The winner will be chosen on Friday 21 December and to ensure that you can use the giftcard in the January sales we will despatch it the same day via Royal Mail Special Delivery.
The Debenhams Giftcard will be delivered on Saturday 22 December or Monday 24 December; we will advise the winner.
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I am sitting looking out of the office window at the amber sun illuminating a crisp and frosty landscape and I am itching to be outdoors. It may be cold, but when wrapped up warm (armed with a flask and homemade cake), this is my favourite sort of weather to walk in.
The Ramblers Association honour it with a Festival of Winter Walks, which runs from Saturday until the 6th January. Hundreds of walks take place around the country during the festival. All are free, fun and open to anyone and everyone from toddlers to grandparents. Chosen and led by Ramblers volunteers, the walks will showcase Britain at its wintry best.
Many of the walks are short and
family-friendly, although there are
always plenty for the seasoned hiker too.
The festival typically includes:
• Walks across England, Scotland and Wales
• Hundreds of walks under five miles
• Festive-themed walks
• Walks for people in their 20s and 30s to get out walking.
Don your walking boots and search for a walk near you here.
But don’t forget to take a little
something to share …
Deep Dark Brownies.
You can tell your fellow ramblers
the recipe is from the fabulous
Take a Box of Eggs cookbook!
Treat yourself in the January sales
The winner will be chosen on Friday 21 December and to ensure that you can use it in the January sales we will despatch it the same day via Royal Mail Special Delivery.
The Debenhams Giftcard will be delivered on Saturday 22 December or Monday 24 December; we will advise the winner.
Simply answer the question, “How many copies of the Dairy Diary have been sold since it’s launch in 1982?”
Hint, the answer can be found on the Dairy Diary home page.
Good luck!
Roast turkey may well be our favourite choice for the Christmas Day main dish, but how can you ensure that this important meal starts with something special?
We have a selection of inspirational recipes
for Christmas and the New Year festivities
including these four impressive starters
that are easy to prepare but will add style
to any dinner menu.
Smoked salmon is a traditional starter but we have added a delicious twist with our Egg & Smoked Salmon Timbales. The Forestier Pâté recipe will please pâté lovers everywhere and yet requires just 20 minutes of your time. The Salmon Swirls look impressive, taste fabulous and are remarkably easy to prepare and if you are preparing a vegetarian starter then our seasonal Chestnut Soup can be prepared in advance, frozen and reheated on the day.
Just four inspirational recipes from Dairy Diary Favourite Festive Recipes – formatted for mobile devices as well as your PC so you can easily read the ingredients list when shopping and use the recipe on your phone or tablet in the kitchen – or you can print the recipe if you prefer.
In addition to these starters you will find an inspirational choice of recipes for the whole festive break including main courses, puddings, party food and drinks.
And it’s FREE, so why not check it out now?
I adore everything about Christmas – the food, the twinkly lights and that anticipation of unwrapping something or giving someone you love a gift you know they will love.
I do, however, think we (ok especially me!) put too much pressure on ourselves trying to make everything perfect. And there is just SO much to do! This year, I have 27 people to buy for, a family gathering to organise, a huge amount of wrapping to do, a multitude of Christmas cards to write – and of course that’s at the same time as juggling all those other elements of daily life: work, cooking, cleaning, children etc. Despite being able to acknowledge all that – I still want everything to be perfect!
I make my own cards and so do the children, I try to choose special, personal gifts for everyone – all beautifully wrapped of course, I want to cook everything from scratch and for everyone to sit at the table peacefully and enjoy every morsel. I even like each of us to take it in turns to open our gifts on Christmas morning (while I am making note of who sent what for the thank you cards!!) Yes, yes I AM expecting too much, especially for three under-fives.
Last year, while trying to be Mrs Perfect, I ended up in tears after worrying that the turkey hadn’t fully defrosted and I was going to poison us all. It’s just not worth getting stressed about.
Also, this weekend whilst out on a rare, and very cold,
night out I saw so many homeless people sat on the
pavement begging us festive revellers for loose change.
It really did put things into perspective for me.
So, although I can’t compromise on that beautiful gift wrapping and hand-made cards – that’s going just too far, I am going to go with the flow on Christmas Day, we will eat an M&S lunch at my parents’ house, the children can run amok and I WILL relax and have fun and treasure the fact that I am incredibly lucky to have a loving family, plenty of food to eat and a warm and cosy home.
In the true spirit of Christmas I am not going to encourage you to buy a diary or cookbook this week, or to enter our competition, but if you have just a small amount spare perhaps you could consider giving a donation to this homeless charity. http://england.shelter.org.uk/home
According to Shelter, 75,000 children will wake up on Christmas morning, homeless.
It’s just heartbreaking.
The perfect Traditional Roast Turkey recipe
It can seem a daunting task, but with a little planning and organisation the perfect traditional Christmas dinner is easily achievable.
And to make things simple for you we have gathered together our favourite festive recipes and published them online as the Dairy Diary Favourite Festive Recipes.
Included in the collection is the Traditional Turkey Roast recipe which will guide you through the whole process of preparing and cooking:
Dairy Diary Favourite Festive Recipes is formatted for mobile devices as well as your PC. So you can easily read the ingredients list when shopping and use the recipe on your phone or tablet in the kitchen – or you can print the recipe if you prefer.
In addition to the Traditional Roast Turkey you will find an inspirational choice of recipes for the whole festive break including starters, main courses, puddings, party food and drinks.
And it’s FREE, so why not check it out now?
Dairy Diary Chat 