The flavour of christmas 2023

This impressive plan-ahead Christmas lunch from Flora Shedden is a mouthwatering mix of traditional recipes and deliciously unexpected flavours

THIS MONTH Christmas cake

For those who think they don’t like trifle, forget rubbery jelly, soggy fruit, mushy sponge and sickly sweetness. We’ve omitted the jelly and used florentine between the layers for chewy crunch. Poach

MAKES 16-20 pieces PREP 20 mins plus 3 hrs chilling COOK 8 mins EASY 50g butter, plus extra for the tin400g blonde white chocolate (or use500g regular white chocolate),broken into pieces100g white cho

IN LIEU OF A TRADITIONAL DESSERT, TRY ONE OF HELEN’S FESTIVE ALTERNATIVES

Roast goose, sticky sprouts, gingerbread trifle – Skye McAlpine’s festive recipes are truly scrumptious