Delicious UK - (12)December 2020

Everyyear,earlyinDecember,I spenda feweveningscocooned

onthesofa,lostinplanningandanticipation.Forthoseofuswiththe

twinlovesofChristmasandcookbooks,theseasondoesn’tstartuntil

allourfavouritesarepulledofftheshelves.Thisyearisa little

different– we’relostina morassofuncertainty,unsurewhetherwe’ll

beabletogatherwithfriendsandfamily.Andyet...andyet...Thisis

a glimpse of what I’ve learned from my collection of festive reads. GEMMA CROFFIE

Bookscanbea reminderto

holdourlovedonesclose,

evenifweareapart– a

reminderthatthekitchen

isstilltheessenceofthe

house,eveninthesetopsy-

turv y times

GOOD FOR

THE SOUL

NigelSlater’sTHECHRISTMASCHRONICLES(FourthEstate£26)isa delight,

withhistory,customs,recipes,smellsandfablesofthewinterseason.His

descriptionofthelastfrostfairheldontheThamesin 1814 – withstalls,

funfairsandanelephantbeingledacrossthefrozenriver– isenthralling.

Nigel’sloveofwinteriscontagious;hisappreciationofthebarenessofthe

frostedlandscapeallowsustogeta betterviewoftheworldweinhabit,

a moremindfuloutlook.Thisyear,asI read,I’mjoltedtorealisethatwhen

NigelcelebratedhislastChristmaswithhismother,hewasthesameage

asmysonisnow,andheisopenabouttheemotionalshrapnelherloss

caused.Farfrombeingmelancholy,I findthislifeaffirming – a reminder

to hold our loved ones close, even if we’re apart.

ACHRISTMASCAROLbyCharlesDickens

(PenguinClassics£6.99)isn’ta cookbook

ofcourse,butit’sresponsibleformanyofthe

Christmasconceptsthatarenowcommon

• suchasturkeybeingthebirdofchoiceand
  thesnow-coveredlandscapethatKateYoung,
  writerofTHELITTLELIBRARYCHRISTMAS
  (HeadofZeus£15), acceptedasa seasonal
  given,eventhoughshegrewupinAustralia.As
  I wasbroughtupinthetropicsreadingabout
  NarniaandAdrianMole,herviewresonates
  withme.Thisyear’ssmallercelebrationisan
  opportunityformetotrynewthingslikegoose,
  whichismorecostlyandmeagreonmeat,
  making it tricky if you’re serving a crowd.

90 deliciousmagazine.co.uk

Why Christmas cookbooks are

“Winter can be a time of renewal”

“Dickens was the original influencer”

Awarmlivingroom,a cosysofaanda pileoffestivecookbooks

toleafthroughisfoodwriterGemmaCroffie’sideaofa life-

affirming evening – and it’s about so much more than the recipes.