Is the planning of your Christmas dinner (or lunch) making you sweat? Well, we’ve done the homework and gathered some of our favourite recipes to build a spectacular Christmas menu for you!
The key to a stress-free day with your family is planning ahead. Take care of your shopping and meal prep in advance, so you can relax and enjoy the day instead of spending hours in the kitchen.
CHRISTMAS MENU:
| Appetiser | Brioche with baked Camembert | Antipasto wreath | |
| Salads | Wild Rice Salad | Watermelon Feta Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing | Mandarin Orange Salad |
| Entrée | Fondant Slow-Roasted Sweet Potatoes | Pork Roast with Crisply Crackling | The perfect juicy braaied turkey |
| Dessert | Christmas Trifle | Litchi Sorbet with Bubbly |
Start your Christmas Lunch with a grazing appetiser –
Tear & share bread with baked Camembert
– Start by either purchasing pre-made bread dough or preparing your own. Place dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape it into evenly sized balls.
– Arrange the dough balls in a large round baking tray, leaving a small space between the balls so they can rise again.
– Place a dish or ramekin the size of the Camembert in the centre of the baking dish.
– Brush the dough with a little bit of beaten egg and garnish with pink peppercorns and some rosemary.
– Set aside to rise for 45 minutes. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown at 180 C.
– Carefully remove the centre dish and replace with the Camembert, bake for another 15 minutes.
– Serve with the fig-and-ginger preserve and drizzle over some of the syrup.
Antipasto Wreath
Make cocktail antipasto skewers of assorted deli meat, artichoke, mascarpone-filled bell peppers, olives, Swiss cheese, cherry tomatoes, grilled sweet peppers and thinly sliced zucchini. Arrange the skewers in a ring on a large board and sprinkle with rosemary.
Bring on the main course – Starting with salads
Watermelon Feta Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing
Ingredients
– 1 part fresh lemon juice
– 3 parts extra virgin olive oil
– Chopped basil (to taste)
– Salt and pepper (to taste)
– Baby rocket leaves
– Micro herbs
– Watermelon cubes
– Feta cubes
Instruction
Whisk together fresh lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, chopped basil, salt, and pepper to create the dressing. In a large bowl, combine baby rocket leaves, micro herbs, watermelon cubes, and feta cubes. Lightly toss the salad with the dressing just before serving.
Mandarin Orange Salad
Ingredients
– Mixed baby spinach and rocket leaves
– Peeled mandarin wedges
– Toasted walnuts
– Dried cranberries
– Parmesan cheese
– Sea salt
– 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
– 1 tbsp orange juice
– 1 tbsp honey
– 2 tsp poppy seeds
– 1 tsp Dijon mustard
– ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
– Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Create a base with mixed baby spinach and rocket leaves. Top with mandarin wedges, toasted walnuts, and dried cranberries. In a medium bowl, whisk together red wine vinegar, orange juice, honey, poppy seeds, and Dijon mustard. Gradually pour in the olive oil while whisking to emulsify the dressing.
Season the dressing with salt and pepper. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss gently. Finish by topping with Parmesan and a pinch of sea salt. Serve immediately.
Wild Rice Salad
Ingredients
– 1 cup cooked and cooled wild rice
– 120g baby rocket
– Seeds of 1 pomegranate
– 100g feta, crumbled
– ¾ cup dried cranberries
– ¾ cup roughly chopped toasted pecans
– 1 cup thinly sliced green onions
– 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
– 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
– ½ clove garlic, minced
– 1 tsp sugar
– ½ tsp salt
– ½ tsp black pepper
Instructions
In a large bowl, combine the wild rice, baby rocket, pomegranate seeds, feta, cranberries, pecans, and green onions. In a jar, mix the dressing ingredients: white wine vinegar, olive oil, garlic, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Shake well to combine. Set the dressing aside and toss with the salad just before serving.
Fondant Slow-Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
– 1.5kg medium sweet potatoes (skin on)
– Butter
– Oil
– Salt and pepper
– 1 ¼ cups vegetable stock
– 1/3 cup pecans
– ½ cup maple syrup
– 2 tbsp butter
– ½ tsp cinnamon
– Pinch of salt
– Fresh thyme leaves
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 240°C. Cut sweet potatoes into 3cm rounds (leave the skin on). Arrange the sweet potato rounds on a roasting pan, leaving some space between each one. Drizzle the rounds with butter and oil, then season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes. Flip the sweet potato rounds and roast for another 15 minutes, spooning the buttery pan juices over the potatoes halfway through. Pour 1 ¼ cups of vegetable stock into the pan and roast for another 20 minutes until the stock is absorbed by the potatoes.
For the Maple Butter Pecan Sauce:
Toast the pecans in a dry pan. Add the maple syrup, butter, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt to the pan with the pecans. Let the mixture simmer for a couple of minutes until it reduces and thickens slightly.
Pile the roasted sweet potatoes onto a serving plate, scraping some of the pan juices over them. Pour the maple butter pecan sauce over the potatoes and sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves.
