A former firefighter will serve Christmas dinner to as many as 100 locals from across the Harrogate district.

Bruce Reid has been working with a team of volunteers to coordinate the Knaresborough Christmas Day Dinner, ensuring nobody has to feel lonely.

From peeling sprouts to organising gifts for children, they are spending this week putting on the event, with Mr Reid set to be busy in the kitchen at the Masonic Lodge in Knaresborough for most of Christmas Day.

After years spent working shifts on Christmas Day, following his retirement he said he has no interest in sitting quietly at home while he could be helping others:

“I haven’t had a Christmas Day off in all those years and now I’ve got the option to have it off, but it doesn’t appeal to me, not doing something on Christmas Day.

“My kids have long grown up and are perfectly happy with their own families. As a dad, i’m not needed.

“My wife is more than happy. She’s just used to me doing stuff like this. She’ll be with her mum and grandkids on Christmas Day morning.

“We’ll get back together later on and we have our Christmas Day on Boxing Day.

“I get so much pleasure out of doing this, I would be more miserable if I didn’t do it.”

Mr Reid – who was made an MBE in 2015 for services to the Firefighters Charity and the community – first put on a Christmas Day meal at Harrogate Fire Station before he retired. With nobody in the force stepping up to host it, he decided to continue in the community from 2020.

Last year, he and the organising committee served Christmas lunch to around 60 people, and there are already more than 70 signed up for this year’s service.

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As well as being referred by social services, Harrogate Borough Council and community organisations like Resurrected Bites, people can contact the organisers directly.

Mr Reid said the meal is open to anyone who wants to join, as are the home deliveries of a hot Christmas dinner. He added:

“There might be people who have got somewhere to live and plenty of money, but are just on their own and lonely.

“It all started for me when my dad had dementia. My step-mum cared for him until the point he had to go into a care home.

“Although she had somebody with her, there was no stimulating conversation – it was quite lonely. How many people might be out there whose partner is ill or they still feel lonely even though they’re not alone?

“I wanted to do something that’s not just for people who are homeless but people who have got financial struggles and can’t afford to eat, people on their own who want someone to share Christmas with, or people who are looking after someone.

“The carers themselves might want some company so they can bring the person they’re caring for and join us.

“We offer people the option of coming into the hall and eating with us, but if they don’t want to do that, they have a young family or whatever, we deliver the food to them.”

So far, around 30 people have signed up to eat at the Masonic Lodge, and another 45 will receive their meals at home. Bruce expects there to be more than 80 in total by the time they stop taking requests on Friday – and he said he wouldn’t be surprised if that number reached 100.

There are volunteers wrapping gifts to send out to children, prepping veg for the meal, serving to visitors, driving hot food around to people’s homes, and clearing up at the end of the day.

To find out more about the meal, email the organising committee or call Bruce Reid on 07958  653084.

While huge turkeys have traditionally been the main centrepiece of the family Christmas dinner, many are now opting for smaller, more convenient versions.

And some are even ditching the turkey altogether.

I spoke to Rachael Hirst at Wetherby-based butchers Sykes House Farm, which supplies meat and poultry to restaurants, cafes and homes across the Harrogate district, about what it’s like to operate during the hectic run-up to Christmas.

This year has been particularly busy for the team, with the business now offering both trade and e-commerce following a boom in online trading as a result of the pandemic.

Founder Martin Smith, with daughter Rachael Hirst and son Robert

Rachael, who runs the third generation family business with her brother Robert Smith, said:

“It has been really hard work this year, as we have got trade and e-commerce, together with a lack of staff.”

The team also has to adapt to the changing needs of customers at Christmas time.

Rachael said:

“Our turkeys are herb-fed poultry and we have loads of different sizes lots to choose from.

“A lot of people are choosing not to get whole birds this year, as people are finding the bones a bit of a faff.

“People’s needs and trends keep changing and we therefore don’t always know what to buy.

“We have to buy it in July in order to raise those birds to have in December. So it’s a bit of a punt every year.”

