Entertaining for the Holiday Season
Celebrate with Kenwood — go in the draw to WIN an exclusive lunch with Annabel at her Dublin Bay Property. Plus Annabel's favourite fresh recipes to effortlessly entertain over the festive season.
Hello, it’s Annabel here.
I am thrilled to share that I have teamed up with Kenwood for a fabulous holiday giveaway. If you purchase selected Kenwood products from November 16 until January 14, you can go in the draw to WIN a trip for you and a friend to Wānaka for a long lunch hosted by me, plus a tour of our Dublin Bay gardens!
I will be curating a special menu focused on sustainable living and eating and will divulge my best-kept secrets for effortless entertaining. There are 4 prizes to be won, so there will be a total of 8 guests at the intimate lunch. To learn more about the giveaway (and to purchase your Kenwood product) you can visit this link.
With this in mind, I thought it was a great opportunity to share some of the fabulous creations I have whipped up using my Kenwood kitchen appliances — just perfect for the holiday season and all the fun and entertaining that comes with it.
Our family has been using Kenwood Kitchen Machines for generations — my earliest memories of learning to bake with my mother in Wellington are with our trusty family Kenwood, asking to lick the beater after making chocolate cake. They are truly built to last a lifetime and are excellent for whipping up light-as-air meringues, pillowy batters, chewy breads, tender cakes, and so much more.
My Kenwood is perfect for whipping up these fabulous Spinach and Feta Soufflés, which look wonderfully impressive and taste like heaven, whilst requiring minimal effort. This is such a great recipe for entertaining as the soufflés are twice-baked so you can prepare them a day or two in advance and then when you are ready to serve pour over the cream and pop in the oven to puff up — they puff up as much as, if not more than the first time they were baked. Here I’ve used spinach and feta but you can change out the flavours as you prefer — sautéed leeks and goat cheese are also yummy, as is smoked salmon and dill.
Another fantastic recipe for the festive season is my dangerously delicious Gougères — a classic French appetiser made from cheese and choux pastry. These are one of those things that get gobbled up in a flash, they are so addictively yummy. I particularly like to serve them with chilled champagne or prosecco for a special occasion. The mixture can be kept in the fridge in its piping bag for up to 3 days and piped out and baked as needed, or you can freeze the piped-out balls free-flow and store them in the freezer in bags. They keep well like this — just thaw when needed and then toss with cheese and bake. More make-ahead treats for the silly season!
On the sweet side of things, this spectacular Layered Meringue Torte with Berries & Praline is a show-stopper dessert for a special occasion. The components for this spectacular summer dessert can be prepared several days in advance ready for an easy, speedy assembly. Make sure your egg whites are not too fresh, or the pavlova will weep.
The Kenwood MultiPro Go is a fab little food processor which is such a game-changer. The compact design means it takes up minimal kitchen space, plus it does all the hard work for you — chopping, slicing, grating, and mixing, so you can whip meals up in a flash, which is essential for the busy lives we all lead!
I put it to good use for this vibrant Soba Salmon Bowl, another fab recipe for summertime entertaining that you can play around with depending on what you have at hand. I’ll always keep a packet of dried soba noodles in the pantry and a bag of shelled edamame beans in the freezer for the speedy assembly of this power-food salad.
You can use cooked or thinly sliced super fresh raw salmon for this recipe. Even a couple of good-quality cans of salmon can also be used instead of fresh salmon if preferred. I’ve scaled up the original recipe here to serve four people. This is also good with lightly cooked broccoli, and the addition of shredded daikon radish. For a vegan version, you replace the salmon with tofu — pan-fry bite-sized slices of firm tofu in a little oil and then mix with a little of the dressing as per instructions for salmon.
Another excellent summer entertaining recipe that we’ve had such good feedback from is these Spicy Cucumber Margaritas from Summer at Home (we suggest pairing these with crispy Seaside Tostadas, see below). Blitzing cucumbers in a food processor results in a refreshing, clean cucumber juice that is then strained and added to a margarita mixture. Wickedly delicious, these are sure to be the drink of the summer once again.
The Kenwood Triblade Blender is one of my most-loved kitchen utensils. I’ve even been known to take it on holiday so I can quickly blitz up a quick creamy mayo or vibrant herb sauce (both summertime essentials). It’s wonderfully powerful, so you’ll always achieve that perfect consistency. Once you start making homemade mayo, you won’t go back to store-bought.
