Christmas: Last-minute and Easy

If you find yourself with little time available, there is no need to miss out.

You can still prepare a Christmas feast put together at the last minute. All-in One Baked vegetables couldn't be any easier to prepare and cook. Mince pies using ready made pastry will save the day, mini Christmas pudding are made in moments and you can even rustle up a Christmas cake on December 24th!

The Delia Online Cookery School: Need something to serve for a special festive breakfast? Try Delia's Christmas Stollen, just click the image to watch how to make it.

picture of Delia Smith recipe for baked vegetables in serving dish with serving spoon

All-in-One Baked Vegetables

The one thing cheats don’t want to be doing on Christmas morning is running backwards and forwards to the k...

The one thing cheats don’t want to be doing on Christmas morning is running backwards and forwards to the kitchen to see if the vegetables are done. This recipe all...

45 minutes

Blinis with Smoked Salmon and Caviar

In the normal scheme of things, cheats don’t do canapés. Far too fiddly and fussy. However, now you can ...

In the normal scheme of things, cheats don’t do canapés. Far too fiddly and fussy. However, now you can buy cocktail blinis (bite-sized buckwheat pancakes), all thi...

Caramelised Toffee Walnut Tarts with Clotted Cream

These lovely tarts provide an elegant dish to end a meal. Tartlet cases are fiddly and time-consuming to...

These lovely tarts provide an elegant dish to end a meal. Tartlet cases are fiddly and time-consuming to make yourself so why not cheat with good-quality bought one...

Caribbean Banana Strudel

Cheats the world over should regularly offer thanks for strudel pastry. Firstly, it is ready to use, so ...

Cheats the world over should regularly offer thanks for strudel pastry. Firstly, it is ready to use, so there’s no tedious rolling out and secondly, all that butter...

40 minutes

Cheats' Turkey with Stuffing

Have no fear you cheats out there, you can have a very laid-back traditional turkey Christmas lunch of the ...

Have no fear you cheats out there, you can have a very laid-back traditional turkey Christmas lunch of the highest order with very little effort and you won’t even hav...

2 hours 20 minutes

Christmas Mincemeat Cake

If you've been meaning to make a Christmas cake but haven't got round to it, fear not – this one can be mad...

If you've been meaning to make a Christmas cake but haven't got round to it, fear not – this one can be made at the last minute. In fact you could bake it on Christ...

2 hours - 2 hours 30 minutes

Vegetarian

a picture of sliced stollen cake on a white plate

Christmas Stollen

At Christmas time in Austria, Germany and parts of France they traditionally serve something called st...

At Christmas time in Austria, Germany and parts of France they traditionally serve something called stollen: it is a rich fruity yeast bread filled with almond ic...

40 minutes

Easy Mince Pies

I tried very hard on this one to short-circuit the pastry-making by using ready-rolled shortcrust. Altho...

I tried very hard on this one to short-circuit the pastry-making by using ready-rolled shortcrust. Although I have to say it's okay if you roll it thinly enough, pa...

20 minutes - 25 minutes

Individual Pecan Pies

Once on a holiday in New England, I found it very hard to order any dessert other than pecan pie. Since ...

Once on a holiday in New England, I found it very hard to order any dessert other than pecan pie. Since then I have loved to try out all the different variations of...

25 minutes - 30 minutes

A picture of a round fruit cake decorated with nuts on the top on a dark plate

Last-minute Brandied Christmas Cake

Yes, I know, it’s happened to me too. You meant to make a Christmas Cake in early October, feed it weekl...

Yes, I know, it’s happened to me too. You meant to make a Christmas Cake in early October, feed it weekly with brandy, let it mature, marzipan it two weeks before a...

2 hours

A picture of a fruit cake decorated with nuts on the top on a white cake stand

Last-minute Christmas Cake

Self-explanatory, I think. You didn’t have time, you don’t want the factory version, so this one made si...

Self-explanatory, I think. You didn’t have time, you don’t want the factory version, so this one made simply with a jar of mincemeat will make a really speedy but e...

