incredible!

    Hope you had a delightful Christmas stuck indoors with the gloomy weather – lunch and dinner was a casual affair at our house, although I did make raspberry tarts with Frangelico cream as well as chocolate mousses with minted sugar in the arvo.

  • 34. lilia | December 25th, 2012 at 9:05 pm | #

    Wow, you outdid it again. These are simple, but feeding other people will always need lots of efforts and courage. Merry Christmas NQN and Mr NQN and both of your family!

  • 35. Stefanie | December 25th, 2012 at 9:12 pm | #

    Hi Lorraine, Merry Christmas to you and Mr NQN. For lunch, we had a bbq of prawns, lamb, sausages, fried rice plus various salads and vegetables. Dessert was chocolate and fruit, still digesting now!! Thanks Lorraine for your blog and your daily posts, I look forward to your posts every day :)

  • 36. Not Quite Nigella | December 25th, 2012 at 9:43 pm | #

    Hi Rosa-Thanks you Rosa! A merry Christmas to you and your family too! :D

    Hi angela-I really must thank you for the fantastic cooking method for the turkey! I can imagine doing that on so many meats now and it’s so easy! :D Aww you are really so sweet and right back at ya!! I love reading all about you and your family too and I hope you all have a truly wonderful holiday season!! xxx

    Hi Evelyne-Thank you so much Evelyne!! You are too kind :D And a very Happy Holidays to your and your family too!

    Hi Jan-Aww shucks Jan thank you so much! It’s been an absolute pleasure writing for all of you! Christmas cheer all around! :D

    Hi Martyna-Thank you so much Martyna! Hehe thank you, now that’s a sweet thing to say! It sounds like you’ve be having a lovely spread of food! Merry Christmas!! :D

    Hi Sergio-Sounds like a great plan Sergio! A Merry Christmas to you and your friends! :D

    Hi Hannah-Dear Spay Lady! A Merry Christmas from across the ocean! I am sending you get well vibes too!! LOL Indeed!! :lol:

    Hi Nerida-Thank you so much! What a sweet thing of you to say! I’m blushing :) I wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! :D

    Hi sanne-Oh today it is rainy and windy too! How the weather changes so quickly! Sigh… I hope you and your family have a beautiful Christmas and a festive time! xxx

    Hi Annie-Thank you so much Annie and a very Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones! I’m so glad that you enjoy reading the blog. It’s wonderful to write for you! :D I think your Christmas plans sound like lots of fun (and delicious too!) xxx

    Hi Charlie-Thanks! Hehe oh this heat, it’s a killer isn’t it? It’s times like that that I wish we had air conditioning :P Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family! Good luck with the beast of a turkey!! xxx

    Hi kirgibg-Thank you so much! :D Oh my, that’s an enormous project! :o Hehe she sounds like a pastry chef in the making indeed! But you make it sound like lots of fun with lots of lovely memories :D Hehe you’re a smart cookie buying the ham!! Merry Christmas!! :D

    Hi celia-Thanks lovely!! I had to make it as soon as I saw it! :D Hehe that’s as much as he’ll let me put up on the blog, he’s so shy. Thank you and Merry Christmas! xxx

    Hi Theresa-Hehe yes I wondered if it was wise to stay up last night but I did in the end :lo9l: Oh your salad sounds fabulous-I’m a huge lover of sun dried tomatoes so I would have asked for seconds! :D Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones!

    Hi Cakelaw-Thanks so much and a very Merry Christmas to you and your family!!

    Hi Marina-Thank you so much Marina and a very Merry Christmas to you and your family!! You are so sweet to say that and I love reading all about your life lovely lady! xxx

    Hi Eha-Thank you so much Eha! Every day you leave a lovely comment for me and I always look forward to reading it :D And yes the turkey method could apply to so many meats! A Merry Christmas to you Eha!! :D

    Hi Matilda-It is I that must thank you for your fantastic tray of cookies, Frangelico and gorgeous little Bride of Frankenstein doll. Everyone loved the cookies and there is a single cookie left!! :P Me too! Potatoes when golden are so moreish aren’t they? Oh that’s great! They’re dream words to a cake maker! :D Yes I just keep spraying the wreath with water and I’ll use the herbs when I need them! :D A very Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family Matilda and I hope that it’s filled with fun and great food (I know that it will be ;) ). The menu sounds heaven inspired!! :D

    Hi ChopinandMysaucepan-Hehe I am always tempted to try something new :lol: A very Merry Christmas to you and Mysaucepan!! Happy Hamming! :D

    Hi Margaret-Thank you so much for reading Margaret and for such a sweet comment! I hope your Christmas is delicious and full of fun and laughter! xxx

    Hi Julia-That sounds perfectly delicious and if there’s no stress, even better! Merry Christmas!

