Tis the season to be jolly

The festive season is finally upon us! Halloween is a distant memory and Thanksgiving suddenly feels like months ago, it’s the 3rd December and that means it’s Christmas!

This is my absolute favourite time of the year. It means unity, it means giving, it means so much food that even looking at it hurts, and it means reminiscing over the year. This year our reminiscing seems to have started early. I’m not sure whether it’s down to the fact that we are more conscious of it or because I’ve felt a little overwhelmed here and there. Either way, we seem to be spending more of our time contemplating what we’ve learnt, what we gained and how this year has gone for us. It seemed like the perfect excuse to sit down to cherrypick some little bits of the festive season out and have our very own little thanksgiving-esque meal.

Helped along by this beautiful bird*. 

This free range Norfolk Black beauty came to us from a family farm in Norfolk and is hands down the best turkey I have ever eaten – and cooked.

After a turkey based debacles from Christmas’ past which saw Christmas dinner reduced to a sloppy state due to cheap turkeys bought from supermarkets, I vowed that I would always buy local where I could and I would always opt for quality. We have been ordering our turkey from a local butcher for years now. In the hope for a better quality of life for the turkeys and a nicer meat to cook. The only problem being that cooking perfection always hangs in the balance of a matter of moments.

 

  

This one was so much easier to deal with. At 4 and a half hours cooking in the oven (it was colossal!) it came out with the best golden glaze and was that perfect balance of moist. The only thing worse than a dry turkey is one that pours with water. This one was neither. I was told that this turkey was dry-aged in a Himalayan salt chamber in order to help keep it moist, and it worked perfectly.

Not wanting to go too overboard with Christmas just around the corner we settled down to a meal of turkey, roast potatoes, steamed carrots and green beans, all topped off with a homemade gravy.

There is little better in life than a good festive dinner. Perfectly moist turkey with the fluffiest, crunchiest roast potatoes with a rich homemade gravy. It could so easily be my desert island meal. 

   

A slower, more mellow version of Christmas lunch saw us we chatting away about what this year has been and what next year might bring. We chatted long after our meals were gone and realised that we were busy picking away at the leftover cold slices of turkey. There is really no better way to end a meal than with more food!

If you’re looking to get your hands on a decent turkey this year for Christmas I would definitely recommend checking out Morton’s Traditional Taste. They are a family run farm based in Norfolk but they deliver next day nationwide by courier – which is how my turkey arrived, perfectly stress-free and seamless (no remembering to go and pick it up from the butchers!).

If you’re not American and don’t celebrate Thanksgiving I’d definitely recommend holding a mini version of your own. It’s the best way to reflect on your year and remember all the things you’re grateful for...it can really help clear your head for the new year. 

*The guys at Morton's Traditional Taste sent me this turkey for review. All views are my own. This turkey was honestly the nicest turkey I have ever eaten and the easiest one I have ever cooked.