Derval O'Rourke: Five tips to prepare for the countdown to Christmas

Five tips for the winter season - and a braised red cabbage perfect for advance cooking and freezing

Can’t believe it! There's no more getting past it, we are officially on the countdown to Christmas. The shops are packed with Christmas decorations and the shelves are full to the brim. Over the years, I have had some very relaxing Christmas holidays… and some feeling burned out. 

The one thing I can put my finger on the difference between the two, was being organised. When I planned well in advance, looked after my own health and wellness, these were the Christmas’s that I strolled into and enjoyed every minute of. This week I’ll share a recipe that you can make well ahead of time and store in your freezer, it's the perfect veggie side on a Christmas plate.

Here's 5 great tips to prepare for the festive season:

• Make a list – you can check it twice! Start making a list of all the things you need to get done. Tip: Include everything you can think of. Then break the list down into who can do what in the house. Yes, just because you are making the list, does not mean you are responsible for all of it! Put initials beside who needs to do what.
• To Perish or not to Perish: Start collecting the non-perishable items you need now. Every week, I add in a few items to my groceries that I know I need. I’ll pop in the items that I also know I’m likely to forget, like turkey foil, cranberry sauce, herbs and spices. Make sure you tick them off the list as you go along.
• It’s Cold Outside: Take one drawer in your freezer and start stockpiling up some essentials. The Green Isle Frozen Veg is a game-changer. It will save you hours of preparation work without compromising on flavour or nutrition. They do amazing Christmas options.
• Have a Meeting: Whoever is eating with you on that day, needs to be aware that you want to enjoy the day too. In order for that to happen, everyone needs to help out. By setting your expectations early, it will help to reduce stress. Even young children can help by tidying away their toys or decorating place settings for the table. It all helps!
• Time Out: Please, please make sure you are taking some time for yourself every week just for you. A nice long bath, a guided meditation, a walk. Think of your body like a phone battery, we don’t let our phone switch off before we charge it, we recharge to make sure it can keep going. Don’t wait until you are completely burned out or worse sick, before you realise you need to rest. This is a great time of year to emphasise getting good sleep.

And just remember, what really matters is spending time together and making memories. All the planning is a great way to reduce mishaps and make for plain sailing, but things can still go wrong. If you burn the stuffing, chalk it up to something you will laugh about later! Christmas is just one day but with good planning and organisation it can be a few days of lovely quality time with those who mean the most to you. Get that notebook out and start planning.

Wellness Tip: Read – take 15 minutes to read something you love, whether it’s poetry, a good novel or the newspaper. Reading is a great way to relax, unwind and quiet the mind.

Exercise Tip: Push Ups – You can do this two ways. You can do your push-ups the traditional way, or you can start on your hands and knees, and push up from there. (This option is good for anyone starting out or has lower back/knee problems). You could also start on a soft surface like a rug. Do 10 push-ups and do four reps of this.

Braised Red Cabbage

recipe by:Derval O'Rourke

You can make this well ahead of time and store in your freezer, it's the perfect veggie side on a Christmas plate.

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 30 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Side

Cuisine

 European

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 1 tsp fennel seeds

• a pinch of salt

• 1 small head of red cabbage, finely sliced

• 2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped

• 60ml balsamic vinegar

• 50g walnuts, chopped

• 1 pomegranate, seeds only (optional)

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy based saucepan over a medium heat and add theonion. Stir in the fennel seeds and a pinch of salt and cook for 1-2 minutes.

2. Add the cabbage, apples and vinegar and cook for about 5 minutes, stirringwell.

3. Reduce the heat and cover. Cook on a low heat for about 25 minutes, stirringoccasionally.

4. Sprinkle with the walnuts and pomegranate seeds to serve