Jamie Oliver's Christmas Cookbo - Jamie Oliver

CHAMP PIE

LEEKS, WATERCRESS, CHEDDAR & SUPER-CRISPY POTATO
SKINS

Champ is a classic Irish potato dish. I’ve evolved that wonderful recipe here to utilize the potato skins, too.
They get super-crisp and savoury, and once filled with the creamy smashed potatoes and baked are absolutely

amazing.

SERVES 10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Scrub the potatoes clean, then
2 HOURS 15 MINUTES place them in a large roasting tray and prick each one a few times with a
fork. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until golden and crisp, but still
10 large Maris Piper potatoes fluffy in the middle. Leave until cool enough to handle, then halve,
(250g each) scoop the insides into a bowl and mash well, putting the skins aside for
6 medium leeks later.
25g unsalted butter
olive oil Meanwhile, wash, trim and finely slice the leeks. Place a large pan on a
2 fresh bay leaves medium heat with the butter, 1 tablespoon of oil and the bay, then strip
1 bunch of fresh thyme (30g) in half the thyme leaves. Stir for 1 minute, then add the leeks. Stir and
200ml semi-skimmed milk cook for 5 minutes, or until just softened, then pour in the milk. Pick in
100g watercress the watercress, then simmer gently on a low heat for 10 minutes, to
150g mature Cheddar cheese infuse all the flavours. Turn the heat off, fish out and discard the bay
1 whole nutmeg, for grating leaves. Add the mashed spuds, grate over half the cheese, finely grate
3 large eggs over half the nutmeg, beat and add the eggs, mix, and season to
50g breadcrumbs perfection.

Toss the reserved potato skins with 1 tablespoon of oil, most of the
remaining thyme leaves and a pinch of sea salt and black pepper.
Reserving 2 potato skins for later, tear and squash the rest of the skins
into a 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin, crispy side out, overlapping them
as you go and sitting them up the sides of the tin, too – think pastry case.
Don’t worry if they feel a bit wobbly – start packing the champ into the
centre, compacting it as you go, and spreading it out to the sides. Work
fairly gently but firmly, and this will help keep the potato skins in place.
Keep going, packing, spreading and piling it up until all the mash is in.

Roughly slice up the remaining two potato skins, then toss with the
breadcrumbs, and the remaining grated cheese and thyme. Scatter this
mixture over the top of the pie. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden and
crispy. Leave to sit for 5 minutes, then release from the tin. Delicious
served with salad and Branston pickle.

GET AHEAD

Make this the day before and keep cool right up until the point where
you’re ready to bake it.





TUSCAN POTATOES

GARLIC, ROSEMARY & LEMON

These tasty potatoes are a brilliant alternative to the classic roast potato or chip. Super-crispy on the outside,
fluffy in the middle, and perfumed with garlic, rosemary and lemon, they’re simple and just utterly gorgeous.

SERVES 10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Peel the potatoes, chop them
1 HOUR 30 MINUTES into 3cm chunks and parboil in a large pan of boiling salted water for 5
minutes. Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry, then tip into a large
2.5kg Maris Piper potatoes roasting tray. Season from a height with sea salt and black pepper,
extra virgin olive oil drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil, add the lardo or butter and toss
15g lardo or unsalted butter together well to dress the potatoes nice and evenly. Roast for 35
4 cloves of garlic minutes, or until lightly golden.
1 lemon
½ a bunch of fresh rosemary Meanwhile, peel and finely slice the garlic, speed-peel the lemon zest
(15g) into strips and pick the rosemary leaves. When the time’s up, scatter the
garlic, lemon zest and rosemary all over the potatoes, drizzle everything
with 2 more tablespoons of oil, toss together and roast for another 30 to
35 minutes, or until beautifully golden and crisp. Simple as that.

MIX IT UP

Other veg will work a treat here, too. Feel free to chuck parsnips, carrots,
celeriac or sweet potatoes into the mix, chopping them the same size as the

spuds.





BAKED MASH

CRUSHED MARIS PIPERS & OOZY RED LEICESTER CHEESE

This delicious mash can be made in advance to make your life easier when you’re cooking for big parties. In
doing so, you’ll only enhance that crispy-edged, oozy, mashed potato heaven with yummy bombs of Red
Leicester. Amazing.

