• vikingcook on January 18, 2017

  Thank you, Nigella! This book is a holiday lifesaver. The vast majority of recipes tell you how far ahead you can prepare the dish and how to freeze. There are great leftover recipes as well. I made 4 recipes from this book last Christmas and all were great.

• CindyinOttawa on April 01, 2014

  Nigella's instructions to brine turkey and how long to cook it changed my Christmas turkey forever. Never again will a dry turkey grace my table. I love how she writes about food. And the countdown list is helpful, even if I don't use all her recipes. I pull this cookbook out when I want to get into the Christmas spirit!

• rebecca1july on June 16, 2011

  Love this book xx

• nielsena on August 20, 2010

  Great Christmas recipes, love the drink ideas, pumpkin lasagna and other homey autumn desserts.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Poinsetta

  • Melanie on July 28, 2016

    I found I needed to increase the amount of cranberry juice.

  • Hannaha100 on December 18, 2017

    "Poinsettia" in the book. Made with 60ml prosecco, 10ml cointreau and 40ml cranberry juice per glass. Like a cranberry bucks fizz. "Christmassy" and "refreshing" according to DH.

• Amaretto sour

  • redjanet on December 27, 2012

    Having recently rediscovered this cocktail, one of my favourite drinks back in college, I wanted to recreate it at home as Amaretto is a liqueur I almost always have in the house. All this consists of is amaretto and lemon juice. I have to admit, I didn't exactly follow Nigella's measurements exactly and came up with a drink that was probably too strong on the sour and even stronger on the amaretto, but I liked the sharp contrast of sweet and sour and will be making this again. Now I need to find some maraschino cherries to complete the recipe properly.

• Chocolate-peanut butter cups

  • etcjm on December 26, 2018

    Hardest bit was finding the small paper cases. Ideal for picking at. Easy to make and even peanut butter haters ate them.

• Christmas rocky road

  • rebecca1july on June 16, 2011

    Really tasty

• Pumpkin and goat's cheese lasagne

  • mayastonecastle on October 03, 2019

    I had a few issues with the way this recipe is written. First, the amount of pumpkin that needs to be used is very vague. She calls for a 2.25k pumpkin, which she says yields about 2kg of pumpkin. I bought that amount precut, but I don’t know if that is truly the right amount. The way she suggests cooking it is incredibly difficult — there is hardly any liquid so the pumpkin kept sticking to the pan, so I had to keep adding water through the whole process. Total mess. There are easier ways to accomplish cooking it. She calls for 600g of pasta sheets which is way too much. The end flavor is great, but if I made it again I would completely rewrite some instructions and use far less pasta sheets. It’s irritating because I felt this recipe had not truly been tested.

• Roast squash and sweet potato soup with buttermilk blue cheese swirl

  • Larkster2003 on May 16, 2020

    Peel potatoes and squash

• Red cabbage with pomegranate juice

  • vikingcook on January 18, 2017

    This was a snap to prepare and can be made 3 days ahead. Delicious hot but also tasty as a cold salad after Christmas. Can be frozen.

• Gleaming maple cheesecake

  • vikingcook on January 18, 2017

    This turned out beautifully with nary a crack on top. Can be made ahead as can most recipes in this book. A mild, creamy cheesecake with a touch of maple syrup.

• Parsleyed fish gratin

  • CindyinOttawa on January 08, 2017

    From Nigella's Website: In the ingredients list, the Pollack and the smoked haddock should both be skinless fillets. This wasn't specified, but implied in the book. Now, we are going through the scrutinizing ruthlessly to add further clarification where it could help.

• Macaroni and cheese deluxe

  • joneshayley on December 27, 2019

    Very rich and lasts well made in advance, so convenient for this time of year. However the evaporated milk makes the affair too sweet for me. I’ll stick to my own recipe in future. Children loved it though

• Spiced and superjuicy roast turkey with allspice gravy

  • rebecca1july on June 16, 2011

    Nice and tender but not the best turkey recipe I've used.

  • joneshayley on December 27, 2019

    Beautifully spiced, and juicy turkey - I may have negated the need for brining by stuffing under the breast, but I felt that the brining improves the texture and flavour of the overall bird.

• My mother's bread sauce

  • etcjm on December 26, 2018

    Lovely, but even half the recipe makes an awful lot to use up.