My Miracle Mayo comes together in a flash and is seriously delicious. You’ll never make mayonnaise any other way once you have discovered this fabulous trick. It doesn’t work in a food processor — you need the speed of the hand wand blender to emulsify everything. The great thing about this recipe is that you can take it in myriad directions — I’ll often blitz in some spicy chipotle peppers in adobo sauce to make a chipotle mayo, garlic and herbs to make aioli, or a little miso paste and sesame oil to make a miso mayo. You can also make a vegan mayo using 3 tbsp of the liquid from a can of chickpeas (this cloudy liquid is known as aquafaba) instead of the eggs. It contains protein from the beans which is why it works so well as a replacement.
The chipotle mayo is excellent in these divine Seaside Tostadas inspired by those served at the iconic restaurant Contramar in Mexico City. These make a great summery starter that comes together quickly with just a handful of ingredients. They also work as finger food, use small round corn chips in place of the larger tostadas (just make sure they are not flavoured).
Another great recipe on my summer rotation is Green Summer Sauce. I’ll always have a version of this sauce in the fridge, it’s the perfect way to quickly transform a dish from something everyday into something vibrant and flavourful. I love to quickly toss it through a salad, spoon it over a side of salmon or some chicken, drizzle over a steak, slather it on burgers and sandwiches, or have it with hummus and crackers. The ideal fridge fixing!
A vibrant Hummus plate is always a crowd-pleaser and healthy to boot. For a special occasion, we’ll make a trio of hummus — classic hummus, beetroot hummus, and green goddess hummus. Elegantly spoon them onto a serving plate and sprinkle over sprouts, micro greens, and dukkah. Finish with a little olive oil and serve with fresh warm bread and crunchy crudités.
Effortless Entertaining
Some years ago I wrote a book about entertaining called Cooking to Impress Without Stress. I wrote it (as is the case with most of my books) for myself, as a template to seamlessly enjoy the process of having people over to eat at home. It was a book that I needed, as back then people would usually turn up as per my invitation, only to find me in the garden, the house looking somewhat of a shambles and with no sign of any kind of meal in preparation. They would stand there wondering if they had the night wrong, and I would often end up rushing around pulling a rabbit out of a hat so we could have a decent meal. I think to some extent my attitude was driven by a desire for that little adrenaline kick you get out of cooking under pressure. But then I decided adrenaline was highly overrated. I was over it.
The word entertaining is defined as ‘providing amusement or enjoyment’. There’s nothing in there about stenciling the drive, bringing out the best crockery, fretting about whether there are enough beans, or showing off fancy cooking tricks. To the contrary, entertaining (such a formal word) is all about having fun, and does not require any level of showing off or having to spend a whole bunch of money. People are at their happiest when they are relaxed, not when they feel intimidated by a stage of fancy scene setting, complex tortured food, or the hosts arguing in the kitchen. So I wrote a book (sorry it’s now out of print) about how to entertain without stress, and to this day its mantra stands me in good stead. Here are a few of my top tips for effortless entertaining:
• Set the scene by lighting candles, arranging some fresh flowers, and setting a welcoming table. Even if you haven’t cooked a thing, your guests will feel welcome when they arrive. On a beautifully set table, even the simplest food feels special.
• Create a yummy smell through the house before people arrive by roasting some almonds or other nuts, or cooking something with garlic or bacon — these sorts of aromas make the house smell comfortable and inviting.
• Don’t forget to take some time out of the kitchen before people arrive, otherwise, you will be sick to death of food before you have even started.
• Knowing your cooking style is key to having a good time. Do you like to cook in front of people at the last minute and be in the kitchen with everyone there? Do you like your guests to help? Or do you like everything prepared as much as possible ahead of time? Knowing this will very much decide the kind of food you will serve — risottos, stir-fries, and pan-cooked dinners are best suited to last-minute cooks, while roasts, oven bakes, and salads can be ready to go and just require a little last-minute compilation.
• No matter what you serve, be sure to accept compliments graciously and offer no apologies. Even if the fish is overcooked, the alternative is that they could all be eating takeout!
• My mother always used to remind me not to fall into the gravy — in other words, "too many chardonnays ruin the cook!".
If you want to get ahead on your holiday shopping, we have reprinted Essential Volume One: Best-Ever Meals for Busy Lives just in time for the holidays. With more than 650 tried-and-tested savoury recipes, there’s something for all tastes, seasons, and occasions. It makes a lovely gift for a special someone (which might even be you). You can buy the book here.
We’re also offering free shipping for NZ customers for our award-winning wild plum gin elixir, Bella, until the end of the month! NZ customers can purchase here. Australian customers can purchase locally via this link.
That is everything from me this week! Our next newsletter will be all about Christmas (of course) with lots of fun and festive ideas.
With love, Annabel xx