An Aussie Beachside Christmas
It is my turn this year to host Christmas. We will be down at the beach and Christmas Day will be a relaxed affair. The kids in our combined families are all teens or young adults so gone are the days of getting up at the crack of dawn and tearing through endless gifts. These days Christmas is a more leisurely low-key celebration - not totally devoid of the usual gift giving and frivolity, but certainly down a notch or two from the heady days of little ones. All versions of Christmas are good in my books because fundamentally it is a day of getting together with those that you love. And despite the primping and planning, this is what matters most.
A relaxed Australian inspired Christmas table
Here is the look I pulled together for what I am planning for the table this CHRISTMAS. Pale dusty pinks, soft greens, a touch of plummy red and native Australian florals.
Whenever I am planning styling - for a table or a room, this is what I do. Visually pull my ideas together as a way of figuring things out ahead of time.
It’s the perfect way to see what you already own, what you might need to buy to add to the table scape and it keeps you on track - because once you hit the shops there will be so many things that catch your eye and so many looks you could go down - so plan before you head out. That way you’ll save money and know exactly what you are looking for.
I honestly feel like planning ahead when it comes to styling your home is the answer to everything feeling cohesive and actually working.
I will make my own crackers - or bon bons - this year with my daughter. I thought I’d ask my son to write out the jokes and the we can put our heads together to come up with a little treasure to put inside each one.
Making your own Christmas crackers is really easy. There are plenty of tutorials online that you can follow with patterns provided for the card cylinder that you cut with a diamond pattern to concertina the ends.
I have ordered some beautiful wrapping paper from Bespoke Letterpress to make mine this year and will buy some pretty ribbon when I get to Melbourne. I also bought the cracker ‘snaps’ online as well. (Sadly, you can’t ship these to Singapore as they’re deemed illegal as they’re classified as a firework…so if you’re in Singapore you can still make them but you won’t be able to have the festive BANG!).
CHRISTMAS LUNCH
These are my go-to Christmas lunch recipes - they’re tasty, easy to prepare and are always much appreciated. Also, given we are down at the beach I will have a tiny oven so there’s no chance of fitting in a big bird so the turkey breast recipe is great if you are short on oven space and don’t want the added hassle of carving a bird and doing something with a carcass when all is said and done. During Covid when we were in Singapore for Christmas, I ordered the turkey breasts from Huber’s Butchery. The recipe is for two 1.8-2kg turkey breasts which will feed about 10-12 guests.
The Maple Prosciutto Wrapped Turkey Breasts with Herb Butter recipe is a real winner and is as tasty as it sounds. It prosciutto gives the bacon-meets-turkey combination that is popular at Christmas time and the herb butter (and fat from the prosciutto) ensures that the breasts stay really moist. The prosciutto on the outside is smoky, crispy and sweet from the maple syrup. If you are open to not doing a full turkey - give this recipe a try.
The stuffing tray is really easy to make and can go in the oven once the turkey comes out and alongside the roasted potatoes while they are cooking. And while they’re doing their thing, you can make the gravy from the turkey juices on the hob. The stuffing tray is a big favourite - it doesn’t sound extraordinary but it is really tasty - sweet, salty, a little creamy, herby and crunchy all in one go. I highly recommend. And now that I remember this recipe I’m wondering why we don’t have it as a side more often through the year?
If you don’t have a glazed ham recipe, this is an easy one to use and doesn’t involve a long ingredient list - which I am always grateful for, as by the time you’ve included all the ingredients you need across the meal, it adds up.
Donna Hay Roasted Butternut, Apple and Goat’s Cheese Stuffing Tray (see below)
Donna Hay’s Roasted Butternut, Apple and Goat’s Cheese Stuffing Tray
Serves 8-10 as a side dish
Ingredients
1 kg butternut squash (I actually use sweet potato instead as I find it less faffy and easier to handle)
4 French shallots, peeled and cut into quarters
1 teaspoon ground allspice
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoon maple syrup
sea salt and cracked black pepper
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced into thin wedges
4 1/2 cups (315 g)roughly torn sourdough bread
150g goat’s cheese (chèvre), crumbled
6 small rosemary sprigs
80g unsalted butter, melted
1 cup chicken stock
1 egg, lightly beaten
Method
Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Place the pumpkin, shallots, allspice, oil, maple, salt and pepper in a roasting dish and toss to combine. Cook for 30 minutes. Add the apple and cook for 10 minutes or until tender and golden. Add the breadcrumbs, goat’s cheese and rosemary and toss to combine. Place the butter, stock and egg in a jug and whisk to combine. Pour the butter stock mixture over the roasting tin with all the other ingredients and toss to combine. Cook for another 30 minutes or until golden.
I hope your Christmas preparations are coming along. Here’s to a stress free lead up to the day.