• Gingerbread stuffing

  • rebecca1july on June 16, 2011

    A bit too sweet for us

• Christmas sprouts

  • KarinaFrancis on August 17, 2015

    I usually make the chestnut variation, but this year I tried the pecan version. Nice, but I prefer the chestnuts

• Butternut orzotto

  • Wormella on June 19, 2014

    I'm sure there's a misprint In step 4, where she says Butternut squash cubes instead of onions. Makes no sense otherwise!

  • lauranyc1 on March 08, 2010

    Love this recipe. Easy to make, and very filling.

  • CindyinOttawa on January 08, 2017

    From Nigella's Website: In the fourth step it should read "add the barley to the onions, and stir for about 2 minutes." We do not know how the mention of butternut cubes crept in here in place of onion; obviously the Butternut Fan Club has an underground agent at the publishers!

• Ultimate Christmas pudding

  • alexthepink on November 24, 2019

    This is my go-to Christmas pudding recipe. I scale it down by 2/3 to fill a 2 pint pudding bowl.

• Chocolate sponge pudding for Christmas pudding haters with hot chocolate sauce

  • joneshayley on October 10, 2021

    Rich rich chocolate pudding and sauce- would benefit from creme fraiche or ice cream to cut through . Absolute hit with the children though.

• Roast rib of beef with Port and Stilton gravy

  • joneshayley on December 01, 2019

    My first cooking of rib and it was perfect- followed Nigella's timings to the letter and got delicious rare beef, that was melt on the mouth tender. Coupled with the AMAZING port and Stilton gravy (best gravy I’ve ever made) this did not disappoint.

• Incredibly easy chocolate fruit cake

  • Alro9 on October 28, 2014

    I made this cake as it was suggested as a good alternative to a more traditional Christmas cake for those who don't like fruit cake. It is a very dense and dark cake - almost like the texture and consistency of a chocolate brownie inside. Personally I couldn't taste the chocolate from the inclusion of cocoa in the recipe but, overall, I did like it as an alternative to a more trad Christmas cake. If you prefer a lighter less dense cake or one with nuts in it this won't be the perfect cake for you. However it scores highly on being incredibly easy to make and it tasted like a mature Christmas cake without any maturing!

  • redjanet on December 27, 2012

    I'll admit that I'm not overly keen on fruit cake, but having declared I would bring dessert to my in-laws for Christmas I decided on this. This was indeed quite easy to make in advance of the big day and it kept well wrapped in baking parchment and tin foil in a baking tin, as instructed by Nigella. The cake itself was very moist and although the chocolate flavour wasn't overwhelming, it left a nice aftertaste and added an extra dimension.

  • vikingcook on January 18, 2017

    Made this last Christmas and it was a big hit. I agree with redjanet that the chocolate wasn't overwhelming at all. It was indeed very dense and moist. I made it ahead and then froze some and it performed beautifully throughout.

• Star-topped minced pies

  • eliza on November 22, 2015

    The pastry for these pies is delicious, well explained, and freezes and reheats like a dream. Would be a great pastry for a beginner since the explanation is so clear. You can reheat in a microwave and it is still crispy! I fill with mincemeat from David Lebovitz with extra spices. A Christmas treat.

• Yule log

  • CindyinOttawa on January 08, 2017

    From Nigella's Website: In the first step at the top of page 193 after "bake in the oven for 20 minutes" it should then read "Let the cake cool a little before turning it out onto another piece of baking parchment. Cover loosely with a clean tea towel. (If you dust this piece of parchment with a little icing sugar it may help prevent stickage, but don't worry too much as any tears or dents will be covered by icing later.)" The book at the moment doesn't mention dusting with icing sugar, and it certainly isn't obligatory but we just thought it might help.

• Spruced-up vanilla cake

  • CindyinOttawa on January 08, 2017

    From Nigella's Website: In the last line of the third step it should read "Fold in the rest of the flour, and add the bicarbonate of soda, yoghurt and vanilla extract." For some reason, the bicarb fell off the line here in the book.

  • Hannaha100 on December 14, 2017

    Made a dairy-free version of the spiced variation with plain soy yoghurt. Was initially disappointed with result but much better the next day. Make in advance! Would be good with fruit compote or syrup. Toddler gobbled this.

• Sticky gingerbread

  • vikingcook on January 18, 2017

    Wonderful gooey gingery cake. Stores well, freezes well and is delicious. What more do you want?

  • redjanet on January 03, 2015

    This was a simple, easy to prepare dessert to bring to a friends' house over the holidays and it went down a treat. The flavours combined beautifully and the end result was a wonderful combination of textures - soft and fluffy cake with a slightly crispy top.