SERVES 10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Peel the potatoes, cutting up any
1 HOUR 10 MINUTES larger ones so they’re all a similar size, then cook in a large pan of
boiling salted water for 15 to 20 minutes, or until cooked through. Drain
2.5kg Maris Piper potatoes in a colander and leave to steam dry, then return to the pan and mash
100g unsalted butter (at room well. Mix in 50g of butter and the milk, finely grate in half the nutmeg,
temperature) then taste and season to absolute perfection.
200ml semi-skimmed milk
1 whole nutmeg, for grating Get yourself an appropriately sized dish and lightly grease it with a
200g Red Leicester cheese little of the remaining butter. Coarsely grate in enough cheese so you can
olive oil pat it all around the dish. Spoon in the mash, randomly adding little
bombs of the remaining cheese as you go, which will melt as it bakes,
giving your lucky guests a nice surprise! Dot over the remaining butter,
drizzle lightly with oil, then cook right away, or pop into the fridge
ready to bake later. Bake for 35 minutes, or until golden and crispy.





BALSAMIC POTATOES

SWEET RED ONIONS, THYME, GARLIC, ROCKET & A LITTLE
FAITH

These spuds really are a phenomenon. They look dark and gnarly, and they’re beautiful yet kind of charmingly
ugly at the same time. The volume of balsamic used here requires you to have faith. Trust me – incredible
things will happen.

SERVES 10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Peel the potatoes, cut them into
2 HOURS 20 MINUTES even-sized chunky wedges and parboil in a large pan of boiling salted
water for 10 minutes. Drain in a colander, leave to steam dry
2.5kg Maris Piper potatoes completely, then divide the wedges between two large roasting trays.
extra virgin olive oil Drizzle 2 tablespoons of oil into each tray, and season with sea salt and
4 red onions black pepper. Toss together and spread out into a single layer. Roast for
4 cloves of garlic 45 minutes, or until lightly golden, tossing gently halfway.
200ml cheap balsamic vinegar
50g unsalted butter Meanwhile, peel and slice the onions and garlic. When the time’s up on
½ a bunch of fresh thyme (15g) the potatoes, scatter over the onions and garlic, then pour over the
35g rocket balsamic. Roast for 50 minutes to 1 hour, using a fish slice to carefully
turn the potatoes in all the sticky balsamic yumminess a few times
during cooking, and adding the butter and thyme leaves to the party for
the last 10 minutes. In the spirit of this bonkers but genius dish, if you’re
in any doubt when you turn them that it’s doing the right thing, just be
brave and add an extra drizzle of balsamic, then return to the oven until
gnarly and roasted. Serve on a platter sprinkled with the rocket.

This is amazing served as a side dish with any roasted or grilled meat,
but is also brilliant as part of a Boxing Day buffet spread with cold cuts
of meat. I’ve even enjoyed it as a lovely lunch with a big old salad.
Delicious.





MY POMMES ANNA

FINELY SLICED POTATOES, ROSEMARY, THYME &
HORSERADISH

This is my take on the classic French potato cake – it’s beautiful, elegant and I’ve fired it up with the hum of
delicious fresh horseradish and some herbs. For an extra-special finish, take a bit of time and care layering up

your potatoes.

SERVES 8–10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Peel the potatoes and finely
1 HOUR 40 MINUTES slice 3mm thick, ideally on a mandolin (use the guard!), or with patient
knife skills. Pick and finely chop the rosemary leaves, and strip the
1.6kg Maris Piper potatoes thyme leaves into a little pile.

½ a bunch of fresh rosemary Melt the butter in a small pan, then generously brush it all over the
(15g) inside of a 26cm non-stick ovenproof frying pan. Take a bit of pride in
beautifully arranging enough potato slices in the pan to cover the base,
½ a bunch of fresh thyme (15g) slightly overlapping them as you go. Brush with butter, sprinkle with a
little rosemary, thyme, sea salt and black pepper, then finely grate over
100g unsalted butter some horseradish. Keep repeating the layers in this fashion until you’ve
used up all the potatoes, keeping the last layer simple with just a coating
1 fresh horseradish root, for of butter. Place on the hob over a medium heat for 10 minutes to start
grating (or 3 teaspoons jarred crisping up the base, jiggling the pan occasionally, then transfer to the
grated horseradish) oven. Roast for 30 minutes, then remove from the oven and use the flat
base of a smaller pan to carefully press and compact it all down. Return
to the oven for another 20 to 30 minutes, or until golden and cooked
through.