In November Sykes House Farm, which supplies to the likes of William & Victoria, Betty’s, Three’s a Crowd and Gianni’s Brio, in Harrogate, had already sold 50% of its turkey stock of 300. This was despite them only going on sale at the end of October.

Rachael said:

“Everyone was ringing up non-stop thinking there is going to be a turkey shortage.”

However, she added that many people this year had moved on to ribs of beef and stuffed pork.

She said:

“The tradition of turkey has gone away a bit. The turkey famers do all wonder why turkey is just for Christmas. Eating turkey at Christmas has come from America.

“We do individual portions, like the little turkey parcels, which are like what is sold in restaurants. They are wrapped in bacon and stuffed with cranberry and sage. So if you only have four people coming, you could get four of those rather than having to buy a big turkey, which is what quite a few people have done this year.

“People’s shopping habits have totally changed. However, beef is always really popular at Christmas. We sell more at Christmas than any other time of the year.”

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Rachael puts the change in shopping habits down to people cooking more in lockdown and therefore wanting more variety in their dishes.

She said:

“A lot of chefs were born at home due to lockdown, so I just think people have got more inventive. As a result we have found that people who come in the shop are asking for totally different things.

“For example ox cheeks have become a thing. All the offal – pigs cheeks things like that – are very popular on menus now.”

When it comes to Christmas people are still ordering turkeys alongside beef and pork, however many are now opting for an easier option to save time in the kitchen.

Rachael said:

“People have been ordering the most of stuffed lattice turkey breasts for sure.

“They still want the turkey, but without the hassle of the bird in the oven. And it visually looks really nice because of the lattice on top.

“They don’t have to do stuffing as well, because it’s inside it. It’s a shortcut but it still gives you the Christmas dinner and it’s easy to carve.

“Everybody also loves pigs in blankets and people seem to order more and more every year. We sell them on trays of 20, which is quite a large number, and if you’re a family of six we would expect you to just have a tray – but people ask for two.”

Another alternative that is popular, according to Rachael, is a turkey ballotine, a boneless turkey breast, which has a partridge or pheasant inside it and then a duck or pigeon inside that.

She said:

“It’s a gamey three bird roast. They are really popular. People don’t want the faff of doing those at home. It’s quite time consuming making them. It takes 20 minutes per one. We do everything onsite. All the prep.”

Turkey ballotine

Stray Kitchen is our column all about food written by renowned local produce expert, food writer and chef, Stephanie Moon. Stephanie is a champion of food produced in the UK and particularly in Yorkshire and the Harrogate district. 

I love, love, love this time of year, and the feeling of festive fun is really growing in tempo this Christmas…

So how do we make Christmas easy? This is a question I always get asked, and truthfully, I don’t think catering for a large group at Christmas is easy at all. But there are some ways we can make it as pain free as possible.

Mulled wine: Everyone has a mix they love, and for me it is a bottle of Malbec red wine, shot of brandy, shot of sloe gin, a clove studded orange, three cinnamon sticks, and three star anise, brought up to the boil with two glasses of lemonade and a glass of cranberry juice. Sweeten it up to taste, and for a real trick, pour it into a slow cooker so the mulled wine is warm and ready to go when your guests arrive.

Nibbles and dips: I love a quick homemade hummus. Boil two tins of chick peas with the aqua faba (chick pea juice inside the tin) until the juice evaporates. Add crushed garlic and tahini with some Ras El Halenout (spice mix), rapeseed oil, a splash of water and lemon zest and juice. For something to dip into the hummus, try my simple recipe for Harrogate blue cheese straws.

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Ingredients

• 1 packet of ready-to-roll puff pastry
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 2 eggs cracked and mixed  into egg wash

Method

• Brush the egg wash over half of the pastry.
• Add 150g of grated Harrogate blue cheese and 2 teaspoons of finely dusted smoky paprika.
• Place the other half of the pastry on top and egg wash again.
• Cut into strips about 2cm thick and twirl to give that lovely shape.
• Pinch onto the tray to allow the straws to bake evenly and straight.
• Bake for 20 minutes at 180°C, then cut whilst they cool.