  • MsMonsoon on May 31, 2020

    Very good. Used extra fresh ginger. Nigella’s note: “I’m happy with it unfrosted, just left plain or perhaps snowily dusted with icing sugar, but if you want you can (as I do if it is for a bake sale) make a sharply contrasting icing by sieving 175g icing sugar and mixing it till thick and spreadable with a tablespoon of lemon juice and one of warm water. Spread this over the cold slab of gingerbread, and leave to set before cutting.” Also was good hot, with Tartine’s bourbon hard sauce.

  • Nikapai on February 11, 2018

    This is a delicious gingerbread, great with a cup of tea.

• Pecan-plus pie

  • CindyinOttawa on January 08, 2017

    From Nigella's Website: In the second step it should read "Tip out into a 25cm wide, just under 4 cm deep, flan dish." We didn't specify quite how deep the flan dish should be, but for further clarification thought it might be helpful to be absolutely specific.

• Cranberry and white chocolate cookies

  • redjanet on January 03, 2015

    Excellent cookies; perfect for the season.

  • KarinaFrancis on August 26, 2013

    For the other 11 months of the year I substitute dried cherries for the cranberries and peanuts for the pecans. Both versions are moreish.

  • lils74 on December 11, 2018

    Made these last week, substituted almonds for the pecans and dark choc chips for the white as those were what I had; also chopped my cranberries as they seemed disproportionately large. Everyone loved the cookies - great combination of sweet and tart. However, I'm not sure if I did something wrong, perhaps when I doubled the recipe, as they looked nothing like the picture in the book. They spread out and were totally flat. Didn't affect flavor - delicious, crunchy and a little soft in the center. But I still wonder what I did wrong...

  • Kag2020 on December 23, 2022

    I make these with a smaller scoop, don’t flatten, get 65 cookies, bake for 13 minutes. Make sure to chill the dough otherwise they spread quite a bit. I make them every year around the holidays. One of my favorites.

• Christmas chutney

  • Jane on January 08, 2015

    I love this kind of chutney - fruity, chunky, lots of variety in texture. My only negative was that the vinegar flavor is quite strong but it's not so pronounced when eating it with other foods. Also it's only been a couple of weeks since I made it and I'm sure it will soften in time. Next year I'm going to make it in October rather than leaving it until the last minute.

• Peanut brittle with art and soul

  • CindyinOttawa on January 08, 2017

    From Nigella's Website: In the second step it should read "Put the sugar, water and syrup into a pan, bring to the boil gently, then turn up the heat and let boil for 5 minutes or until a rich, deep amber." We have reduced the time from the 10 minutes in the book, because we felt it would be better for people to choose to add more minutes; it being impossible to take away at the end!

  • Kag2020 on December 23, 2022

    Delicious, easy, no fail recipe. I make this once a year. Up the peanuts a bit to maybe one and a half cups.

• Espresso martini

  • Hannaha100 on December 17, 2017

    I'm not much of a coffee drinker but this was quite drinkable. Used salted caramel vodka instead of toffee vodka because that's what I could get. One for guests.

• Marteani

  • Hannaha100 on December 17, 2017

    I loved the sound of this but actually found the cointreau overpowered the drink and couldn't really taste the Earl Grey. Might play around with quantities in the future but for now writing this one off.

• Triple cheese and onion strata

  • Hannaha100 on December 17, 2017

    This was pretty nice but needs another flavour as a contrast (would make a great lunch with tomato salad). I actually preferred this cold, but then I like cold quiche. Husband thought it was OK but not breakfasty enough.

• Pumpkin pancakes with sticky marmalade

  • Hannaha100 on December 16, 2017

    Recipe title should be "Pumpkin pancakes with sticky maple pecans" Made dairy-free (buttermilk = 1.5 cups soy milk + 1.5 tbsp lemon juice). These were perfectly fine but nothing more. A decent blank canvas for other food but not exciting enough to eat on their own or just with maple syrup. Toddler rejected.

• Cranberry, almond, and honey granola

  • Hannaha100 on December 20, 2017

    Made with raisins (soaked in OJ) instead of almonds and hemp seeds for sesame. Very nice! It is indeed sweet but the contrast of salt worked well for me. Didn't need as long as stated (I burned first batch). Second time did 15, 10 and 2 mins at 150c. Use nice oats!

  • lou_weez on April 16, 2016

    Delicious!!! Love it with yoghurt and fresh fruit.

  • Lillibet on February 29, 2012

    Nice mix of base ingredients. A bit too sweet for me and I would leave out the salt altogether.