2 hours

Three little white dishes on a white plate, with souffles dusted with icing sugar and a glass bowl of sabayon on the side

Little Mincemeat Souffle Puddings

These little soufflé-like puddings are what I would call very well-behaved! You can cook them in advance...

These little soufflé-like puddings are what I would call very well-behaved! You can cook them in advance and re-heat them, and they will rise up again. You can even...

25 minutes

A picture of mincemeat mixture inside a puff pastry case on a baking sheet

Mincemeat and Apple Jalousie

All you need here is some mincemeat, a Bramley apple and some ready-rolled puff pastry, and from there on i...

All you need here is some mincemeat, a Bramley apple and some ready-rolled puff pastry, and from there on it's all plain sailing. The Delia Online Cookery School: A...

30 minutes - 35 minutes

Mini Christmas Puddings

These are made in moments and are cooked in less than an hour, are light textured but have all the flavours...

These are made in moments and are cooked in less than an hour, are light textured but have all the flavours of Christmas. You don’t have to make them at the last mi...

Panettone and Zabaglione Trifle

The trouble with a really good panettone is that whenever I use it I can't help sneaking a slice every time...

The trouble with a really good panettone is that whenever I use it I can't help sneaking a slice every time I go into the larder. It's quite unique and specia...

Parmesan Twists

These are a doddle to make and can be served plain with Parmesan, as in the picture, or with seeds, chopped...

These are a doddle to make and can be served plain with Parmesan, as in the picture, or with seeds, chopped anchovy or a mixture of them all. Just perfect for servi...

12 minutes - 15 minutes

Stir-fried Spiced Red Cabbage with Apples

Red cabbage is wonderfully versatile – you can cook it long and slow and it seems to go on improving, or in...

Red cabbage is wonderfully versatile – you can cook it long and slow and it seems to go on improving, or in the recipe below the opposite: fast cooking to retain some ...

19 minutes - 21 minutes

A sheet of cooked puff pastry with a layer of red onion and nine rounds of goats' cheese and some fresh thyme and oil drizzled over the top

Goats' Cheese Tart

This is a kind of standby recipe if you’ve got some goats’ cheese and a packet of fresh thyme stashed away ...

This is a kind of standby recipe if you’ve got some goats’ cheese and a packet of fresh thyme stashed away in the fridge. You can whip some rolled puff pastry out o...

15 minutes - 20 minutes

Vegetarian

Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Chestnuts

No frazzled nerves here, trying to peel, or more irritatingly, remove the skins from the zillion crevices i...

No frazzled nerves here, trying to peel, or more irritatingly, remove the skins from the zillion crevices in chestnuts. Just a pack of cooked and peeled chestnuts, ...

13 minutes - 14 minutes

A picture of four scallops in their shells sitting on a white plate

Scallops in the Shell

Fresh scallops are very plump and good around Christmas time, and this is my own favourite way of serving t...

Fresh scallops are very plump and good around Christmas time, and this is my own favourite way of serving them. The recipe has the advantage of requiring no last-mi...

Spiced Turkey in a Creamed Coconut Sauce

A very English, easy curry to use up the last bits of the turkey. No need to roast and grind your own sp...

A very English, easy curry to use up the last bits of the turkey. No need to roast and grind your own spices (we are on holiday) – Sharwood’s hot curry powder is th...

30 minutes

The 'How to Cheat' Christmas Pudding

This is a bit of a clever wheeze, if I say it myself, instead of buying all those Christmas pud ingredients...

This is a bit of a clever wheeze, if I say it myself, instead of buying all those Christmas pud ingredients, take a jar of mincemeat and short-circuit all of that. ...

2 hours 15 minutes

The Fastest Mince Pies Ever

Until you actually make these you’ll never appreciate just how easy and fast they are. You can freeze th...

Until you actually make these you’ll never appreciate just how easy and fast they are. You can freeze them and re-heat in a hot oven straight from the freezer. See ...

10 minutes - 12 minutes

Turkey Roulades

This recipe is for those who want to enjoy all the traditional flavours of Christmas without having to go t...

This recipe is for those who want to enjoy all the traditional flavours of Christmas without having to go through the whole turkey-cooking marathon. Serve with brea...

35 minutes - 40 minutes