Cooking up a stress free Christmas

Nothing beats a Christmas feast! It is the calling card that brings family and loved ones together to celebrate a mouth-watering meal.

But for the person in charge of preparing the Christmas feast it can be more of a chore than a celebration. The trouble is that cooking up a big meal from scratch is not something most people do very often, in fact for some, Christmas is the only time that it is attempted. So for all of you that are responsible for the big event this year, here are some tips that will dial up the fun and reduce the stress.

The No1 tip to reduce the stress is to prepare as much as possible before the big day, that way you will only have the finishing touches to do on Christmas morning. Vegetables, salads and desserts are the obvious ones and in some instances these can be prepared up to two days in advance.

Make a plan this is a massive stress buster, and should include when to shop, a menu and when to do each task.

Don’t try something new. This can be a recipe for disaster, stick to what you know.

Shop online and avoid the chaos of the busy malls full of last minute shoppers .

Share the workload – ask the butcher to score the ham, bone the pork or trim the beef. Buy prawns ready peeled.

Less is more; it is far better to do a few things really well than try and do lots and not pull it off.

A turkey crown is easier to carve. A large whole turkey can be hard to carve and takes more care during cooking.

And finally the most important tip is to have fun. Whatever your plans this Festive Season, happy cooking and don’t forget to look out for some tips on what to do with the left overs.