A Budget Christmas by MYsocial Member Peter B.
Warning, just now all seniors will be getting their winter fuel payments. As there is an extra £300.00 being paid this year be aware of scammers and any email, text or call requesting your bank details. Another warning tomorrow is America’s Black Friday, another unnecessary thing we have imported, not all deals will be as they appear. £100 off, might mean they raised the price by £100 three days ago. Be wary of online sales, especially from an unknown website. If it looks too good to be true then it is too good to be true. Try and purchase with a credit card you have better protection. Never use a bank transfer.
Decorations and tree, just go into the loft or the cupboard under the stairs. Don’t be conned into a TV pundit telling you what the theme is in this year. Traditional Christmas colours are green and white, Fr Christmas was always depicted wearing green until Coca-Cola cloaked him in red, there is a theory that he is wearing red because St Nicholas was a bishop. Bishops actually wear purple. Most of our Christmas traditions come from Germany via Prince Albert or from the USA via Charles Dickens. If you haven’t got a tree, try picking up a small branch of a tree and painting the stem silver, nail polish is ideal, very cheap in discount shops. Put the branch in a weighted wine bottle. Must have fairy lights? Available in the pound shop for £1.00, battery operated so safe. Did you know that glass baubles were originally meant to represent apples? Red apples representing the temptation of Adam, bringing sin and death into the world. Golden apples representing the Christ child who came into the world as the new Adam to take away sin and death. Christmas although a Christian feast day, it remains unknown exactly when Jesus was born, but as he is referred to as “The Light Of The World”, ancient pagan festival days representing the new light were hi-jacked for example Saturnalia and festival of Mithras. The day in the calendar when the days start getting longer, ie the new light.
Haven’t got a Christmas jumper, well so what.
Presents: if you have children explain to them that we are going to have a great Christmas but we have very little money.
Suggest they can spend a maximum of £2.00 on each present, gift wrap them in carrier bags from the market where you buy your fruit and veg, also if you ever shop online, reuse some of the reams of seemingly useless packaging. Alternatively, pop them into a McDonalds bag or any bag you may have. There is no point in spending £1.79 on a present then buying a gift bag or fancy wrapping paper for £2.50. If you have any old used Christmas cards, cut them up to make tags.
If you are having an adult only Christmas then have a secret Santa, ceiling price £2.00 or whatever. Great fun and be prepared for an amusing disappointment. Recycle any unwanted gifts or give to charity
If you are sending Christmas cards in the post you may have heard that you must make certain you use up all standard stamps before Jan 31, 2023, this is no longer the case but I still suggest you use up all ordinary stamps ASAP. If you have leftover Christmas postage stamps, do not worry as at present there is no expiry date.
When shopping pay cash if money is very tight, you can then be aware exactly what you are spending. Alternatively use a card which will give you cash back.
Food: Don’t buy anything simply because it’s traditional, check if anyone actually eats bread sauce, Brussel sprouts, mince pies, Christmas cake or pudding.
Turkey, a traditional Christmas dinner in England is Goose. Served with gooseberry sauce. If you do go for goose, it is very expensive and has little meat on it considering its size. Be aware that an enormous amount of fat comes out of it and is likely to spill over the tin and is a considerable fire hazard. If you are buying a whole turkey bear in mind it takes a long time to cook and you use a lot of fuel. Cook at 180 – 190, Gas 5 [I think] allow 15 minutes per pound plus 15 minutes. Frozen turkeys represent good value, I suggest you defrost in the refrigerator, remember depending on its size it can take up to 4 days to defrost completely, if not possible use the bath in an unheated bathroom. Poultry should never be washed, if you feel you have to please do it in the bath or shower and clean down afterwards. Salmonella is a real danger, washing poultry when I worked for the NHS was gross misconduct. All poultry needs thorough cooking. Go to a cheap shop and get a meat thermometer. You don’t need an expensive battery operated one. If you have defrosted a turkey or anything you must cook it all, even if you intend to freeze what is unused.
If you are able to fillet the turkey it will cook in less than an hour depending on the size, do it in 2 legs which you can then stuff [increase cooking time], and 2 breasts. If you cannot fillet the bird try cutting it into 4, two legs and two breasts, it will save a lot of cooking time. Boil the carcass and giblets to make a delicious stock. Do not boil the liver, roast it with your Xmas lunch.
