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Here’s a round-up of December goodies to help you plan Christmas. Taking you from breakfast to a nightcap and from presents to helping you decorate your Christmas cake.

All the trimmings

Preparing for Christmas can be all consuming and it is easy to simply run out of time and find you can’t cook all the food you would have liked to from scratch. Delia, once again, has come to the rescue with not one, but two ready prepared ingredients packs to complete your Christmas Day lunch and save you time. Delia’s Spiced Cranberry and Orange Relish, and Eighteenth-Century Chestnut Stuffing, from her Happy Christmas book have all the prepared ingredients included in each pack (only requiring chopped onion and softened butter for the stuffing, and if you fancy a bit of oomph in your relish you can add some Port). Delia says ‘Both packs will help cooks to create by own favourite homemade accompaniments for the traditional Christmas feast’.  Available in Waitrose branches nationwide, Eighteenth-Century Chestnut Stuffing (800g) £9.99 Spiced Cranberry and Orange Relish (350g) £2.99 

Baby, it's cold outside

Whether you are coming home from a cold, winter walk, or want to serve something different to anyone who is driving this Christmas, Copella’s Apple Winter Warmer will surely tick the all the boxes for you. Made with 100% apples, blended with cloves, cinnamon, cassia, nutmeg, bay, allspice and juniper berry, all you need to do is gently it on the stove and enjoy that lovely Christmassy smell as the aromas are released. The apple flavour really comes through and is perfectly balanced with the spices, there is no added sugar so you can even count it as one of your five a day. Copella Winter Warmer (750g) is available from Waitrose and Sainsbury’s £1.72

Say Cheese

Staying with friends and want to take a gift that will last longer than a bottle of champagne? Your hosts will be delighted to receive a Paxton & Whitfield Cheese and Wine Sommelier Set. Made of high quality fully forged steel and Pakka wood riveted handles, the set consists of a soft cheese knife and corkscrew. Presented in an elegant gift box, you will be sure of being invited back again next year.
£35 from www.paxtonandwhitfield.co.uk Tel: 01451 823460

If you can't stand the heat...

Let everyone know who is in charge in the kitchen with this ‘I Rule’ apron. It also has three handy pockets to the bottom for that last minute when its all happening and you need everything to hand. Also available in ‘Mummy Rules’ and ‘Daddy Rules’, so there is no doubt as to who is boss. The long ties mean one size fits all. £22.50 from www.Notonthehighstreet.com Tel: 08452 591359 

Run, run, as fast as you can

Just when you thought their porridge couldn’t get any better Dorset Cereals have brought out a Gingerbread limited edition. Still made with jumbo oats and barley flakes this creamy porridge has crumbled pieces of gingerbread to add an extra kick and set you up on a cold morning. The handy sachets have just the right amount and can be made either in the microwave or on the hob. £2.19 from Waitrose and online at www.dorsetcereals.co.uk

Sloe learner

If a glass of sloe gin is your preferred tipple at Christmas, but you haven’t had time to make it yourself, then you must try a brand new drink from Adnams. Their Sloe Gin was launched this year as one of two limited edition seasonal liqueurs. This ever-so English drink has a wonderful rich colour, but an oh so smooth, light taste without any cloying you sometimes get from home-made sloe gin. Just the thing to warm you up after a Christmas Day walk. There is also a Spiced Liqueur which is a perfect Winter aperitif or digestif.  Sloe Gin £18.49. Spiced Liqueur £13.99 available to buy from all Adnams Cellar and Kitchen stores and online at www.adnams.co.uk 

Cut out to be a star

Hopefully you have now made your Christmas cake, but then comes the really tricky part – decorating it! If the star decorations Delia uses in her Classic Christmas Cake kit have caught your eye, you can easily recreate them to decorate your own cake, by using Tala Star Cutters (take a peek at the advert by clicking here.  A simple but effective way to finish off your cake, and give it a professional looks with hardly any effort at all.  £8 for a set of five star biscuit cutters from Waitrose and other supermarkets

What’s your rice like?

Cooking rice can be challenging, but did you know that the rice you use makes a difference to any dish? Tilda Pure Basmati always cooks up light and fluffy as Tilda ensure broken, starchy grains are removed before packing. Busy cooks will also love Tilda’s pre-steamed rice pouches, which take just 2 minutes to heat. Choose from 17 different recipes, from Pure Basmati to the healthy Brown Basmati or Indian favourites such as Pilau or the more exotic Coconut variants.
Click here to see some mouth-watering video recipes using Tilda rice.

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