SAVOURY RECIPES TO TRY OVER THE FESTIVE SEASON

Christmas is getting closer, and now is the perfect time to start thinking about what food to prepare in the lead up to the festivities.

Wow your guests by preparing meals that tie in perfectly with the joyous occasion, and will leave them wanting more.

festive season

We’ve put together a collection of our favourite savoury recipes that will swoon everyone this Christmas.

Turkey and Pumpkin Korma (Courtesy of Waitrose)

Who would have thought Turkey and Pumpkin would make such a great combination? This will be another dish with an Asian twist, you have to try!

Turkey & pumpkin korma

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp virgin cold pressed coconut oil, melted
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 butternut squash, peeled & chopped (about 1.3kg)
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 600g cooked turkey meat (or chicken) shredded
  • 200g jar Cooks’ Ingredients Korma Curry Paste
  • 200g fine green beans, halved
  • 400ml can coconut milk
  • 28g fresh coriander, chopped
  • 50g flaked almonds, toasted

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Add 1 tbsp of the melted coconut oil to a large bowl, add the garam masala, toss in the squash and stir to coat. Tip into a non-stick baking tray.
  2. Roast in the preheated oven for 25 minutes until tender. Add the remaining coconut oil to a large pan and sauté the onions until soft and golden. Stir in the turkey meat, followed by the korma paste, green beans and coconut milk. Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes.
  3. Stir in the roast squash and coriander. Scatter with toasted almonds and serve with poppadoms and hot pickles.

Turkey Tagine (Courtesy of Tilda

Turkey Tagine

This Turkey Tagine is another great Christmas twist recipe, that is sure to a favourite over the festive period.

Ingredients 

  • 250g Tilda Wholegrain Basmati
  • 1tbsp oil 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp turmeric bunch of fresh chopped coriander stalks and picked coriander leaves
  • 1 tbsp. ras el hanout (spice mix)
  • 400g diced turkey breast (or soya mince)
  • 200g butternut squash, peeled and diced
  • 400g tin of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 150g soft dried apricots, halved 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 500ml Gluten Free chicken stock
  • 120g almonds, blanched
  • 100g pomegranate seeds
  • zest of 1 lemon salt & freshly ground yogurt to serve

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas mark 6.

2. Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole dish, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes over a medium heat until softened.

3. Add the garlic, turmeric, ras el hanout and coriander stalks and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes.

4. Add the turkey, butternut squash, chickpeas and halved apricots to the casserole, then pour over the tomatoes and stock.

5. Season well with salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Put the lid on and transfer to the oven.

6. After 30 minutes, turn down the over to 150°C/Gas mark 4, stir the tagine and return to the oven, uncovered, for a further 30 minutes.

7. Meanwhile empty the almonds onto a baking tray and bake for 6-8 minutes until golden, then finely slice.

8. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

9. Stir in the almonds and pomegranate seeds then sprinkle over the lemon zest and coriander leaves.

10. Serve with Tilda Wholegrain Basmati Rice and yoghurt.

Pink Lady®, Celeriac and Truffle Christmas Mash

Mash is everyone’s favourite, and can be served in many ways. Why not jazz it up this year with this recipe, that will leave your guests wanting more.

Pink Lady celeriac and truffle mash

Ingredients

  • 1 small Celeriac, peeled and chopped into roughly 1cm chunks
  • 4 Pink Lady® peeled, cored and chopped into cubes
  • 2 Potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
  • 2 Bay leaves
  • 2 Garlic cloves peeled and sliced
  • 150ml Double cream
  • 6 tbsps Truffle oil
  • 1 Truffle
  • 1 tbsp of salt and pepper

Chicken Roast (Tandoori Style)

For those of you who fancy something different this Christmas, why not add some exotic flavours to your Christmas Meal, with this tandoori style meat.

Chicken Roast (Tandoori Style)

You’ll be thinking of this chicken for a long time!

Ingredients

For the chicken

Method

  1. Prick the chicken all over.
  2. Mix the yogurt and cream and beat it lightly to smoothen the lumps.
  3. Mix all the remaining ingredients into a smooth paste and rub the marinade generously all over the chicken skin and also under the skin where you can.
  4. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
  5. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6.
  6. Place the chicken in a roasting tin and cover with foil. Roast in the centre of the oven for the first 20 mins.
  7. Then, baste with the juices collected in the tray. This will keep the chicken moist.
  8. Reduce the temperature to 180°C/Gas 4 and cook for a further 1 hour 40 mins, basting with the juices a couple of times more.
  9. For the last 15 minutes remove the foil to brown the skin to a nice golden colour.
  10. Remove the chicken from the oven and leave in a warm place to rest for 10 minutes.