    Hi Joanne-A very Merry Christmas to you and your family Joanne! Today we had a delicious slice of your fantastic spice cake and everyone loved it with many going back for seconds!! Thank you so much for reading and for commenting every single day. I always look forward to reading your fabulous rhymes! :D

    Hi Victoria-Aww thank you so much Victoria!! Oh it sounds like it’s going to be absolutely delicious Victoria! Will we see pictures? A very Merry Christmas to you and your friends and family ! :D

    Hi Radhika-A Merry Christmas to you too! :D

    Hi Sarah-Merry Christmas to you too! :D Hehe I know, it’s a genius idea and I’m so grateful to Angela for sharing it with us! :D xxx Haha yay it’s not just me! Let’s giggle together :lol:

    Hi SereneBee-You are too kind but I think I should have put more herbs on mine. It looks a bit sparse :S Oh wow you’ve had a hot one? We had a cold, rainy one :( Perhaps we could swap a bit of weather so it would average out! :D Wow, what a delicious spread! It sounds full of colour and flavour! Merry Christmas to you and all!! :D

    Hi Pearl-Thank you so much Pearl and a very Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones! Alas, Mr NQN is chronically shy and won’t let me use his name. He’s such a mysteriously shy creature :P Thank you so much and I’m so glad that you like trying the recipes! :D

    Hi Tandy-Merry Christmas Tandy! So you’re having a hot one today? Good for you! :D

    Hi Laura-Thanks! I loved the little minty tingle of it :D Merry Christmas to you and yours Laura! :D

    Hi Sherrie-Thank you so much Sherrie! You’re very welcome and I’ve loved writing for all of you! You’re such an intelligent and curious group of readers that it has been such pleasure :D Merry Christmas!!

    Hi Susanne-Thanks so much Susanne for the lovely words and for reading the blog! :D Oh what a beautiful feast and you’ve left no delicious dish left unturned!! :D I’m so glad that it was a fantastic day and Merry Christmas to you! :D

    Hi Cath-Oh fabulous! I hope that you like them! :D It was crazy weather today wasn’t it? Nothing at all what we were expecting! Yum! Those tarts sounds fantastically luscious! Merry Christmas! :D

    Hi Lilia-Yes I didn’t want to make it too complicated but it took up more time than I thought! :lol: Merry Christmas Lilia and thanks for reading for all of these years! :D

    Hi Stefanie-A very Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones!! :D Oh wow, that sounds fantastic, I bet you had everyone rubbing their tummies very happily!! Thank you for reading the blog and for your always sweet comments!!

  • 37. Debra Kolkka | December 25th, 2012 at 9:59 pm | #

    I hope you had a great Christmas. We had a lovely hot day with much too much food.

  • 38. Cooking Crusade | December 25th, 2012 at 11:04 pm | #

    What a stunning looking Christmas you had NQN. Everything looks so delicious and pretty ! And such a cute photo of you and Mr NQN – you look so gorgeous!! Thank you for writing and cooking on as you do every year – we all love reading all your awesome posts :)

  • 39. Baby Sumo | December 26th, 2012 at 12:31 am | #

    Hi Lorraine, Merry Christmas to you. It has been a pleasure reading your blog everyday this year ;)

    Love your snow globe cake and your herb wreath is so unique and pretty!

  • 40. deana@lostpast | December 26th, 2012 at 1:13 am | #

    Merry Christmas to you! Lovely dinner in hot or cold weather.

  • 41. Daisy@Nevertoosweet | December 26th, 2012 at 1:27 am | #

    Merry Christmas Lorraine and Mr NQN!

    I love all the dishes of your Vintage Christmas dinner and I really don’t know how you are able to cook all those dishes, still plate and take such amazing photos!

    I struggled to take half decent photos for our Christmas dinner :)

    That snow globe cake is AMAZING :) I never thought of that!

