Dear Readers,
Somehow the end of the year is upon us again, and I feel
rather underprepared! Cards, presents, Christmas messages…. So much to do and
so little time! All my intentions of planning ahead went awry, and I find
myself disorganised and rushing.
The end of term is always a busy time up in the ivory towers
of academia. Everything has to be done before the students scurry away for the
vacation. They do deserve it, as they have had a gruelling 14 week term, full
of classes and hour upon hour of preparatory work in between.
Hopefully your festive preparations are going well and you
are looking forward to the big day. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. I
wish you a healthy, happy and success filled 2018.
My selections this month are generally festive, with
Christmas dinner recipes and present ideas for you. I’ve not had as much time
for films, TV and other cultural things, so I have compiled my list of albums
of the year. I wish I’d had the time to investigate many other of the music of
the year, as it appears to have been a great year for different and original sounds.
Cigarettes After Sex, Sampha, War on Drugs and LCD Soundsystem are all on my
list to investigate in the New Year.
Here is my final Favourites List of 2017, see you in the New
Year!
Recipes:
Posh sausage roll by Glynn Purnell for serving up with
Christmas dinner: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/posh_sausage_roll_64375
For Christmas dinner - roast potatoes by Big Spud Gary. He
suggests you could pre-cook them and freeze, to save time on the big day. http://bigspud.co.uk/recipes/perfect-roast-potatoes/
Showstopping centrepiece dish for vegetarians or vegans for Christmas
day. It's not all about the Turkey! https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/foodanddrink/vegan-christmas-recipe-ideas-tomato-cashew-aubergine-baingan-musallum-a3711656.html
Don't like Christmas cake? Here are some alternative Festive
bakes from Bake Off winner Sophie: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/recipes/bake-winner-sophie-faldos-perfect-stollen-buche-de-noel-pandoro/
Slow Cooker Chocolate Caramel Puddings served with Chocolate
Caramel Cream; an alternative to Christmas pudding, by Janice at Farmer’s Girl
Kitchen: https://farmersgirlkitchen.co.uk/2016/12/slow-cooked-chocolate-caramel-puddings/
For the chilli fiends out there. I personally wouldn't carry
my own chilli sauce stash. Mind you, those New Orleans chicken wings seem
irresistible! https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/dec/02/hot-sauce-recipes-yotam-ottolenghi-chicken-wings-prawn-pasties-green-beans
Macaroni cheese can be done down-home style or de luxe. Here
is a posh version with lobster: http://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/fish-and-seafood/lobster-mac-n-cheese/
In Guadalahara, they don't make chili con carne. They make
carne con chili. This is from Rick Stein's food and travel exploration of
Mexico: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/carne_con_chile_04415
In need of a Winter warmer? How about Adam Handlings' Hot
Toddy. That'll chase the cold away! http://goodthingsmagazine.com/adam-handlings-hot-toddy/
Articles:
Perfect gifts for food and drink lovers, as selected by
Kavita at Kavey Eats blog: https://www.kaveyeats.com/2017/11/five-delicious-gifts-for-food-drink-lovers.html
Which fish are OK to eat, which should we avoid? Handy and beautiful
graphic here: http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/which-fish-best-safest-healthy-to-eat/
Christmas wine picks from Sean Jones QC and Professor
Dominic Regan: https://www.counselmagazine.co.uk/articles/christmas-wine
My recent blog posts – these are for my students:
My latest blog post for students - how to approach resit
assessments, step by step: http://snigsclassroom.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/resits-your-step-by-step-plan-to-pass.html
Brian Mondoh on Smashing the BPTC - in other words, how to
pass with a Very Competent first time round! http://snigsclassroom.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/nuggets-of-wisdom-for-smashing-bptc.html
My albums of the year:
Alt-J – Relaxer
Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile – Lotta Sea Lice
The xx – I See You
Lorde – Melodrama
Mogwai – Every Country’s Sun
Please note: as with every monthly Favourites List, all of
these items have been selected by me simply because I love them. I do not
receive any money, benefits in kind or other incentive for posting these links
or recommendations.