Twelve Tips for Christmas Day Lunch

1.    Two words to make the perfect Christmas day luncheon, preparation & planning.

2.    Plan the menu in advance. Keep it simple, don't have too many things going through the oven on the day.

3.    It's a good idea to have a soup as a starter. This can be made days before and simply heated up on the day. A cold starter such as melon or smoked salmon can also be easily assembled.

Napkin decoration by Flower Design

4.    Buying the Turkey. For best results buy a good quality fresh turkey, reared outdoors . This will keep for two days in the fridge. If you are using a frozen turkey remember that you need to defrost the turkey, this can take up to 24 hours. Check the size of the turkey in relation to the size of your oven, it may not fit.

5.    Cooking the turkey. Remember the bird takes the longest item to cook. Cook early so that it is cooked at least ½ hour before required, allowing time to make the gravy & allow the bird to relax. Remove giblets & neck before cooking.

6.    Cooking times. 
                             3.5 kilo -- 5.5kilo  --- 2hrs 45 mins -- 3hrs
                             6.5 kilo -- 8 kilo    --- 3hrs 45 mins -- 4.25 hrs
                              9 -- 11kilo            --- 4 hrs 30mins --  5 hrs

    To check if the bird is done prick the bird, if there are any
signs of pink return to the oven. The ideal internal
temperature should be 72 degrees centigrade.

7.    Roast potatoes. Par cook the potatoes first for 8minutes. One hour before serving place in hot fat in oven, turn every 15 minutes.

8.    Don't be afraid of using the microwave, it can be a lifesaver. Pre cook & blanch vegetables the day before & reheat in the microwave, this will save you time & space.

9.    Gravy. Only use plain flour for thickening gravy. Corn flour tends to be gelatinous & gluey. In the event of your sauce becoming lumpy, give it a blitz with the hand blender & pass it through a sieve. Over thickened gravy can be let done with vegetable cooking water. If you decide to use a stock cube, be careful when the gravy starts to boil rapidly as the reduction takes place, it will tend to become very salty. Ideal solution would be to obtain some bones two days before & make a stock to make your gravy from.

10.    If you are not confident making a rum or brandy sauce, keep it simple  and just use double cream, flavoured with your favourite tipple, sweetened with icing sugar


11.    Remain sober while cooking. If you can't stay sober don't be over ambitious.

Wine glass decoration by Flower Design

 12.    Remember next year to book into a good quality restaurant to avoid all the stress and headaches!

Chirstmas door wreath by Flower Design

Yeovil Town 0 Fleetwood Town 2, FA Cup

First Goal by McGuire

Second Goal celebrations Davies & Pond

Cod Army sense victory!

Final whistle: Yeovil Town 0 Fleetwood Town 2

Twelve Days of Christmas Competition

If you love all things foodie, don't forget to check out our Twelve Days of Christmas Competition.

Sign up to our e-newsletter via the website and you will be entered into a prize draw; the winners will be announced via YouTube starting on Boxing Day.

Be in it to win it - think all things foodie and Twelve.

Competition Terms & Conditions

1. The prize draw is open to residents of the UK aged 18 and over. Entries limited to one per person, no bulk or third-party entries permitted. Twelve employees and members of their family are excluded from this competition.

2. Entry to the prize draw is enabled through signing up to Twelve’s e-newsletter and providing all requested information. Individuals already signed up to the Twelve’s e-newsletter will also be included in the prize draw. Closing date for entries is 24th December 2011 at 12noon.

3. Twelve winners will be drawn in total. There will be one winner announced each day starting on Boxing Day, 26th December 2011 and finishing on Friday January 6th. Winners will be selected at random and all selections will be final.

4. No cash alternative to the prize will be offered and the prize is not transferable. We reserve the right to substitute prizes of equal or greater value should circumstances make this necessary. Prizes are subject to availability and restrictions apply.

5.  The prize may be withdrawn from the said winner(s) and a new winner(s) drawn if the prize is not accepted within 14 days of notification.

