Tag: family

Christmas buffet ideas

If you fancy doing Christmas a little differently this year how about having a Christmas buffet? Whether it’s instead of your Christmas roast, a Boxing Day treat or pre-Christmas celebration party, a buffet is a great way of serving food to a lot of hungry people.

Never thrown a buffet before? Then we’ve got the inspiration you need. We’ve rounded up our favourite buffet foods that are sure to impress. From dips to desserts, every buffet needs a wide selection and variety of foods to choose from so each guest can leave with a smile on their face and a full stomach.

The buffet recipes in our round-up are cheap, quick and easy so you won’t feel the stress or the pinch this Christmas. There’s no need to spend lots of money on fancy nibbles or hours hunting down the supermarket aisle for that perfect treat, when you can make your own. You can even get the family to help you make them too.

We’ve got both savoury and sweet recipes, classic Christmas drinks and naughty but oh-so-nice desserts. We’ve also got some treats for the adults, fussy eaters and not forgetting simple Christmassy bites for the kids. We’ve even got party bag ideas full of Christmas goodies for your guests to take home with them.

Click through to see our Christmas buffet ideas

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Giving Thanks

Michele and I had a very lovely Thanksgiving holiday with the family in Davis, CA. The food and company were wonderful, and as if that wasn’t enough, I also enjoyed a flood of viewers posting pictures of their successful Food Wishes’ recipes on Twitter and Instagram. I want to thank everyone who mentioned us this holiday, and I couldn’t be happier or more proud of all the beautiful food you created and shared. And while we’re on the subject, here are a few highlights from our meal. Enjoy!

Our handsome, free-range turkey was from Branigan’s Turkey Farm in Woodland, California, and it was amazing! I did the old, herb-butter under the skin trick, and it was one of the juiciest, most flavorful turkeys in recent memory.

I love to start the Thanksgiving meal with a small salad. This is a great way to get everyone to the table for toasts, grace, etc., and not have to worry about all the food getting cold. While the turkey rests, enjoy a nice pear, persimmon salad with goat cheese, pomegranate, and candied walnuts.

What’s Thanksgiving, but an elaborate excuse to eat lots of buttery mashed potatoes? These were fortified with cream cheese as family tradition dictates.

These incredibly tasty sweet potatoes were simply roasted with maple butter and topped with salty, crunchy, toasted pistachios. They were perfect.

I decided to eschew the usual green bean casserole for this new addition to the holiday side repertoire. The beans were tossed with copious amounts of roasted garlic, and then warmed in the oven after a crumbling of Point Reyes blue cheese. No one missed the casserole!

We finished with the pumpkin pie you saw posted a while back, and by the looks of my Twitter feed, so did many of you. I hope you had a great holiday, and enjoy the rest of the weekend. Special thanks to Peggy & Al, Nina & Tom, and Jennifer and Leanne for providing us with such an enjoyable Thanksgiving. Stay tuned for a new video tomorrow!

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Rosemary Shrager’s Victoria sponge cake

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Rosemary Shrager makes this classic British cake recipe look effortless with an easy to follow step-by-step guide – so treat the family to this freshly baked cake next time you have an hour to spare.

Makes: 1
Prep time: 30 mins
Cooking time: 25 mins

Plus 10 minutes cooling time
Total time: 1 hr 5 mins
Skill level: Easy peasy
Costs: Mid-price

That’s goodtoknow

This Victoria sponge cake will keep up to a week in an airtight container or you can freeze the individual cake bases without the filling on them, to make the cake at a later date.

Ingredients

220g soft unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
220g caster sugar
4 large eggs
220g self-raising fl our
6 tbsp raspberry jam
1–2 tbsp icing sugar

Method

First prepare two 20cm sandwich tins by greasing them well with butter. Line the base of each tin with a circle of baking parchment cut to fit.
Put the soft butter and the sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy and almost white in colour. This is easiest with an electric beater but you can also use a wooden spoon.
Lightly whisk the eggs together in a small jug or bowl. Add to the butter mixture a little at a time, beating constantly.
Now sift in the flour in 3 or 4 additions. Fold in the flour each time with a large metal spoon. Be careful not to knock the air out or the cake will be heavy.
Divide the cake mixture equally between the 2 sandwich tins and level the surface. Place on the middle shelf of an oven preheated to 180°C/Gas Mark 4 and bake for 25–30 minutes, until well risen and golden brown.
To check if the cakes are done, press one gently in the middle with your finger – it should spring back up. If you’re still not sure, insert a skewer in the centre – if it comes out clean, the cake is cooked through.
Remove the cakes from the oven and leave in the tins for 10 minutes. Then run a knife around the edge of each one to loosen it if necessary. Turn out the cakes on to a wire rack. Leave to cool completely. Peel off the baking parchment and put one of the cakes on a serving plate.
Spread the raspberry jam over the top of the cake. Put the other cake on top of the jam. Then sift the icing sugar over the top through a fine sieve.

By Rosemary Shrager’s Absolutely Foolproof Classic Home Cooking, published by Hamlyn, £18.99.

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Nutritional information

Guideline Daily Amount for 2,000 calories per day are: 70g fat, 20g saturated fat, 90g sugar, 6g salt.

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