In the back of the best-selling Delia Smith’s Christmas, published in 1990, the uncertain cook could find a handy guide to ‘the last 36 hours’. Although Smith gave a wide range of recipes in the rest of the book, this section cut to the chase. Early morning on Christmas Eve was for last-minute food shopping; important to be back for mid-morning when the turkey would arrive. The rest of the day was spent preparing vegetables, making trifle, stuffing, sauces, and ensuring the fridge was well-stocked with wine. A scheduled break to listen to carols was allowed – while baking mince pies. On Christmas Day itself, she suggested 7.45am as a good time to preheat the oven, with a break just before 9am to ‘help the kids unwrap their presents, have a coffee or tidy the house’. Later came steaming the pudding, roasting sausages, potatoes and parsnips, making gravy and finally cooking the sprouts.151
