Christmas at River Cottage is a joyous blend of celebration, seasonality, tradition and sustainability. For me, River Cottage is a place where Christmas is its truest self, where Hugh and the team embrace the spirit of the season through their commitment to local ingredients, ethical sourcing and generous feasting.
I want this book to capture the wonderful experience of a River Cottage Christmas – the food, drink, decoration and merriment of it all. Sustainability is at the heart of everything River Cottage does, and there is no better example of this than at Christmas, when we buck the modern trend of excessive, wasteful consumption. At this time of year, it can feel harder to continue your war on waste, but it’s easier and more heart-warming than you may think, whether by creating edible gifts, cooking ahead or loving your leftovers.
So, let us raise a glass to festive cheer. I wish you the Christmas you wish for yourself, and that you may, even for a brief time, tap into that feeling of pure excitement about Christmas you had as a child. Not just vicariously through other children, but for yourself. Savour those moments that bring you closer to the essence of the season.
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RIB OF BEEF
SERVES 8-10, WITH LEFTOVERS
“Roast beef is a celebration of all that is exciting about good meat. And as I raise some very special beef of my own, from my ‘micro-herd’ of North Devon cattle, for me it really is the most special thing I can put on the table at Christmas. You don’t have to raise your own beef to have a very
