Cooking Help and Recipes

It is estimated that the average person gains around 5lbs in weight over the Christmas period. To some this may come as a shock, but to those (normal?) people who relish the taste of mulled wine, chocolates, roast potatoes, Mince Pies'(mmm!) and with the cold December weather simply urging you to eat to stay warm, it probably comes as no surprise at all.

The traditional Christmas dinner is of course one of the highlights of the festivities; where families gather together, swap Christmas gifts, and celebrate the special time of year with a feast. Turkey, cranberry sauce, Brussel Sprouts - the traditional Christmas dinner can also be a time of year when people feel obliged to eat foods they might normally steer clear of. So what happens if the thought of a traditional Christmas dinner doesn't quite get your sleigh bells ringing? Well, there are plenty of alternatives, so why not start a new tradition of your own and treat yourself to some un-traditional Christmas gifts?

One of the easiest and perhaps most appealing alternatives to cooking the Christmas dinner, is to get away and let someone else do it all for you. If you really fancy a treat, then you could always spoil yourselves with a little holiday and get someone else to pamper you on Christmas Day. The bank balance might not allow for a month in the Maldives or a fortnight in France, but a 'Hotel and Theatre for Two' experience day might just inspire you to stay away until Boxing Day ' although experience days make excellent Christmas Gifts for your loved ones, they can make fantastic personal treats too!

If the idea of disappearing for Christmas Day and not spending it with your family doesn't sound very, well'.Christmassy, then you could insist on spending the big day at a relative's house this year. (And you wouldn't want to miss out on all those wonderful Christmas gifts, would you?) If you're lucky enough to have someone with a bit of experience doing the cooking, then you can relish the thought of eating them out of house and home and doing a bit of washing up before getting back for the Christmas soap opera special. But if you find you have reason to get anxious about their culinary skills, have to turn up unannounced, or simply relish the idea of overeating on this special day, and then why not present them with a special Christmas Hamper? Whether it's a 'Fruitful Basket' or a 'Carnival Picnic Hamper', at least it will make a nice gesture for your hosts if you hide your ulterior motives from them.

Cooking a traditional Christmas dinner is no easy task; with lots of mouths to feed and tonnes of food to cook to perfection, it's hardly surprising that the kitchen usually ends up looking like Santa and his reindeer have crash landed through the roof. If you want to get some help with how to organise yourself on Christmas day, or perhaps think it's time to pass the cooking reigns over to somebody else, then you could always invest in a 'Cookery Demonstration for Two' in the run up to the big day. With the help of a friendly professional, you could top up your skills and find the inspiration to create the feast of all feasts on Christmas day: two Christmas gifts in one.

If your traditional Christmas dinner isn't quite traditional enough, then you could always invest in the recipes used in eras gone by. The 'Mrs Manley's Best Puddings Book' will help you to create your own sweet masterpiece, whilst 'Mrs Beeton's' traditional cook book will take you right back to your childhood with recipes that have simply got better. Be warned, however, this means no more cheating when it comes to puddings for that traditional Christmas dinner ' only homemade will do.

For any green fingered fans out there then perhaps a more 'organic' Christmas dinner might appeal. In an era when Christmas is sometimes considered as a materialistic, self-indulgent time of year, why not take a step back to the 'Good Life' and have a self-sufficient Christmas? With Christmas gifts like the 'Grow It ' Vegetable Patch Gift Box' you can be sure that next year's dinner will have a real homely taste.

'And for anyone who wants a completely different change from the traditional Christmas dinner, especially those chocoholics out there, then perhaps a 'Chocolate Pizza' might give you all the pleasure you'll want on Christmas day. Washed down with a personalised bottle of Champagne perhaps, these Christmas gifts are as far away as possible from the traditional savoury dish; though don't expect the whole family to share it too, this one's definitely a matter of personal taste!