The pudding is best made on the day of serving. Rum sauce can be made a day ahead, store, covered, in the fridge. Reheat the sauce before serving either in a microwave oven or over low heat in a small saucepan until hot. Note

You can add mushroom for an earthier flavour to this rich and fragrant veal and rosemary casserole if you like.

An American dish of pan-fried beefsteak with a sauce made from the seasoned pan juices.

Ask the butcher for lamb shoulder as what is sold as diced lamb is sometimes from the leg and will not be as tender. Note

A tasty tapas dish, delicately spiced with fragrant saffron, this platter of olives and cheese makes an elegant addition to a selection of nibblies.

Buy small brioche from the bakery section of your supermarket or from any French cake shop. This recipe is not suitable to freeze. Note

Ice-cream bombe mixture needs to be prepared at least a day ahead, keep in the freezer until required. Cake base can also be prepared a day ahead, keep in an airtight container. Cover bombe with whipped cream just before serving. Note

You could use creamy polenta in place of mash to top these veal goulash and potato pies.

serving suggestion Crusty bread. Note

Also known as risi, risoni is a very small, rice-shaped pasta similar to orzo that is often used by Italian cooks when making soup. It can also be baked in a casserole or served as a side dish to a rich meaty main course.

This exquisite pork hock with peanut caramel & pickled cucumber is perfect for a special occasion.

A beautiful and delicious creamy semi-dried tomato and veal from Australian Women's Weekly.

Pomegranate and fennel salad makes a fresh, fruity side for this tender pineapple-glazed ham. This simple meal makes a great alternative Christmas lunch or festive meal.

Hoisin sauce is a thick, sweet Chinese barbecue sauce made from salted fermented soy beans, onions and garlic. It can be used as a marinade or a baste, or as a flavouring for stir-fried, braised or roasted foods. It’s found in all Asian food shops and most supermarkets. Note

Slow-cooked veal shin (the cut also known as osso buco) and earthy mushroom ragu are perfect winter comfort food, especially served on a bed of warm, creamy polenta.

It’s important not to lift the lid during the cooking of the pudding, as the condensation runs down the side of the cooker and causes damp patches on the pudding. Note

Rich and lavish veal and tomato pies with gremolata from Australian Women's Weekly.

Warming and delicious slowcooked spicy lentil soup from Australian Women's Weekly.

This recipe uses a slow cooker which creates deliciously tender artichokes that pair wonderfully with the salty crunch of garlic anchovy crumbs.

A fragrant Vietnamese roasted pork loin from Australian Women's Weekly.

A light and creamy guilt-free chocolate mousse, for those times when you really want to treat yourself without over-indulgence.

Rich and tender neck chop and lentil stew with a bright and fluffy kumara and carrot mash.

This classic Italian pasta dish of pork ragu with pappardelle is complimented beautifully with fresh fennel to create a warming Winter dish for the whole family.

You will need to order goat from a specialist continental butcher. This casserole is equally delicious made using lamb. Ask the butcher to butterfly the leg for you. Note

Use 3kg (6 pounds) turkey marylands if you can’t get drumsticks. Note

The whole orange at the heart of this jaffa steamed pudding perfumes the entire dish as it cooks.

A delicious and flavourful Italian sausage and three-cheese lasagne.

A chunky, smoky and delicious Mexican bean and shredded pork soup from Australian Women's Weekly. The ultimate warming dinner dish for cooler evenings.

To save time, you can join two sheets of frozen shortcrust pastry together to cover the pie, roll edges together with a rolling pin. Note

Suitable to freeze at the end of step 4. Coconut water is the liquid from the centre of an immature coconut. It is readily available in tetra packs and cans from a variety of supermarkets. Ensure it’s labelled 100 per cent coconut water, and that it is not sweetened. Note

Scotch broth is one of those classic, thrifty recipes designed to help you feed a growing family nourishing food on a tiny budget.

If you're in the mood for something deeply indulgent, you can't go past this moist flourless chocolate and hazelnut cake. As a bonus, it is gluten-free, wheat-free and yeast-free.

The beauty of this hearty soup lies in its versatility. You can use whatever winter veggies that take your fancy - cauliflower, broccoli or even mushrooms - and it will still taste just as good.