When done, slide out or bang upside down on to a board or platter –
both sides are so beautiful I can’t pick my favourite way to serve it!
Slice up and enjoy.

GET AHEAD

Assemble up to the point when you place it on the hob, then cover and keep
in the fridge until you’re ready to cook, or simply make it in advance and

reheat.







SCRUMPTIOUS VEGETABLES

CREAMED SPINACH
ROASTED PARSNIPS
RED ONION GRATIN
GLAZED CARROTS
BRUSSELS SPROUTS

SQUASHED BRUSSELS
MUSTARD BRUSSELS TOPS

BRUSSELS IN A HUSTLE
BRAISED BRUSSELS
CLAPSHOT

ROASTED BEETS
CAULIFLOWER CHEESE

RED CABBAGE
PUMPKIN PURÉE



CREAMED SPINACH

WITH A CHEDDAR & OAT CRUMBLE TOPPING

This is a massive favourite at my restaurant Barbecoa, and it’s hard to resist. Frozen spinach is not only cheap
and convenient, it seems to work much better than fresh in this dish. A savoury crumble topping takes it to the

next level.

SERVES 10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Peel and finely chop the onions
1 HOUR 20 MINUTES and garlic, then place in a large frying pan on a low heat with 2
tablespoons of oil and the oregano. Finely grate in half the nutmeg and
2 onions fry gently for 10 minutes, or until soft but not coloured, stirring
2 cloves of garlic regularly. Add the spinach, turn the heat up to medium and cook down
olive oil for 15 to 20 minutes, or until any liquid has evaporated.
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 whole nutmeg, for grating Meanwhile, roughly chop the cold butter, grate the cheese and place in a
1kg frozen chopped spinach food processor with the flour, oats and a pinch of sea salt and black
100g unsalted butter (cold) pepper. Pulse into a nice crumble texture, then remove to a plate.
100g Cheddar cheese
100g plain flour Put the cooked spinach mixture into the processor (there’s no need to
100g rolled oats clean it), then add the crème fraîche and blitz for 1 minute. Taste and
250ml crème fraîche season to perfection, then tip evenly into a baking dish (20cm x 30cm).
Sprinkle over the crumble and bake for around 45 minutes, or until
golden and bubbling.

GET AHEAD

Put this together a few days in advance, then simply keep it in the fridge
until you’re ready to bake it.

LOVE YOUR LEFTOVERS

On the rare occasion that you have leftovers of this dish, it’s amazing dotted
on pizza, or blobbed into an omelette or frittata.





ROASTED PARSNIPS

SQUASHED WITH BAY, THYME, GARLIC, HONEY & GROUND
ALMONDS

These are the most insanely delicious parsnips. Squashing them creates the crispiest outsides and helps them to
absorb all these wonderful flavours, while still maintaining super-fluffy middles. For the best results – don’t
peel them.

SERVES 10 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Scrub the parsnips clean, then
1 HOUR 20 MINUTES blanch them whole in a large pan of boiling salted water for 5 minutes.
Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry. Place in a single layer in a
1.5kg medium parsnips large roasting tray, drizzle with 3 tablespoons of oil and sprinkle with a
extra virgin olive oil pinch of sea salt and black pepper. Toss together, then roast for 40
4 fresh bay leaves minutes.
1 clove of garlic
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar Meanwhile, to make a game-changing bay glaze, rip away the bay leaf
2 tablespoons runny honey stalks, then bash the leaves hard with a pinch of sea salt and black
1 bunch of fresh thyme (30g) pepper in a pestle and mortar until you have a paste. Peel the garlic and
2 heaped tablespoons ground bash in until combined, then muddle in 1 tablespoon of oil, the vinegar
almonds and honey.

