When to make it
- Mince pies, or Mushroom, chestnut and sage sausage rolls
- Shallot and balsamic tarte tatin, or Squash, cheddar and thyme galettes
The rest of Christmas fits around these. Christmas, a weekend at a time has every weekend, or cook it all on one day.
The night before and on the day
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, for Christmas Eve
Before bed: move the tart to the fridge
These come from the Food Standards Agency.
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Defrost in the fridge overnight. If you can’t, use the microwave’s defrost setting directly before cooking.
the safest way to defrost food is in the fridge overnight
use a microwave on the defrost setting directly before cooking
Food Standards Agency -
Once it’s fully defrosted, eat it within 24 hours.
use food within 24 hours after it’s been fully defrosted
Food Standards Agency
Last checked against the Food Standards Agency page linked here.
Every rule, with all its sources: freezing, defrosting and reheating safely.
Christmas Eve
- Heat the oven and bake the tart or the galettes as the recipe’s last steps say.
- While it bakes, dress a bag of salad leaves and warm some crusty bread.
- Turn the tarte tatin out at the table.
- Bake the sausage rolls and mince pies from frozen when people arrive, as their recipes say.
Questions
- Can you make Christmas Eve dinner ahead?
- Yes. The tarte tatin is built and frozen unbaked, so it bakes for the first time on Christmas Eve. The galettes are baked, frozen and warmed through in the oven.
- When should I make it?
- We make the Christmas Eve tart on the weekend of Sat 12 and Sun 13 Dec, and the sausage rolls and mince pies in mid-November.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Every recipe here is vegetarian. Some cheeses are made with animal rennet, so check the label says vegetarian if it matters to anyone at the table.
A make-ahead vegetarian Christmas dinner Make-ahead Boxing Day food
Sources
- Food Standards Agency How to chill, freeze and defrost food safely gov.uk
Last checked . Each quotation on this page was read against the page it links to.