This meaty stew is the quintessential winter comfort food. But when you want to take it up a notch, add in these cheesy dumplings packed with the herbaceous warmth of parsley. This one is bound to become a family favourite.

The addition of plump, herbed meatballs makes this fresh borscht a meal in itself. Serve topped with dill infused sour cream.

If breadcrumbs are not brown, place dish under hot grill for a few seconds, until crisp. We used cannellini beans, but you can use any white bean if you like. Duck marylands have the leg and thigh still connected in a single piece; the bones and skin remain intact. Note

This festive fruit cake is easily made well in advance, which saves you valuable time when entertaining. Make your next celebration easy to prepare for and save time in the kitchen that you could be spending with friends and family.

Have you always wanted to roast a goose for Christmas day? Here's your chance with this simple recipe. Don't let the addition of chicken giblets put you off, they help the stuffing graduate from delicious to amazing!

Succulent lamb shank pieces combine with chunks of vegetables to make this spice infused soup.

Impress your guests with this rich French delicacy. With tender duck and a smooth orange glaze they'll be raving for quite some time.

Maple syrup brings its unique flavour as well as sweetness to these glazed lamb shanks. It's important to use real maple syrup for this recipe rather than a maple syrup flavoured alternative.

Osso buco is another term that butchers use for veal shin, usually cut into 3cm to 5cm thick slices. Serve this osso buco with artichoke and lemon on a pile of creamy polenta for a comforting winter meal.

This recipe is designed to work in a camp oven, but you can use a conventional oven instead, if desired. Place the roasting/baking dish with oven juices on a stove to make sauce.

There is plenty of this Middle Eastern soup to go around and with juicy lamb and spicy vegetables you'll certainly be needing every bit.

This Italian tart with sour cream pastry and a sweet quince jam filling is wonderfully simple to make and delicious to eat.

Hot, sweet juicy apples are beautifully snuggled by a crisp, golden crust in this delicious tart. Serve with a big dollop of homemade caramel ice-cream for a winning dessert every time.

Star anise, cloves, cinnamon, sichuan pepper and fennel seeds are the spices that make these lamb shanks in five-spice with tamarind and ginger so fragrant.

Teriyaki sauce adds salty richness to this Japanese-style duck, and the flavour is complemented beautifully by the crisp wombok and daikon salad.

This classic Italian dish is pure comfort food with layers upon layers of melted cheese, pasta and hearty beef mince.

Do-piaza, literally meaning 'onions twice', is a delicious winter warmer.

This Italian staple is brimming with fresh vegies and mouthwatering bacon. Dip thick slices of ciabatta into the thick broth for a warm, healthy meal.

That feeling when you realise you haven't made a Christmas cake and then discover our fabulous last-minute recipe.

The slightly astringent flavour of quince is the perfect foil to the sweet creaminess of cheesecake, especially when doused in fresh lemon juice. This quince and vanilla cheesecake has our favourite granita biscuit base. Yum.

Tender, succulent lamb shanks and creamy black-eye beans together make a hearty soup. Serve with crusty bread and a liberal sprinkling of freshly chopped coriander.

Add some gourmet elements to the beloved Aussie pie with chunks of steak, succulent vegetables and crisp pastry crusts.

Slow-roasting the veal breast with a selection of vegetables adds great flavours to the juices left behind in the pan. Serve this tender, tasty meat on soft polenta with a good splash of the cooking juice.

Salt and Sichuan pepper seasoning does wonderful things to the rich, dark taste of duck. If cooked cucumber is just not your thing, use zucchini instead of the lebanese cucumber.

With red wine, French bread, onions and gruyere cheese you're already on to a winner, but it's the homemade beef stock that makes this French onion soup one of the best.

You can add a small fresh chilli to each jar if you like your oven-dried tomatoes spicy. Egg tomatoes are perfect for this recipe as they don't have many seeds, but you can use any variety just make sure you choose ripe unblemished tomatoes.

Steeping the fruit in Grand Marnier make this Christmas cake extra delectable. If you're storing before decorating, you can poke a few holes in the top and splash a little liqueur over the cake then wrap, and repeat.

This fragrant veal stock is the perfect base for your homemade soups, casseroles and curries.

A cross between mandarins and grapefruit, tangelos make a jam that's sweeter than marmalade yet still tart, thanks to the fruit's natural acidity. This jam is particularly good spooned generously over rice pudding or served with tangelo cake.