I would suggest you get a turkey joint from Iceland, Lidl, or any supermarket and follow the instructions on the package. Do not buy one with inclusive stuffing, you are paying for a lot of expensive breadcrumbs.
Any leftover meat, serve cold the next day with bubble and squeak [leftover potatoes and veg, chopped and pan-fried together]. Still got turkey in the fridge then make a risotto. Don’t buy fancy Arborio rice, hugely expensive, use instead Carolina or pudding rice. I like to use barley as it counts as one of the 5 a day. You can use any long grain rice {American long grain is ideal, Basmati makes it difficult} but it will come out as a pilaff. Make with your stock or a stock cube
Other left-over dishes include wholesome soup with your stock turkey [call it chicken], carbonara or a delicious curry or even turkey pie, use a cheap tin of chicken soup and bulk it up with pre-cooked veg.
Stuffing, I suggest that a supermarket own mix is the cheapest option, titivate it up with a few cooked hulled or tinned prunes or a bit of stewed apples or dried apricots. I recommend making your stuffing into balls. However if people don’t like stuffing then forget it.
Bread sauce is strictly for ultra-conservative traditionalists and Jacob Rees Mogg.
Cranberry sauce can be expensive use a cheap red jam and stir into it a bit of lemon juice. Ask yourself does anyone actually enjoy it?
Ham, you can get extremely cheap joints which you have to boil yourself. Alternatively, look for yellow stickers in Poundland or supermarkets on ready cooked and sliced. Buy it and freeze it.
Sausages, get cheap ones because they are simply pink stuffing, cook in the oven with the meat and vegetables. Sausages are one product you will guarantee to get earlier with a yellow sticker, buy and freeze. Once you freeze something the sell-by date is ignored. If it’s got a yellow sticker on, once defrosted, cook on the day. Once cooked most things will last for 3 days refrigerated.
Vegetables, all Supermarkets will be vying for your custom prior to Christmas, and as part of their Xmas specials, they normally have really good deals on potatoes [whites], carrots, parsnips, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower. All are delicious and they can bulk up your lunch and are great for your health.
On the day wash the potatoes, do not peel and cut them into your preferred size, put in a pan of water from the hot tap, along with your washed, and cut carrots, no need to peel, and onions, washed no need to peel. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 5 minutes, then add your cut parsnips washed, not peeled. Simmer for about another 5 minutes, drain, peel your onions, and place in the oven in a preheated roasting tray containing some oil, also preheated. Put in your defrosted sausages, cook for about 29 minutes then add the turkey liver and your stuffing balls.
Wash the cauliflower thoroughly and cut it all up separating the stalks and green parts from the florets, into a pan of boiling water put the cut stalks and green parts and cook for about 5 – 6 minutes, then add your washed Brussels, don’t bother to trim or cut crosses into the base, also add the cauliflower florets, cook to preference, mine is al dente, yours might be softer, drain, saving the water if you need to make gravy.
Any leftover veg can be used to make bubble and squeak alternatively bung it in the curry or chicken[turkey] pie.
Gravy is not my favourite so I don’t serve it, the thin liquor from the meat juices is recommended. If you like thick gravy then use a supermarket budget priced gravy granules, adding the meat juices to the boiling water, If you have not salted the water, use it from the boiled vegetables to save boiling some fresh. Try to avoid using more than one burner ring on your stove.
Christmas pudding, do you like it? If so wait till the new year and pick it up at a ridiculously low price in most supermarkets, Microwave a Christmas pud, is cheaper and will cut down on condensation. Get your Christmas cake in the January sales. If you must buy either, go for basic from Lidl, Tesco, etc. If you wish to flambe your pud I advise you to heat the spirit, but not boil just before you attempt it. Brandy is traditional, vodka, gin, whisky, tequila, calvados, or any drinkable spirit will suffice, however, I wouldn’t suggest using a liqueur and the thought of using Bailey’s the consequence would possibly be horrific. If you have Christmas pudding leftover or an extra one given as an unwanted gift. Try slicing it or moulding it into thick biscuit size portions when cold, but on top a slice of cheddar and place under the grill until the cheese is melted.
