20 best Christmas party recipes: part 3 (2024)

Richard H Turner’s spiced brown breadcrumbed Christmas ham

The secret to making sure your ham is amazing is to buy well, so this means buying a proper dry-cured ham from a proper free range and happy pig. The timings and measurements below are for a 4kg ham, which will feed around 10-12 people. Make sure you’ve got a pot large enough to poach it in and that it can fit in your oven!

Serves 10-12
whole ham 1, about 4kg
mirepoix a selection of roughly chopped carrots, onions, celery and leek
fa*ggot of herbs containing celery, bay leaf and strips of orange peel, bound with strips of leek
spice bag containing a few each of fresh ginger pieces, whole cloves and mace blades, and 1 cinnamon stick
brown bread 300g
clear honey 150ml
water 300ml
butter 50g
salt
English mustard 50g
Christmas spice mixture 5g (see below)

For the Christmas spice mix
ground nutmeg
ground cinnamon
ground ginger
ground clove

If using a proper dry-cured English ham, soak it for 2 hours before poaching gently in a large, snug pot for 20 minutes per kilo with the mirepoix, the herbs and the spice bag.

When the time’s up, remove from the heat and allow to cool for half an hour in the cooking liquor – this will allow the flavours to really penetrate the meat.

Preheat your oven to 160C/gas mark 3. Carefully remove the ham to a board and remove the skin. Depending on the breed and quality of the pig, you should have a nice layer of fat. Remove some of this fat, leaving about 1cm.

Meanwhile, for the Christmas spice mix, combine the ingredients to taste – I like to go heavy on nutmeg and light on clove but each to their own.

Score the fat left on the meat in a criss-cross fashion and, while it’s moist, season generously with the Christmas spice mix.

Cut the crusts off the brown bread and rip into small pieces.Melt the butter over a medium heat until it begins to brown, add the clear honey and the bread and season with a little salt. Lightly toast until golden and let cool before blending to a fine crumb.

Place the hot ham into a roasting tray with 300ml of water and brush with the mustard, dust with spice mix and coat generously with the honey breadcrumbs before placing in the oven.

Roast for 20 minutes per kilo. When the time is up, remove from the oven and transfer the ham to a clean dish to rest for 30 minutes before thinly slicing with a razor-sharp ham knife. Serve with classic roast garnishes and reserve any leftovers for cold cuts on Boxing Day.
Richard H Turner is a writer and restaurateur

Vivek Singh’s sticky chicken wings

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a large, deep bowl. Add the chicken wings, mix well and set aside for at least an hour, or overnight if possible.

Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Line a large baking tray with foil. Place the wings on the tray. Sprinkle with sea salt, and drizzle over half of the remaining marinade. Cook in the oven for 35-40 minutes. Halfway through cooking, turn the chicken over and add the remaining marinade, cooking until the wings are sticky and coated. Just before removing the wings from the oven, sprinkle over the coriander and stir in.
From Spice at Home by Vivek Singh (Bloomsbury, £25)

David Tanis’s filo pastries with mustard greens and za’atar

Makes 15
mustard greens 700g, leaves and tender stems, washed (you can use chard or spinach, but the mustard greens have more flavour)
garlic 2 cloves, minced
manouri or mild feta cheese 225g, crumbled
za’atar 1 tsp, plus extra for sprinkling
salt and pepper
eggs 2, beaten
filo dough 10 sheets, approximately 35cm x 45cm
butter 110g, melted
egg yolk 1, mixed with cream 1 tbsp, for egg wash

Blanch the greens briefly in boiling water, just enough to wilt, then plunge them in a basin of cold water. Drain, then squeeze well to extract as much liquid as possible. Chop the greens finely, squeeze again and put them in a mixing bowl. Add the garlic, cheese, za’atar and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the eggs and mix well. Heat the oven to 175C/gas mark 3½.

Assemble the pastries: lay a sheet of filo on a clean surface, wide side before you. Brush lightly with melted butter, lay another sheet on top and butter again. (As you work, keep the remaining filo sheets covered with a kitchen towel to prevent them drying out.) Fold the bottom edge up approximately 10cm, so you have a rectangle that is 25cm x 45cm. Cut into 3 strips of 15cm x 25cm.

Put 2 generous tablespoons of the greens mixture in the right lower corner of each strip. Fold the left lower corner up over the greens to meet the right-hand edge and press down to form the first triangle. Fold that triangle upward to form the 2nd triangle. Fold again to complete the pastry. The finished triangle will be about 15cm x 12cm x 2cm. Repeat with the other 2 strips and place on a baking sheet. Brush with butter.

Repeat the process. You should have enough filling for 15 pastries. Brush the tops with egg wash and sprinkle generously with za’atar.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until nicely browned. Serve them warm, halved to make smaller portions if you wish. They can be prepared in advance and reheated.