Starters: Jazz up your prawn cocktail with some cooked lobster and a few slices of locally smoked salmon for a real treat. For the Marie Rose classic, try adding some finely chopped soft apricot pieces. Or, if you fancy a tropical alternative, why not add some fresh mango pieces and a light curry powder to your mayo.

Time to bring in the turkey! Steph is pictured here with London based chef Valentina Harris and her assistant Cher, at the Ideal Home exhibition.

Main: The turkey is the main event. Everyone cooks their’s differently and has their own favourite stuffing mix, but the gravy often gets left to last minute. Show your gravy some love this year and really glaze the turkey tray properly, removing the fat to get all that extra flavour into your gravy. To make a light roux, whisk this onto your flour and butter mix and cook out well with a good splash of red wine and stock; add a little redcurrant jelly for sweetness and hey presto, you’ve got a lovely turkey gravy.

Pudding: To flambe or not to flame, that is the question. If you do, make sure it is on a robust serving platter: one year I had a disaster at home, when the platter broke and flambe juices ran down the dinning table! Always warm the alcohol before pouring over the hot pudding, then set it on fire just before you enter the room… making sure decorations and long hair is well out of the way!

Have fun, and remember it is your Christmas to enjoy too!

Ho Ho Ho

Steph x

Stray Kitchen is our column all about food written by renowned local produce expert, food writer and chef, Stephanie Moon. Stephanie is a champion of food produced in the UK and particularly in Yorkshire and the Harrogate district. 

As Christmas is a reindeer’s breath away, here are some quick ways to bling up your Christmas dinner with some simple store cupboard staples that can really enhance your Christmas meal.

In a year where many people are having a smaller Christmas than planned, I’ve also included some ideas for how to use up the rest of your turkey – as sadly, turkeys do not come in small sizes!

Add some sparkle to your food

Turkey – why not give your stuffing a twist this year? Smokey bacon and roasted shallots, sage and onion with apricot, you can choose whatever you like

Roast potatoes – try cooking in goose fat… once you try it, you’ll never look back, especially with the addition of some garlic and fresh thyme on the roasting tray

Brussel sprouts – some say balsamic, some say cut into four and roast with chestnuts. Vegans swear by Yeast Flakes (which are particularly good, I must say), but I love sprouts with chestnuts and redcurrant jelly, so they are glazed and nutty.

Yorkshire puddings… or no Yorkshire puddings? Let’s not open the door to that discussion, or we will be here all day!

Proper gravy – it’s delicious and I always add lashings of it

Christmas pudding –flambéing the pudding is a brilliant idea. Make sure you place it on a strong dish to withstand the heat and warm the alcohol gently before igniting. One ladle will do, light it on the ladle then spread the liquid over the pudding and it will look amazing- dim the lights for extra effect! Rum or brandy are the best kind of alcohol for this, but others work too. If you are adding a shiny penny to your Christmas pudding, remember to warn people!

Jazz up your drinks

For ice with a difference, add some pomegranate seeds to your ice tray and fill them up with water or cranberry juice – even simply freezing your lemon/ lime segments instead of ice is great.

Mulled wine is very tasty with an extra shot of Cointreau or Grand Marnier and it really gets the party started! If you have drivers celebrating with you, mulled cranberry or apple juice is a nice touch, so they can feel part of the party

For curing that Boxing Day hangover… a smoothie! Bananas, milk, a few porridge oats, and a splash of maple syrup is delicious!

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What to do with the extra turkey

Here are a few tips for going international with your leftovers…

• A biriyani curry makes a great change to simple curry, and is incredibly tasty
• Schnitzel – slice the cooked turkey slightly thicker and coat in flour, eggs and breadcrumbs
• Ramen is simple but delicious
• Enchiladas with a festive feel

Enjoy this festive time as best you can and always remember… let your turkey rest well before carving!

Happy Christmas
Steph x