    Can’t wait to try your sweet corn coleslaw hehe you know how much I am a fan of your caulislaw.

    May all your wishes come true and 2013 will be even more wonderful than 2012 xox

  • 42. Ann | December 26th, 2012 at 8:55 am | #

    You are not alone in dreaming of a white/cold Christmas Lorraine! I took advantage of our mild weather yesterday and cooked a greek marinated butterflied leg of lamb and an oven baked rolled loin of pork. This was served with about 7 types of vegies and a vat of gravy. Dessert was home made macadamia and honeycomb ice-cream, panettone pudding (both from delicious magazine), a sticky date pudding and a mango & strawberry salad.
    Your spread looks amazing and your post was very entertaining.

  • 43. Banana | December 26th, 2012 at 1:38 pm | #

    Merry Christmas NQN and all readers!

  • 44. Sharon O | December 26th, 2012 at 2:30 pm | #

    Hi Lorraine, a bit late but Merry Christmas to you and Mr NQN, and all your readers too :-) Your blog is an indispensable everyday pleasure for me, thanks for being the way you are, as others have said, you’re so nice that’s why you get nice comments too :-) I love your vintage Christmas, you are a vision of vintage loveliness yourself! For the big day’s lunch at big sis’s house we had ham, turkey, roast pig, prawns in garlic sauce and tempura-style, thai beef salad, potato and pasta salads, for dessert fudge brownies with ice cream. Enjoying the leftovers today lol. To happy times XOXO

  • 45. GourmetGetaways | December 26th, 2012 at 3:02 pm | #

    What a gorgeous and decadent looking meal! I am so pleased your dad approved of the buttered rice.

    Merry Christmas to you, Mr NQN and the family.

  • 46. Jina @ Soy and Ginge | December 26th, 2012 at 5:03 pm | #

    This is lovely! Thanks for all the recipes, the peppermint hot chocolate sounds real delicious :)

    And even if it’s a day late, merry Christmas!

  • 47. Flick Your Food | December 26th, 2012 at 5:59 pm | #

    Hope you had a magical Christmas. Loving the cloth over the turkey, such a clever idea.

  • 48. kelley @ magnetboldt | December 26th, 2012 at 6:28 pm | #

    How wonderful!

    I ordered some Serendipity Frozen Hot Chocolate for us for Christmas but it didn’t arrive in time… might have to make your version.

    MERRY CHRISTMAS!

  • 49. milkteaxx | December 26th, 2012 at 7:15 pm | #

    oh my what a lovely christmas feast you had! everything sounds delicious especially the rice and the potatoes~ i shall attempt those 2 for new years party!

  • 50. Cubby House | December 26th, 2012 at 7:51 pm | #

    Wow…It looks like you had a great Christmas. The food looks spectacular.

  • 51. The Life of Clare | December 26th, 2012 at 8:14 pm | #

    What a fabulous Christmas celebration! The food looks mouth wateringly delicious! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas.

  • 52. Melly Legiman | December 26th, 2012 at 10:21 pm | #

    Hi Lorraine,
    Thanks for this very special and heartfelt Christmas treat. Your blog has provided such a great inspiration to me everyday. Keep up the great work and hope you and Mr NQN return in 2013 with more culinary and travel journeys to whet our reading and foodie appetite! :-)

    Cheers,
    Melly

  • 53. Sammie | December 27th, 2012 at 2:36 am | #

    Dear Lorraine, Merry Christmas to you and your family!! Just look at all that food! Wow! It’s really impressive that all that was made with such great organization, and of course with all the love!! Take care! Looking forward to the recipes and reviews of 2013! :)

  • 54. Mi Vida en un Dulce | December 27th, 2012 at 7:53 am | #

    Merry Christmas Lorraine…you really enjoyed it…!!!
    Right now I can’t think about food, we had a big dinner on the 24th and a big lunch on the 25th. And New Year’s celebration is comming…and it’s summer, which means bikini time…OMG..how am I going to be dressed this season?

