Emergency Christmas lunch prep? Fret not...

Champagne risotto | Turkey, cinnamon and apricot kebabs | Mince and apple cobbler with panettone ice-cream

Despite the best planning efforts, things go wrong and sometimes plans need to be changed.

If your plans have fallen through and you have to make an emergency Christmas lunch, we have a quick guide that should help you not only get through Christmas Day lunch but also impress your guests with your ability to make a feast out of nothing.

A good Christmas meal has to be decadent, so start with a champagne risotto and all you need is a bottle of champagne - or prosecco if you're on a budget, some rice and some cheese.

Champagne risotto

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 500g Arborio or Carnaroli Rice (60 - 80g per person)
• 500ml dry champagne or prosecco
• 500ml chicken stock
• 50g grated Parmesan
• Rind of the Parmesan
• 1 white onion, finely chopped
• Butter
• Truffle oil or a good extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Gently fry the onion in butter. Be careful not to let them brown.

2. Once the onions have gone translucent add the rice.

3. Stir the rice to coat in onions and butter and let it toast gently in the pan. Keep stirring so it does not stick.

4. Add 400ml of the champagne and stir through.

5. Allow the rice to absorb the champagne. Stir gently.

6. Add the chicken stock a little at a time. Allow the rice to absorb before adding more.

7. Chop the rind of the Parmesan as finely as possible and add.

8. Once the rice begins to soften (about 10 mins) but still has a little bite to it add the remaining champagne, season to taste.

9. Add a generous dollop of butter to obtain a loose consistency adding a little hot water if necessary.

10. Garnish with Parmesan shavings and a drizzle of truffle or extra virgin olive oil and serve immediately.

Turkey, cinnamon and apricot kebabs

Christmas just isn't Christmas without turkey. However sourcing a whole turkey and getting it roasted in time for tomorrow might be a bit of a stretch, if not impossible. Turkey breasts are readily available from all supermarkets and butchers so why not try these easy turkey kebabs, marinated in cinnamon for a more Christmassy flavour. As the weather has remained so warm why not take Christmas lunch outside and put them on the barbeque.

Serves 6 (2 skewers each)

Ingredients

• 800g turkey breasts
• 150g Greek yoghurt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 heaped tsp parsley
• 100g almonds, raw
• 2 tsp ground cloves
• 3 tsp Moldon salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 24 dried apricots

Method

1. Cut the turkey into chunks and marinate in yoghurt, cinnamon, nutmeg, parsley, salt and pepper overnight.
2. Prepare the nut mixture. Grind the almonds with cloves and add salt and pepper after.
3. Skewer the marinated turkey and dried apricots - 3 pieces turkey and 2 apricots - and roll them in the nut mixture.
4. Grill the kebabs - on a dry skillet, grill or even barbeque for 10 mins, turning as you go along.

Mince and apple cobbler with panettone ice-cream

For dessert, what is easier than an apple cobbler? To make it more Christmassy, add a couple of tablespoons of mincemeat and serve it with panettone ice-cream - simply crumble it into a plain vanilla ice-cream, mix it with your hands and return it to the freezer to set.

Ingredients

• 4 apples - 2 Granny Smiths and 2 Gala (red)
• 1 vanilla pod
• Zest of 1 lime
• 40g demerara sugar
• Juice and zest of 1 orange 
• 2cm piece fresh ginger, grated
• 2 tbsp mincemeat
• 40g pine nuts
• 100g self-raising flour
• 50g demerara sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 100g unsalted butter, cubed
• Icing sugar for dusting

Panettone ice-cream

• 1 large slice panettone
• 3 large scoops of ice-cream

Method

1. Quarter the apples, peel and put into an oven-proof dish.
2. Scrape the seeds out of the vanilla pod and add to the dish.
3. Add the lime zest, orange zest and juice, ginger, mincemeat and brown sugar.
4. Put in a preheated oven at 180°C for 20 mins.
5. To make the cobbler put the pine nuts in a food processor and blend to a powder.
6. Add flour, sugar and salt and blend.
7. Add the butter slowly, pulsing as you go, till bound.
8. Add a little bit of water till the mixture becomes like dough.
9. Put dollops of the mixture on the top of the fruit mixture and return to the oven for 10 mins till golden.
10. Dust with icing sugar.
11. Crumble panettone over ice cream and mix with your hands. Return to the freezer for 5 mins till reset.
12. Serve hot with a dollop of panettone ice-cream.

Recipes by Emma and Chris Diacono taken from Gourmet Today 100 Best Recipes