6. Winners names will be announced by Twelve’s YouTube channel and posted on our blog and our social media profiles. You consent to our use of your personal information for this purpose.

7. Our decision in respect of all matters to do with the prize draw will be final and no correspondence will be entered into. We reserve the right to amend or alter these conditions at any time and without notice to participants. We reserve the right to cancel or shorten this prize draw. Entry implies acceptance of these rules.

Ladies that Lunch Part 1 & 2

For those who did not see Lancashire One's programme featuring Twelve then you can catch it here!

To find out more about Lancashire One - Lancashire's very own TV channel, then click here

Just another busy Friday at Twelve

It's all about festive fine dining, football and finding true love at Twelve tomorrow.

We have an incredible day of events happening both at the restaurant but also with our outside catering partners, providing food for more than 600 people in total!

Not only is it Twelve's first festive entertainment evening with the fantastic performer Ian Hooper and the start of our festive season of menus, but we're also at Fleetwood Town FC to provide fine dining for their FA Cup clash against League 1 side Yeovil Town.

There has been a massive sell-out of tickets for match day hospitality and Twelve will be serving traditional Cod Army dishes including Cod Army fish stew to help spur the home side to success.

We're also at The Great Hall at Mains providing food for a beautiful winter wedding as well as creating some delicious festive dishes for members of Fleetwood Golf Club for their Christmas festivities.

Twelve has an incredible team of chefs and Front of House staff who will be working around the clock this Friday to keep everyone fed and watered!

Enjoy and best wishes to everyone.

Paul's Lunchtime Favourites with BBC Radio Lancashire

BBC Radio Lancashire once again joined Twelve in the kitchen!

Presenter Maria Felix Vas of the Saturday Lunchtime Favourites show joined the team to talk about Paul's most memorable songs!

The programme went out live in the middle of a Christmas cookery demonstration packed with turkey, trimmings and Bailey's parfait!

There's still a little time left to listen to the show on BBCi player, but if you've missed the seven day playback, check out the soundtrack to Paul's years below. There's a story behind each one!

*    Two Little Boys, Rolf Harris
*    Band on the Run, Wings
*    Dancing in the Street, Davie Bowie and Mick jagger
*    Voodoo Ray, Gerald
*    Fools Gold, Stone Roses
*    Wonderwall, Oasis
*    Pulling Mussels, Squeeze
*    Nancy
*    Something Got Me Started, Simply Red
*    New York New York, Frank Sinatra
*    Unfinished Sympathy, Massive Attack
*    Earthquake, Little Boots

CAMPAIGN TO SAVE LAST VICTORIAN TRAM SHED ON THE FYLDE

A CAMPAIGN to restore the last remaining Victorian tram shed on the Fylde coast is underway.

Members of the Friends of Fleetwood Trams want to renovate the unique building located behind Copse Road, Fleetwood, and return it to its former glory housing the tram famously used in TV soap Coronation Street when character Alan Bradley met his end in 1989.

Tram enthusiast John Woodman is leading the campaign which has received support from local businesses and organisations including backing from the Victorian Society.

Mr Woodman explained: "We are determined to save the tram shed and restore it to its former glory. It is a historic structure - a cathedral to the advent of electrical power and testament to one of the oldest electric tramways in the world.

"The building has beautiful arched glass windows and retains a lot of its original features including an internal sub-station which controlled the power between Fleetwood and Thorntongate tramway with its original control panels and electric switches.

"We are looking to restore this buiilding at no cost to the public purse so it can become a heritage attraction for the benefit of the local community."

The tram shed was opened in 1897, the Diamond Jubilee year of Queen Victoria. Once restored, it is hoped that it will house a number of trams including the one used in Coronation Street.

Twelve provided a hot pot supper for a meeting of the Friends of Fleetwood Trams in the tram shed last month.  Caroline Upton of Twelve said: "We are always keen to support local community initiatives."