1) the holiday platter is presented table-side

Last night G and I enjoyed a first of what will be a few holiday dinners. Knowing we’re both shortly travelling to and fro we chose to spend yesterday cooking. A boutique wine store here had brought in a load of many smaller champagne house bottles, houses that are not Veuves or Moets but are tinnier family run operations that produce smaller batches, at reasonable prices too boot. We had bought a couple of these a while back and enjoyed one with dinner last night. Dinner included:

• turkey alla Gordon Ramsay;
  
• potato pave (these are delicious but do involve a lot of work, not difficult work, but fussy);
  
• a regular-style stuffing that we then incorporated into an apricot and pistachio, pork and chorizo stuffing; 
• frenched beans alla almondine.

2) for the paves, collect up russet potatoes, butter (a lot of butter!), salt & pepper and cream; 3) you basically are making a layer scalloped potato dipping the slices into the cream each time

4) once done layering, wrap and bake for an hour and a half, then weight it down overnight in the fridge; 5) unmold the pave and then cut into squares

6 & 7) then panfry before serving in, yes, more butter

8) brine your turkey overnight; 9) prepare a garlic/lemon butter and put half in under the turkey’s skin over breasts and thighs

10) fill cavity with lemon, bay, onion and garlic; 11) rub rest of butter on outside of bird and then roast on high for 15 mins or so to brown

12) turn down heat, cover breast in bacon and roast for 30min per each kg; 13) done!

14) G makes his fabulous homemade bread stuffing; 15) the ingredients for the pork stuffing

16) mix well together; 17) then line sage leaves on aluminum foil

18) make a layer of pork mixture and lay on sage, then 19) add stuffing and lay chorizo in middle

20) add another layer of pork and then roll into a log and bake in oven; 21) once done, let rest and then cut into medallions

22) meanwhile, prepare your gravy using the onion, bacon, bay and lemon from the turkey adding in cider, wine and broth; 23) reduce by half and thicken

24) get the drinks ready; 25) our new dining room chairs finally arrived! – we had them custom made overseas and waited months for them!

26) table is set and let the eating commence!