day 25: a very merry nigella-christmas, part two

We spend most of the year working our socks off and, as the holidays approach, many of us are driven by the excited anticipation of hoping that we’ll receive perhaps that rarest gift of all: a little extra time. Extra time to fill with doing the things that we love the most; allowing us to put our work-mind to rest and enjoy quality me/we time as we unravel from the tensions of daily work-life. Now, I am not trying to be so dramatic as to suggest I have an unpleasant work-life - it’s quite the opposite, in fact - but, I’m sure I am not alone in the constant search for the ultimate downtime facilitator. Particularly, when you suffer from the angsts of anxiety.

We all have our own ingredients of what constitutes ‘downtime’, and we all achieve it in different ways. Whether it be sitting down to a movie, taking a long stroll in the countryside, spending quality time with friends and family in the pub, battling the crowds in the supermarket aisles, soaking up the Christmas ambience with a bevvie or three on the sofa as you gaze dreamily into a sparkling tree or, as for me, an amalgamation of the aforementioned, and more. You’ll achieve it in different ways depending on your culture, family size, living arrangements, relationship status, etc., so I will not be so bold here as to dictate a definitive list.

All of the above, however, can be affected by external factors. Like, for example; because of the current pandemic we were unable to go to the pub with friends and family, which for me is a pivotal part of the holidays - where I usually revel in any opportunity to bask in the community Christmas spirit. We all felt it this year. We all felt a very different mood on the approach to the holidays, and we all knew we were in for a very different set of celebrations - not to mention the downright unbearable truth of not being able to spend time with family as usual.

What is perhaps less affected by external factors, however, is our need to eat. Whether you’re single, in a relationship, have no children, or have six, can afford exotic ingredients, or cannot, we still need to eat. It is the process of preparing these eats, known to you and me as cooking, that is my all-reliable, could not possibly live without, rely on completely, downtime facilitator.

In fear of digressing too far into a life-journal-style-witter, my point is: not only did I receive the gift of extra time do the things I want this holiday, but I also realised that finding such pleasure, emotional succor, solace, and tranquillity in something so essential as cooking - is a gift within itself. Even the times I may fail, or not end up with the results I desire, cooking still gives me that time away from a busy, angst-ridden mind.

I, therefore, took great joy in trying out a few recipes this Christmas, in addition to my usual festive fayre: namely, a Potato and Pepper Bake and a Slow-cooked Black Treacle Ham, both of which (I’ve just realised) are from Simply Nigella.

Nigella’s Potato and Pepper Bake

For the cookalong component, there is very little to talk about if truth be told; it really is as simple as one-two-three (if you don’t count the peeling and chopping of the potatoes as a step). Simply, add peeled and cubed potatoes into a roasting dish (1), open and empty the contents of a jar antipasto-style peppers onto the potatoes (2), and then add seasoning, coriander seeds, and tumble together (3). Then, of course, place in the oven to roast for an hour or so - but I hardly consider this a step.

Not only does this bake look exceptionally festive with its golden cubes flecked with giant amber and crimson confetti, but it is also rather delicious. The pepper-infused oil used in place of regular oil gave the potatoes an almost caramel-like quality: with bite, and chew. In my usual haste, I did not realise that coriander seeds were in the recipe, so I cannot comment on their offering, but I should imagine they would bring their usual citrussy-floral dress to the party. On a side note, I am actually rather annoyed at myself for neglecting to read the recipe properly. Only a few days before had ventured out specifically to get coriander seeds for another recipe. However, I am sure they shall not sit idly on the shelf for long.

I made quite a large portion of this considering there were only two of us, with every intention of using the rest for lunch the following day. However, very few made it to the fridge as we greedily picked at them throughout the evening.

Nigella’s Slow-cooked Black Treacle Ham

This beauty has been on my list to try since I first saw it on the Simply Nigella TV show when it aired back in 2015, which just goes to show how I always put things off; partly because I always forget, but also as I mentioned previously - I am a traditionalist at Christmas and don’t often stray from my familiar way of cooking. But, that’s what 365 Days of Nigella is about: trying new things, and boy oh boy let me tell you how glad I am for it.

The most fiddly part here is perhaps the creation of the tin foil steam tent, and I’m still talking less than a minute’s work. I recall seeing the thick, dark-molasses treacle cascading in slow motion onto the ham in the TV show, and to reenact this in person was for sure a treat. In my usual last-minute-style, and with the free-flowing wine on Christmas Eve, I didn’t quite realise how late it was getting, so, in total, my ham got about fourteen hours in the oven overnight before I had to take it out to put the turkey in on Christmas Day morning.

I used a smoked/cured piece of ham for this, just because I don’t really like unsmoked gammon, and it filled the house throughout the night with an incredible smoky-sweet savour that in fact had me lying awake all night thinking about how much I wanted a ham sandwich.

When it came to carving, a skill I am far from proficient at, it all went a bit awry. It didn’t carve into nice neat slices, but the taste was out of this world. I think we’d actually picked at a good quarter of it before I even attempted to carve it, dipping each piece into the liquorice-black, salty juices as we did so.

Anyway, it turns out the piece of ham was rolled and tied, so it never stood a chance really, but I still served it proudly and then froze, in small portions, the remains to be used in pies, or whatever else takes my fancy at a later date.

Flavour musings

Each of these represents the epitome of ease in cooking but resonates, powerfully, that slow, eye-rolling moment when you taste something so utterly gorgeous. Then again, to be fair, so do most of Nigella’s recipes - certainly the ones we’ve tried so far anyway.

A bit of a long entry today, clearly I had a lot on mind, but this about sums up my Nigella Christmas cookalong. I cooked a few other classics over the holidays too, such as Nigella’s Gemelli with Anchovies, Tomatoes and Mascarpone (my go-to mood-enhancer) and Pork Steaks with Port and Figs, but I’ve already bored you with those jabberings in previous entries - so I won’t do so again.

Looking forward to kicking off the New Year with a few from Nigella’s latest book, Cook Eat Repeat, more specifically from her iconic chapter on anchovies. Yes, that’s right, I’m raising the bar (my bar anyway) and taking the next steps in my journey toward anchovidom. Watch. This. Space.