Pork Roast with Crispy Crackling
Ingredients
– Fresh boneless pork shoulder (avoid pre-vacuumed frozen packages)
– Salt
– Pepper
– Fennel
– Oil
– 2 onions, quartered
– 1 garlic bulb, halved
– 2 cups dry white wine
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 160°C. Dry the skin of the pork shoulder with a paper towel. Season the flesh side of the pork with salt, pepper, fennel, and oil. Rub oil and salt onto the skin side of the pork. In a roasting pan, place the quartered onions and halved garlic bulb (cut side up). Place the pork on top of the onions and garlic, skin side up. Pour 2 cups of dry white wine into the pan, being careful not to wet the skin. Roast uncovered in the oven for 2 ½ hours. (Pro tip: Use tinfoil balls to prop up the meat, ensuring the skin stays level and crisps up evenly) After 2 ½ hours, increase the oven temperature to 250°C. Roast the pork for another 30 minutes to achieve crispy crackling. Rest the pork loosely covered with foil to keep it warm before serving.
The perfect juicy braaied turkey
Ingredients
– 1 whole turkey
– 200g butter (for under the skin)
– Fresh rosemary sprigs
– Salt (for seasoning the skin)
– 300g butter (for basting)
Instructions
Prepare the Weber by lighting the coals and letting them burn down until they are grey and no longer smoking. Gently lift the skin from the turkey breast and rub 200g of butter underneath. Place a few rosemary sprigs under the skin with the butter. Generously salt the skin of the turkey. Position the turkey in the center of the grill, above a foil tray placed between the coals to catch the fat and juices. Cover the Weber with the lid, ensuring the air vents are open. Roast the turkey for 1 ½ to 2 hours. Melt 300g of butter with additional rosemary and use it to baste the turkey every 20 minutes. Once the turkey is cooked, remove from the grill and let it rest, covered, for 15 minutes before serving.
And finally, the end a perfect Christmas day…
Christmas Trifle
Ingredients
– 450g Madeira cake
– 1/3 cup fruit-flavored liquor
– 3 cups cranberry juice (for jelly)
– 7 tsp gelatine powder
– 3 cups cranberry juice (room temperature, for gelatine mixture)
– 1 punnet strawberries or raspberries (for topping)
For the custard:
– 3 cups milk
– ¼ cup caster sugar (for milk mixture)
– 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
– ¼ cup caster sugar (for egg mixture)
– 4 egg yolks
– ½ cup cornflour
For the cream topping:
– 2 ½ cups heavy cream
– 3 tbsp white sugar
– 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
Instruction
Prepare the cake: Cut the 450g Madeira cake into 2cm cubes. Place the cake cubes in a 3.5-litre trifle dish. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup of fruit-flavored liquor.
Make the jelly: In a saucepan, bring 3 cups of cranberry juice to a simmer, then turn off the heat. In a separate bowl, whisk 7 tsp of gelatine powder into 3 cups of room temperature cranberry juice until mostly dissolved. Pour the gelatine mixture into the hot cranberry juice and whisk until fully dissolved. Pour half of the warm jelly mixture into the trifle dish, covering the cake cubes. Do not refrigerate the remaining jelly. Refrigerate until the jelly is partly set (enough to place a strawberry on top without it sinking).
Prepare the custard: In a large saucepan, bring 3 cups of milk, ¼ cup caster sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla bean paste to a simmer over medium heat. In a bowl, whisk ¼ cup caster sugar, 4 egg yolks, and ½ cup cornflour until smooth. Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the egg mixture while whisking. Pour the combined mixture back into the saucepan and return to low heat. Whisk constantly for about 45 seconds until the mixture thickens, then remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. Whisk the custard to loosen, then spoon it over the partially set jelly in the trifle dish. Refrigerate the trifle uncovered for an hour to firm up the custard surface.
Finish the trifle:
Refrigerate the remaining jelly until it becomes slightly slippy and spoonable. Carefully spoon the jelly over the custard layer. Scatter 1 punnet of halved strawberries or raspberries over the jelly. Refrigerate the trifle for at least 3 hours (up to 48 hours).
Prepare the cream topping:
Beat 2 ½ cups heavy cream, 3 tbsp white sugar, and 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract until softly whipped. Spoon the whipped cream over the trifle just before serving.
Litchi Sorbet with Bubbly
Ingredients
– Non-stick cooking spray
– 4 x 125ml paper cones
– 45ml water
– 45ml caster sugar
– 5ml lemon juice
– 410g tinned litchis
– Sparkling wine or champagne (optional, for serving)
Instruction
Spray non-stick cooking spray into 4 x 125ml paper cones, and place them upright in cups or glasses. In a saucepan, combine 45ml water, 45ml caster sugar, and 5ml lemon juice. Heat the mixture over low heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Let it simmer for another 4 minutes. Puree 410g tinned litchis using a handheld blender. Add the pureed litchis to the sugar syrup mixture. Divide the litchi mixture evenly among the paper cones. Place the cones in the freezer and freeze for 1 hour. After 1 hour, insert a stick into the center of each sorbet. Freeze the sorbets overnight. Once frozen, unmould the sorbets and serve with or dip them into sparkling wine or champagne if desired.