Tip: Add 2-3 drops of the Garam Masala Spice Drops® in an atomiser with either 2 tbsps. water or 2 tbsps. oil and spray on the chicken just before serving. The lovely spicy aromas will leave everybody’s mouthwatering!

Basmati Pilaf with Turkey, Pistachio, Cranberries, Parsley and Thyme

Have a lot of turkey left over, then this is the perfect recipe to use up all your leftovers!

Basmati Pilaf with Turkey, Pistachio, Cranberries, Parsley and Thyme

Ingredients

For the marinade

  • Basmati Pilaf
  • 450g of Tilda Pure Basmati
  • 10g butter
  • 2 shallots, finely diced
  • 600ml chicken stock
  • 10g pistachio nuts, peeled
  • 20g dried cranberries
  • 5g fresh thyme, picked
  • salt to season

Turkey Steaks

  • 6 turkey breast steaks, each weighing 200g
  • rapeseed oil
  • 1 knob butter
  • Garnish parsley cress

Method

  1. To prepare the rice, add the basmati to a pan of cold water and allow to soak for 5 minutes. Drain carefully, then top up with more cold water to cover. Give the pan a swirl to rinse the grains before carefully draining again. Repeat this process a couple more times to fully wash the rice.
  2. Pre-heat the oven to 220C/gas mark 6.
  3. In a large ovenproof pan, add the butter and allow to melt over a gentle heat. Add the chopped shallots and sweat down until softened, then stir in the pistachios, cranberries and thyme. Cook for 2 minutes before adding the washed rice and mixing together until evenly coated in butter.
  4. Stir in the stock and increase the heat to high. Allow the stock to come to the boil before adding a little salt to season and covering the pan with a fitted lid. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 15 minutes.

5.  Once cooked, remove from the oven and allow the rice to sit and steam for 5-10      minutes with the lid still on.

  1. While the rice steams, heat a griddle pan with a little oil over a high heat and add the turkey steaks. Fry for 2 minutes, then turn over and fry for a further 2 minutes on the other side.
  2. Add the butter and baste the steaks for a few more minutes, before taking off the heat and leaving to rest for 2 minutes.
  3. Fluff up the pilaf with a fork before serving, dividing the rice between plates and topping with the sliced turkey and a garnish of parsley cress.

Turkey and Mozzarella Christmas Sandwich Loaf (Courtesy of makemoreofsalad.com)

Turkey and Mozzarella Christmas Sandwich Loaf
Photo: Pam Lloyd PR British Leafy Salad (29th March 2016)

Use all your Christmas leftovers, and make a sandwich full of festive delights.

Ingredients

  • 1 circular loaf
  • 3 tbsp cranberry sauce
  • 6-8 long Cos Leaves
  • 150g mozzarella, sliced
  • jar roasted vegetables (Peppers, aubergines, courgettes etc)
  • leftover turkey breast torn into pieces

Method

  1. Cut the top off the loaf approx ¼ the way down and pull the soft bread out of the centre to make a bowl shape of the crust with a 2cm layer of bread inside.
  2. Spread half of the cranberry sauce in a thin layer all over the inside of the bread bowl then layer half of the Cos leaves over the bottom, tearing them to fit. Add a layer of mozzarella then the roast veg then the turkey and top with the rest of the cranberry. Repeat this till the bread bowl is full. End with a layer of Cos leaves.
  3. Replace the lid and tightly wrap the whole thing in cling film and balance a can on top to weigh it down. Leave to firm up for 1-4 hrs. Cut into slices to serve.
  4. Note: dry the roast veg and mozzarella on kitchen roll to avoid the bread getting too soggy.

Festive Beef Tagine

Festive Beef Tagine

Try this beef tagine with a festive twist over the holidays!

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 400g pack diced braising steak
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • ½ tsp mixed spice
  • 1 clove garlic, chopped
  • 400g can chick peas, drained
  • 400g can chopped tomatoes
  • 75g dried cranberries
  • 1 preserved lemon, chopped
  • 400g butternut squash, peeled and diced
  • ½ tsp LoSalt
  • 28g pack fresh coriander, chopped

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180oC, gas mark 4.
  2. Heat the oil and fry the onion and steak for 4-5 minutes to brown. Add the spices and garlic and cook for 1 minute.
  3. Stir in the chick peas, tomatoes, cranberries, 200ml water and lemon and bring to the boil.
  4. Stir in the squash and transfer to a casserole dish. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook for 2 hours until the meat is tender, checking every 40 minutes or so and adding a splash of water if it starts to look dry.
  5. Remove the cinnamon stick.
  6. Stir in the LoSalt and coriander and serve with couscous.

By Amy Lehal

Latest articles

Related articles

spot_img