For those of us on kitchen duty over Christmas, the festive period can be a blessing and a curse. Many Christmas recipes are a joy to make and we can experiment and indulge unashamedly in what we eat and drink, but let’s not forget that everyone’s favourite time of year can bring with it everyone’s least favourite things — tricky timings, multi-pan dinners and one too many sherries making everything just that little bit trickier. More than a few of us are kept up at night throughout December, haunted by the ghost of underdone turkeys past and cold roasties, fearful of what this year's festivities may bring.