Simon Hopkinson’s Le Grand Aïoli

Serves 4
salt
young carrots 12, trimmed but unpeeled
cauliflower 1 small, broken into florets
fine green beans 225g, topped and tailed
large spring onions 12, trimmed
small new potatoes 450g, scrubbed
court-bouillon 1 quantity (see below)
cod 1.8-2.3kg, head removed, trimmed and descaled
tinned snails 24 (optional)
eggs 4 hard-boiled, peeled and halved lengthways
aïoli 1 quantity (see below)
to serve parsley sprigs, lemon wedges, coarse sea salt and olive oil

Put all the ingredients for the court-bouillon in a large pan, preferably stainless-steel or enamel. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.

For the aïoli, beat the egg yolks and the garlic with a little salt until thick. Start to add the olive oil in a thin stream, beating continuously. Add a little of the lemon juice and then some more oil. Continue beating, adding alternately more lemon juice and more oil until both are used up and you have a thick mayonnaise. Adjust the salt and add plenty of pepper. Cover and keep at room temperature.

Fill a large stainless-steel pan with water and bring to the boil. Add plenty of salt. Add the carrots and cook until just tender. Lift out with a slotted spoon and reserve. Bring back to the boil and repeat with the cauliflower. Bring the water back to the boil and cook the beans for 3-4 minutes. Lift out with a slotted spoon and refresh in ice-cold water. Drain and reserve. Do the same with the spring onions. Cook the potatoes until tender in the same water. Lift out and reserve.

Keep the cooking liquid hot for reheating the vegetables. Do this either in a colander suspended over the water, or in a steamer, if you have one.

Bring the court-bouillon to the boil and add the cod. Bring back to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave for about 30 minutes, then lift the cod out. Place the fish on a large white oval plate that will accommodate the fish and the vegetables. Wrap the whole plate in foil and keep warm in a very low oven. Meanwhile, reheat the vegetables and, if using them, heat the snails in a small pan.

To serve, arrange all the vegetables attractively around the fish. Intersperse with little clumps of parsley, the snails, the eggs and lemon wedges. Serve the aïoli and a bowl of coarse sea salt separately. Have a bottle of olive oil (preferably the one that you used to make the aioli) on the table for dressing the vegetables.

This wonderful feast looks magnificent and is a lovely addition to a Christmas celebration; as it is Christmas, splash out and drink a fine white burgundy with it.
From Roast Chicken and Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson (Ebury, £16.99)

The Guardian and Observer aim to publish recipes for sustainable fish. For ratings in your region, check: UK; Australia; US

Dominique Ansel’s chestnut whiskey cream puffs

First make the choux crust. In a bowl, stir together the butter and brown sugar with a spatula until no butter streaks are visible. Add the flour and mix until just combined.

Place the dough between two pieces of parchment. Roll it out into a 33cm x 15cm rectangle. Transfer the dough, still between the parchment pieces, to a baking tray. Freeze until completely frozen – about 30 minutes.

Cut 50 circles using a 4cm ring cutter. Remove excess dough. Cover the baking tray loosely with clingfilm. Refrigerate until needed.

Next make the pâte à choux. In a pot over medium heat, combine the water, milk, butter, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until evenly incorporated.

With a spatula, add flour and mix vigorously until a dough forms. “Dry” the dough by continuing to stir. A film will start to form at the bottom of the pot, after about 1-2 minutes. Keep heating and stirring until a thick white film completely covers the base – about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Transfer the dough to a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. Add eggs one at a time and mix on low speed, making sure each egg is incorporated and checking the dough before adding the next. The amount of eggs needed may vary, based on the dough consistency. To check, dip a rubber spatula into the dough and pull up. The dough should form a smooth, V-shaped “ribbon” on the end of the spatula when ready.

Cut the tip of piping bag to fit a #12 plain tip. Using a spatula, fill the bag with dough to a third full.

Line a baking tray with parchment. Holding the piping bag at a 90° angle, pipe dots of dough 4cm in diameter, spaced 3.5cm apart. Continue piping until all the dough has been used, refilling the bag as necessary. Flatten the pointed tips with your fingers.

Remove the choux crust discs from fridge. Place a crust disc on each piped choux. Press slightly to adhere the crust to the choux. Leave the choux to dry for 30 minutes at room temperature before baking.

While the choux is drying, preheat oven to 190C/gas mark 5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. When finished, the choux will be golden brown and feel light. When broken open, they’ll be mostly hollow. Let them cool on parchment, then remove gently and set aside.

Make the chestnut cream in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Beat the chestnut paste and puree on medium until smooth and free of chunks, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl frequently. Once smooth, slowly add the cream while continuing to mix, until soft and creamy. Be careful not to over-whip the cream. Stop the mixer, switch to a whisk attachment, and continue to whisk. Slowly add the softened butter and whiskey. Continue whisking until the ingredients are fully incorporated and your cream is light and fluffy.

To serve, transfer the chestnut cream to a piping bag fitted with an #6 tip (or make a 6mm cut along the top). Poke the piping bag tip into the bottom of each choux and pipe in the cream.
Dominique Ansel is the chef-founder of Dominique Ansel Bakery, London SW1