  • 55. Tina @ bitemeshowme | December 27th, 2012 at 8:39 am | #

    Wow Lorraine – what an incredible Christmas feast. No doubt you would have had to have undo some buttons on your pants or take off the belt because everything looks so delicious you’d have to eat everything! xx

  • 56. Lydia | December 27th, 2012 at 9:00 am | #

    Hi Lorraine, I hope you and Mr NQN had a wonderful Christmas :-) . My father-inlaw is arriving tomorrow and I would like to make the snow globe cake. Would you please let me know the tin sizes that you used? many thanks and I wish you all the very best for 2013 :-)

  • 57. Not Quite Nigella | December 27th, 2012 at 10:35 am | #

    Hi Lydia! Sure no problems, I used 19cm and a 22cm tins. I hope you guys like the cake! :D All the best for 2013!

  • 58. PolaM | December 27th, 2012 at 10:44 am | #

    Vintage and quite delicious! And I love the mummy turkey!!

  • 59. Lisa | December 27th, 2012 at 11:23 am | #

    Poor Mystery Guy…such a blow to the ego! Well..such is ;life and I’ve found, on a few occasions.. those who ‘look’ or ‘seem’ weak, can surprise you with a body slam that takes your breathe away (happened to me in gym class when I ‘chose’ someone I thought I could beat). Your vintage Christmas is amazing! If you lived in the US..I would beg for an invite! I’m particularly enthralled with your cornbread and ham stuffing, but I will be saving this whole post for next year! The photos of you and ‘santa’ hubby are adorable! A belated Merry X-Mas!

  • 60. Food is our religion | December 27th, 2012 at 2:21 pm | #

    hehehe you look so cute in your collage of photos with Santa! I should of made someone at my feast to dress up as Santa, he would make a good prop LOL

  • 61. Noela Ollenburg | December 27th, 2012 at 3:46 pm | #

    Merry Christmas to you Lorraine and Mr NQN…here’s to 2013. I really like the look of the potatoes and think they would be delice.

  • 62. Jamie | December 27th, 2012 at 6:33 pm | #

    Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and Mr NQN! I love reading your blog. You know it is one of my very favorites. You make me laugh, sigh and dream. Thank you for being such a joy. And a friend. Wishing you both a fabulous 2013 filled with happiness, love and peace. xo

  • 63. grace | December 27th, 2012 at 10:26 pm | #

    everything looks perfectly prepared and presented, lorraine! what a feast. :)

  • 64. Johanna GGG | December 27th, 2012 at 11:59 pm | #

    your christmas dinner looks perfect – potatoes are a must and the snow globe cake is inspired – merry christmas to you and santa (love the pics)

  • 65. Nic@diningwithastud | December 28th, 2012 at 8:08 am | #

    Such an epic feast Lorraine! I love your snow globe cake – its so gorgeous :) I hope you had a great Christmas and have a fab New Year!! x

  • 66. Marissa Pinch&Swirl | December 28th, 2012 at 10:03 am | #

    Love your Mystery Man story – ha! And you look adorable with Santa. :)

  • 67. almond | December 28th, 2012 at 12:38 pm | #

    It is incredible to see all the effort you put on this posts, that is awesome! Happy holidays, and thank you for sharing.

  • 68. Elizabeth H | December 30th, 2012 at 2:15 pm | #

    All I can say to you is try a Spatchcocked turkey. 5th year running and perfect every time. We do a huge family gathering and a 23 lb turkey. Brine overnight (I add star anise to bring some savory oriental flavor) and Spatchcocked. Cooked in an hour and 45 minutes. All your items looks delicious and so wonderful! Happy Christmas to you and yours! Elizabeth

  • 69. Not Quite Nigella | December 30th, 2012 at 4:32 pm | #

    Hi Christine-Thanks very much :D Hehe you are too kind :) Right back at you darling!!

    Hi Baby Sumo-Merry Christmas to you and your family! :D I have enjoyed reading all about your food adventures too and thanks so much! :D

    Hi deana-Merry Christmas Deana! I hope that you’ve had a relaxing time after all the work you’ve been doing! :D

    Hi Daisy-Merry Christmas to you and Mr Bao! :D Hehe I had a lot of help from Mr NQN :D Thank you so much and I hope you like the sweetcorn version as much as I do :D I hope your 2013 is filled with fun and success :D xxx

    Hi Ann-Hehe I’m so glad I’m not alone! MMm that sounds divine!! What a mouth watering spread of food you created! :o I think you should start a blog! :D

    Hi Banana–Thank you Banana and I hope you had a wonderful one too! :D

    Hi Sharon-Merry Christmas to you and your family! :D Thank you so much Sharon, your comment is so sweet and I read it with a big smile and blush of my face :D Oh goodness, did you have everyone wanting an invitation to your place? It sounds fabulous! :o I’m drooling!! xxx

    Hi Julie-Hehe I was relieved that he liked it! :lol: You too and I hope you had a fabulous one with Mr GG and your lovely family :D

    Hi Jina-Thank you Jina! We finished the last of it the other day sadly-I should make more :P Merry Christmas to you too!

