YCL! December 2013 | Page 7

Christmas roast dinner For nice crispy roast potatoes, I cut all my potatoes to roughly the same size and then boil them in salty water so the outsides are soft but the insides still fairly solid. I preheat the oil for at least 15mins in the oven. When I put drain the potatoes off, I batter them in the colander slightly so they're all fluffy and then pour them into the hot fat. I turn frequently and bake for about half an hour. Par-boiling (soft on the outside, solid in the middle) I reckon takes 10-15mins depending on how many you do. My advice for Yorkshires would be to buy them. I've never managed to make them and get them to turn out nice I personally think the Aunt Bessie's batter ones are the best, they're the most like homemade as its frozen batter in a little metal foil and they always seem to turn out nice. To make a crumble I swear by the tinned fruit you can get in every supermarket or corner shop... Cherries are nice, just slop two cans into a dish, get some pre-made crumble topping, sprinkle over the crumble (you can sprinkle extra sugar on at this stage) and bung it in the oven at 180° for 40 mins or until golden brown. Serve with custard, ice cream or cream. Lovely! 6.