A rich beef lasagne with the added flavour of garlic, mushrooms and wilted spinach, this classic family dish is sure to be a hit. Serve with garlic bread and a green salad for the full retro experience.

This deliciously tender roast goose recipe is stuffed with a pisatchio and fig stuffing, perfectly balancing sweet and nutty. It's the perfect meal for a special occasion like Christmas.

Use ground hazelnuts instead of almonds, if preferred. Cover with foil if cake starts getting too dark. Note

Soup can be made two days ahead. Note

You’ll find it best to make the citrus mixture in a large frying pan rather than a saucepan, so that the citrus slices fit in a single layer. This cake doesn’t actually contain marmalade as an ingredient, but its artful use of citrus rind strikes a similar visual chord. It is slightly painstaking to make […]

You can also make this pastry using a food processor: Process flour, icing sugar and butter until crumbly. With motor operating, add egg yolk and enough of the water to make ingredients come together. Turn dough onto floured surface; knead gently until smooth. To segment the orange, use a small sharp knife to cut the […]

Cake can be made up to three months ahead. Note

Try this cake with other fillings such as apple or pear. The cake is best made on the day of serving. Note

Meaning ‘salted pork with lentils’, in French, this hearty, rustic-style dish is a specialty of France’s Auvergne region. Toulouse is a small French sausage made of coarsely diced pork and flavoured with wine, garlic and various seasonings. It is available from speciality butchers. You can also use thick pork sausages. Taste before adding any salt […]

equipment two deep 15cm (6-inch) round cake pans 20cm (8-inch) round prepared cake board (page 110) or cake stand 2 piping bags fitted with small plain tube and small fluted tube Mud cake can be made two days ahead; store in an airtight container. Assemble and decorate up to six hours ahead of the party. […]

You will need about 2 limes for this recipe. Note

Slowcooked Moroccan-style vegetables that will melt in your mouth.

The lamb and vegetables can be prepared, ready for roasting, a day ahead of time. serving suggestion Note

Equipment 35cm (14-inch) round wooden cake board 20cm (8-inch) round wooden cake board 15cm (6-inch) round wooden cake board Smoothing tools 6 wooden skewers Fine long wooden skewer Silicone flower mould Small metal spatula 4 small piping bags Small (number 2) plain piping tube Silicone moulds come in myriad shapes and sizes. The mould we […]

EQUIPMENT: 12 lengths 18-gauge floral wire Long-nosed pliers Flower glue Styrofoam Block vinyl mat 3cm (1-inch), round cutter 4cm (1½-inch), round cutter 5.5cm (2¾-inch) round cutter Flower mat Ball tool Fine artist’s paint brush Small non-stick rolling pin 12-hole round-based, shallow (1 tablespoon/20ml) patty pan Stamens 1.5cm (¾-inch) 4-petal blossom cutter Florist’s tape 45cm (18-inch) […]

A Kashmiri speciality using only the most tender young lamb available from this mountainous province in north India. “This is winter comfort food for me. I like to make it on a weekend to eat through the week.” Sophia Young was a New York-trained chef before she began in the Test Kitchen in 1993. She […]

This is Vietnam’s famous beef noodle soup. Note

You can use ready-made air-popped popcorn instead of making your own; you will need about 8 cups. While this looks cute enough for a baby’s first birthday, it’s best not to use the popcorn ­instead, pipe some of the frosting over the sheep to make its woolly coat. Note

These slow-roasted beef shanks will melt in your mouth.

Use small piping bags with or without small plain tubes, or use strong plastic bags ­ snip a tiny corner from the bag for easy piping. Prepared cake boards are available from cake decorating and craft stores. You will need one 20cm (8-inch) round board for this cake. The cake can be baked two days […]

The shimmer on the cake and the crystals on the stand capture the light, giving this stunning cake an eye-catching sparkle. The cake stand needs to have a flat base so it can be supported by the skewers in the middle tier. If the base of the stand is not flat, cut a piece of […]

To test if turkey is cooked, insert a skewer sideways into the thickest part of the thigh then remove and press flesh to release the juices. If the juice runs clear, the turkey is cooked. Alternatively, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, without touching bone; it should reach 90°C. This […]