    Hi Flick_Thanks and you too! I agree, I am going to try it on other meats now :D

    Hi kelley-Thanks babe! Oh no! Definitely make this one instead ;) Merry Christmas to you, MPS and the family!

    Hi milkteaxx-Thank you! Hehe fabulous! I’m dying to know what you think of them! :D

    Hi Cubby House-Thanks very much, we had a really enjoyable one! I hope you did too? :D

    Hi Clare-Thank you! :D I did and your fruit mince pies looked fab! :D

    Hi Melly-Thanks so much and thanks for being such a lovely long time reader! :D Absolutely, I promise too! :D

    Hi Sammie-Thank you and Merry Christmas to you and your family too! :D Thanks! I can’t help but over cater but I love leftovers too :P Thank you lovely and a happy 2013 to you!

    Hi Nydia-Merry Christmas to you and your family! Hehe I know how you feel! I had something very healthy today but who knows how long that will last :lol:

    Hi Tina-Thanks Tina! :D Hehe yes I did have to :lol: xxx

    Hi Pola-Thank you! That’s how I’m making turkey from now on :lol:

    Hi Lisa-Haha I know but such a funny story. I told him to read some David Sedaris and look upon it as “material” instead :lol: Now wouldn’t that be fun and if I were in the US you bet you’d be invited! :D Thank you so much and I hope you had a fantastic one! :D

    Hi Noela-Thank you so much Noela and thanks for reading for so many years! :D Thanks!!

    Hi Jamie-Thank you lovely Jamie and I’m so glad that we finally got to meet this year! :D It was such a highlight of my trip to finally meet you lovely!! xxx

    Hi grace-Thanks so much Grace! I hope you had a great one! :D

    Hi Johanna-Thank you so much Johanna and yours did too! :D Thanks so much! It was hard to get him to agree to pose-he only agreed once I told him he could

    wear a beard :lol:

    Hi Nic-Thanks Nic!! You are too kind! I hope you had a great one and that your NYE is full of fun and frovility! :D xxx

    Hi Marissa-Hehe thanks! He is full of very funny tales :lol: Thank you!

    Hi almond-Aww shucks thank you Almond! You are very sweet :D Happy Holidays and I hope 2013 is a fabulous one for you!

    Hi Elizabeth-Oh I think we’ll need to get out the heavy duty scissors for spatchcocking that one! Although that is very quick for cooking it! Thank you! :D I hope you had a fabulous one!

  • 70. Traci Tritsaris | December 31st, 2012 at 11:30 am | #

    Merry Christmas Lorraine! Your Vintage Christmas is gorgeous, I was off so just reading to day upon my return.

    I baked myself into a tizzy spell over the 3 days pre-christmas. Pumpkin Pie with pate brisee, 3 lots of xmas bark, 2 dozen cupcakes, 8 christmas cakes, gingerbread houses, good taste’s triple chocolate cheesecake with the peanut brittle (which I stuff and had volcano not brittle when cut open), cardamon spice cookies and brown sugar spice cookies, along with many decorated gingerbread cookies of course!

    Wishing you and Mr NQN a very Happy NYE!
    Txxx

  • 71. A Girl, A Style | January 3rd, 2013 at 10:23 pm | #

    I know Christmas is over, but I’ve only just had time to properly binge-read all your December posts and now I am *salivating* at the sight of all this scrumptious-looking Christmas fare. In fact, I’m going to whip up that peppermint hot chocolate and hassleback potatoes tonight!

    Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year and thank you for all your loveliness, delicious recipes and witty anecdotes!

    Briony xx

  • 72. erin | January 11th, 2013 at 10:20 am | #

    Wh-what?? That snow globe is a cake?? When I saw it at the beginning of the post, it never occurred to me that it was a cake. Another job well done!

  • 73. Nuts about food | January 11th, 2013 at 10:58 pm | #

    I love reading your blog, thank YOU!

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