Take the tray out of the oven, turn the parsnips over, then use a fish slice
to press them all down so they almost squash into each other and
completely fill out the tray. Use the thyme bunch as a brush to
generously coat the parsnips with half the glaze, then separate and
scatter over the thyme sprigs, along with the almonds. Return to the oven
for another 30 minutes, or until really golden and crispy. To serve,
loosen the edges with a fish slice, confidently bang the parsnips out on
to a platter or board in one bold action, then drizzle with the remaining
glaze.

GET AHEAD

You can cook these in advance and simply reheat, or cook the parsnips for
the first 40 minutes and make the bay glaze, then cool, cover and pop them

into the fridge until you’re ready to finish cooking.





RED ONION GRATIN

GARLIC, THYME, WHITE WINE, CRÈME FRAÎCHE, GRUYÈRE
& PARMESAN

It’s such a pleasure to celebrate sweet, tender red onions as vegetables in their own right and as the heroes of
this dish. Serve up this gratin and it’s bound to be the talk of the table, due to its ballsy flavour and incredible

sweetness.

SERVES 6 AS A SIDE Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Peel and quarter the onions,
1 HOUR 30 MINUTES then break the quarters apart into petals. Place these in a roasting tray
(25cm x 30cm) and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil and a pinch of sea
4 large red onions (200g each) salt and black pepper. Peel, finely slice and add the garlic, strip over
olive oil the thyme leaves, and toss it all together. Pour over the white wine, then
4 cloves of garlic cover with a tight double layer of tin foil and bake for 1 hour, removing
4 sprigs of fresh thyme the foil for the last 15 minutes.
100ml white wine
4 tablespoons crème fraîche When the time’s up, your onions should be starting to lightly caramelize.
40g Gruyère cheese Remove the tray from the oven and gently stir in the crème fraîche, then
20g Parmesan cheese finely grate over the cheeses. Return to the oven to tick away for another
20 to 25 minutes, or until golden and gorgeous and the onions are
starting to crisp up at the edges. Serve straight away, or cool it down
ready to flash under the grill later to reheat.

LOVE YOUR LEFTOVERS

Any leftovers will be gratefully received in a stew, a warm salad or as a
pizza topping.





GLAZED CARROTS

THYME, CARAMELIZED GARLIC, CLEMENTINE & HONEY

I love doing carrots like this, as the simple flavour combination teamed with the clever cooking technique gives
you something that makes you go wow. Carrots are sometimes seen as everyday, but not here – these bad boys

are special.

SERVES 8 AS A SIDE Trim and wash the carrots, leaving a little of the green tops on so they
30 MINUTES look pretty. Melt the butter and the dripping, if you’ve got it, in a large
frying pan over a medium heat. Crush the unpeeled garlic cloves with
1kg small mixed-colour carrots, the flat side of your knife, then add to the pan, turning after 1 minute.
heirloom if you can get them Sprinkle in the thyme sprigs (they’ll crackle a bit), squeeze in the
50g unsalted butter clementine juice and add the honey, bay and a splash of water. Add the
optional: 1 tablespoon dripping carrots, sprinkle with a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper, then
6 cloves of garlic jiggle the pan to coat them in all that flavour. Cover, reduce the heat to
8 sprigs of fresh thyme medium-low and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the carrots are
2 clementines tender.
2 tablespoons runny honey
2 fresh bay leaves When the time’s up, uncover the pan and, being very vigilant, simply
reduce the moisture away until you get a beautiful clementine glaze and
the carrots start to catch and caramelize in a lovely way, turning often.
Once you think they look great, simply serve straight away, or you can
remove them from the heat and crack on with your other jobs, reheating
them when needed. Delicious.





SQUASHED BRUSSELS

ROASTED WITH CHORIZO & CHESTNUTS

SERVES 6–8 AS A SIDE

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Wash and trim 1kg of Brussels sprouts, clicking off any tatty
outer leaves. Cook for 8 minutes in a pan of boiling salted water, then drain well. Squeeze 150g of
raw chorizo out of its skin, crumbling it into a roasting tray with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. On the
hob, fry over a medium heat for 6 minutes, until you have ruby oil, then crumble in 100g of vac-
packed chestnuts, strip in the leaves from 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary and shake about. Tip in the
sprouts and toss in 1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar. Squash and flatten the sprouts with a potato
masher so they suck up more flavour. Roast for 25 minutes, or until starting to colour. Season to
perfection, bang out and serve.