An organic Christmas lunch

As organic products become popular and less expensive, there will be many this year who will plan an entirely organic Christmas meal. If you have ordered an organic turkey in the past, wanting a better tasting product for the big day, but haven’t bothered with the rest of the trimmings, why not go the whole hog this year?

Ethically produced food is now widely available and you can get everything from Brussels sprouts to champagne, smoked salmon to Christmas pudding all on your doorstep.

There are plenty of organic butchers in Scotland, a plethora of organic fruit and vegetable sellers and no end of wine merchants selling wonderful organic products.
If you choose the traditional turkey for your Christmas lunch, here’s a recipe you could try that will get the taste buds going:
Roast turkey with apple and cranberry stuffing
Serves 8-10
Preparation time less than 30 min
Cooking time over 2 hours
Ingredients
1 organic turkey, 4.5kg/10lb in weight
1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 bramley apple, cored and diced finely
120g/4oz dried cranberries
120g/4oz fresh white breadcrumbs
2 tbsp parsley, freshly chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 egg, beaten
salt and pepper

Method
1. Make the stuffing by mixing all the ingredients together with enough of the egg to bind it together. Put in an ovenproof dish and chill until needed.
2. Heat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7. Put the turkey breast-up in a roasting tin, smear over 60g/2oz butter and cover loosely with foil. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Turn down the heat to 180C/350F/Gas 4 for 3 hours. Uncover the bird after this time, put the stuffing in the oven and turn the heat back up to 220C/425F/Gas 7 for 30-40 minutes to brown the turkey skin.
3. Take the turkey out of the oven and test it is cooked by putting a skewer into its thigh. The juices should run clear. Cover with foil again and allow to rest in a warm place for 15 minutes before carving.
Roasting a turkey
Roasting breast down is an excellent way to cook small turkeys - you’ll need to turn the bird on its back for the last 30 minutes of cooking to brown the breast. For large birds, most chefs suggest wrapping the breast loosely in a double thickness of foil.
Start the bird for 30 minutes in as hot an oven as possible, then finish at 170 C (325 F) Gas 3 - remember to remove the foil tent for the last 30 minutes to allow the skin to brown.
Make sure you cook the turkey for the correct time and that you remove it from the fridge 12 hours before roasting.
Always let the turkey rest for 15 minutes after taking it out of the oven - the meat will be easier to carve and juicier to eat.

Method

Heat the oil in a large shallow pan. Cook the onion, garlic and pepper for 1-2 minutes.
Stir in the chopped tomatoes and beans. Bring to the boil, stirring occasionally and reduce the heat.
Add the fish to the pan. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Season to taste.
Serve with pasta.

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