Mince pies, buy ready-made from the supermarket if you can’t make your own. Don’t buy fancy epicurean ones, nobody actually needs a mince pie on Christmas day. If you have a shop bought box, as an alternative try eating straight from the freezer, mincemeat doesn’t freeze. Alternatively, if you are making custard then try an instant custard mix, Morrisons normally have the cheapest {Most supermarkets do a sugar-free version}. It’s difficult to make custard without burning it if using semi-skimmed milk.
My suggestion for a Christmas dessert is a Chocolate trifle. Make a day in advance, get some cheapo cake, ideally chocolate Swiss roll, slice and put in a bowl add the juice of a tin of pears, cherries to make an expensive alternative, slice the pears, and put on top of the cake. Lace with rum if you have some and are not having kids around. Make some custard {mix is fine} adding a small amount of cocoa powder [not drinking chocolate, if you do then use home-made custard and omit the sugar] slap on the top of the sponge and fruit allow to cool and refrigerate. Just before serving decorate with some grated chocolate of a crushed flake and some walnuts if you have any. At the last minute add some squirty cream.
Another dessert suggestion, which is what I shall be having. Get a bag of frozen berries or summer fruits, the cheapest possible [naturally]. Defrost in the bag. Pop contents in a saucepan add a very small amount of double-concentrated blackcurrant sugar-free squash. Boil and simmer till the liquid is similar to a runny, not watery jam. Cool and then refrigerate. On Christmas day pile some unsweetened Greek yoghurt into sundae dishes or pudding bowls. Over the yoghurt spoon your chilled fruit mixture. If this is all a bit sharp for your taste. I suggest putting an empty meringue case at the bottom of each dish. Tell your family that they are having pavlova for pudding named after the famous prima ballerina.
Nuts, do you enjoy hoovering up the carpet afterwards or do you throw them in the bin on Good Friday? If you love nuts remember they are now a luxury item.
Cheese, just buy normally, wait till the new year and you will get fabulous reductions on Christmas cheese. Last year I had Covid and missed, it messed up my entire year.
If you are buying wine, personally I recommend Sainsbury’s basic wines with a black label, not available at smaller stores. All supermarkets have really good wines. A good suggestion to improve your wine’s quality is to decant it, any jug will do, not only will it aerate the win, it will also conceal the label if you have bought from a budget store, it’s all a matter of taste. Don’t buy Champagne or Prosecco, if you must have sparkling wine try Cava, from Spain. For a splash of decadence add a little bit of blackcurrant concentrated squash to the bottom of a glass, and top up with sparkling plonk. You have created a Kir Royale, Try mixing sparkling wine with orange juice to make a Bucks Fizz, your one bottle of fizz goes quite a long way. Low-alcohol wines are cheap but, in my opinion unpleasant. Non-alcoholic white wines are palatable. Beers, buy non-branded. Spirits, dare I suggest that if you have tightened financial circumstances, then start dry January early and go without. if you are considering buying any do purchase only supermarket own labels. They very are good, especially if you are having a mixer.
Soft drinks always go for supermarket squashes, sodas, pops, and juices. If you want water. I guess you have tap??
Christmas crackers, get the cheapest possible, everything will go in the bin anyway, after you have scrabbled around the floor looking for an appalling, unfunny ancient joke and a plastic novelty which will end up in the ocean, consumed by a fish which you will eat in 3 Friday’s time. I have not found any crackers at a bargain price this year.
Christmas afternoon, play party games, most families have some favourites, try non-argumentative board games, Snakes and Ladders, ludo or bingo for sweets which is always a laugh, or try card games. Charades can be a cliché, but also great fun. Monopoly is a no-no.
If you have some money to spare and you want to give the kids a treat and something they will remember with fondness. Try taking them to a pantomime or The Nutcracker ballet. Alternatively, the New Year’s Day Parade is free, or go out as a family to the Museum of Childhood or The Imperial War Museum of aviation in Hendon. All of these attractions are free.
Peter previously presented this topic as one of our ‘Good to Know’ online sessions facilitated by Paul Springer. Please get in touch if you have a topic you’d like to share with fellow members, email us at members@mysocial.london
