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4 make-ahead recipes for Christmas

Christmas is busy enough, from wrapping presents to welcoming guests, so why add preparing food to the list? Luckily, it doesn’t have to be stressful with our clever tips and tricks for getting-ahead and cutting a corner, from a sauce you can freeze three months before you serve it to a centrepiece you can cook from frozen on the day. Make these freezable favourites now and make the big day a breeze.

  1. ‘Mince pie’ pancakes

    Freezable for six weeks, our ‘mince pie’ pancakes make for a quick and easy breakfast for visiting friends and family, best enjoyed dusted with snow-like icing sugar and drizzled with sticky maple syrup. Festive ingredients like cinnamon and sultanas add the Christmassy twist and a warming flourish.

    ‘Mince pie’ pancakes
  2. Best-ever bread sauce

    Why choose between cranberry and bread sauces to go with the bird when you can have both? This best-ever bread sauce recipe is just the thing to slather on slices of juicy turkey with a creamy texture and fragrant taste. Make and freeze up to three months in advance then pop in the microwave just before serving. Tell only who you must.

    Best-ever bread sauce
  3. Squash, cranberry and mushroom Wellington

    Whether for a Christmas Eve supper, the big day itself or New Year’s feast, a Wellington always goes down a storm during the festive season, and ours couldn’t be easier to prepare, cook and freeze up to two months ahead of serving. Better still, encased inside golden puff pastry is a meat-free combination of squash, cranberry and mushroom, meaning everyone’s invited.

    Squash, cranberry and mushroom Wellington
  4. Carrot and parsnip dauphinoise

    Sides don’t have to sit on the sidelines, as our carrot and parsnip twist on the traditional dauphinoise recipe shows, while it can be made and frozen up to two months ahead of time. Deliciously crispy and creamy, it’s an indulgent accompaniment for the main event, or simply by itself as leftovers the next day (preferably enjoyed with a fork on the sofa).

    Carrot and parsnip dauphinoise