Five comforting dishes for your family gathering this Christmas, including retro sherry trifle

Each of the savoury recipes offers delicious ways to use up those Christmas Day leftovers

Festive feasts including Smoked Ham & Leek Pie and Smoked Salmon, Chorizo & Potato Gratin

Chrstmas is all about home, about loved ones, about family, gathering together to share. These comforting dishes, selected from The Gathered Table, A taste of Home are perfect for feeding your family, or a crowd this festive season.

Each of the savoury recipes, from key members of the Irish food world, offers delicious ways to use up those Christmas Day leftovers, while the glorious dessert, from Georgina Campbell, is a classic choice for a traditional feast on December 25. Using food to bring people together, this Gather & Gather book promises wholesome perfection this Christmas.

Smoked Ham & Leek Pie

Recipe by Olivia Duff, Maperath Farm 

This recipe has provided comfort at our table not just on cold, wet days, but also to those who have shared our table who required comfort, like our visiting Ukrainian family. I also take comfort in knowing that we have reared and produced the ham ourselves. We are blessed to have a wonderful butcher in Hugh Maguire (aka ‘The Smokin’ Butcher’) who naturally smokes our rare-breed hams for us at home at Maperath Farm. 

Smoked Ham & Leek Pie

recipe by:Olivia Duff, Maperath Farm

This pie is the perfect way to use up a baked ham or Christmas ham and we all agree that it’s even better the next day.

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 60 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 15 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 85g butter

• 1 tsp rapeseed oil

• 1 large onion, finely chopped

• 3 medium-sized leeks, thinly sliced

• 1 heaped tsp English or French mustard (Graham’s Mustard is wonderful)

• 85g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

• 300ml chicken stock

• 50ml double cream

• 300g cooked smoked ham hock or leg or cooked baked ham, flaked apart

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 1 sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry, thawed if frozen

• 1 egg, beaten

• To serve:

• green salad

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, 160°C fan.

2. Heat the butter and oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the onion and cook gently, covered with a lid, for about 10 minutes, until softened and translucent. Add the leeks and cook for a few minutes more, covered, until softened but not coloured.

3. Add the mustard and then the flour and cook for 1–2 minutes to cook off the raw taste of the flour, then pour in the stock and cream. Add the ham and mix well to combine, then season to taste. Cook for just a couple minutes to marry the flavours together, then take the pan off the heat.

4. Transfer to a 25cm pie dish and allow to cool before putting on the pastry. (The pie can be prepped in advance and left overnight at this stage to cook the next day.) Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface until it will cover your pie dish. Carefully drape the pastry over the top, pressing to seal the edges, then trim off any excess pastry. Brush the top of the pie with the beaten egg, then prick with a fork to allow steam to escape. Put the dish on a baking tray to make it easier to get the pie in and out of the oven. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.

5. Bring the pie to the table to let everyone help themselves. Serve with a simple green salad on the side.
   The Gathered Table: A Taste of Home (€30) is compiled by Gather & Gather, with all proceeds going to Peter McVerry Trust. ninebeanrowsbooks.com

Mac ’n’ Cheese

Recipe by Jess Murphy, Kai 

Every time my mum comes to visit me in Galway from New Zealand, mac ’n’ cheese is the one thing I always ask her to make for me. It’s nurturing, wholesome and can feed a crowd. You might have to use every pot in the house, but that just extends your time and chats with your loved one.

Mac ’n’ Cheese

recipe by:Jess Murphy, Kai

Mac ’n’ cheese is nurturing, wholesome and can feed a crowd.

Servings

10

Cooking Time

 40 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 400g macaroni

• 50g butter

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 4 garlic cloves, crushed

• 4 tinned anchovies

• 200ml Gavi white wine

• 50g plain flour 1.2 litres full-fat milk

• 2 tsp mustard powder

• a large pinch of cayenne pepper

• 120g Kylemore cheese, grated

• 120g smoked Gubbeen cheese, grated

• 2 balls of scamorza cheese (important for the cheese stretch!), chopped

• a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

• To serve:

• garlic bread

• watercress salad

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 205°C (185°C fan).

2. Cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions. Drain and set aside.

3. Melt the butter in a large heavy-based pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 10 minutes, until soft, then add the garlic and anchovies and cook for 1–2 minutes more, until the anchovies start to break down.

4. Turn the heat up and add the white wine. Let it reduce down, then add the flour, milk, mustard and cayenne, stirring until it’s a lovely, super-thick sauce.

5. Stir the cooked pasta, most of the cheeses and a pinch of grated nutmeg into the sauce, then transfer it all to a big baking dish and scatter over the rest of the cheese.

6. Bake on the lower rack of the preheated oven for around 20 minutes, until golden brown and crisp on top – we want bubbling, melting heaven.

7. Serve to a round of applause from your mates and family with shop-bought garlic bread and a peppery watercress salad.
   The Gathered Table: A Taste of Home (€30) is compiled by Gather & Gather, with all proceeds going to Peter McVerry Trust. ninebeanrowsbooks.com

Dillisk, Leek & Cheddar Tart 

Recipe by John & Sally McKenna, McKennas’ Guides 

Our job takes us all over Ireland, tasting food in many wonderful restaurants. Ironically, this makes us appreciate home cooking even more. We especially enjoy being able to say, well, we’re home for two weeks now, so it’s time to bake bread or make pastry. We know we’re really at home when we’re making this tart, sometimes (not always) taking time to pick the dillisk from the local beach, where it grows on the washed-up strips of brown kelp.

Dillisk, Leek & Cheddar Tart

recipe by:John & Sally McKenna, McKennas’ Guides

We know we’re really at home when we’re making this tart.

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 3 hours 0 mins

Cooking Time

 50 mins

Total Time

 3 hours 50 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• For the pastry:

• 160g plain flour

• 1 tsp salt

• 60g cold butter, cut into cubes

• 2 tbsp plus 1 tsp cold water

• For the filling:

• 50g butter

• 3 medium-sized leeks

• 50ml water salt and freshly ground black pepper

• a handful of roughly chopped fresh dillisk

• 2 eggs

• 100g grated Cheddar cheese

• 250ml cream

• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard

•  

Method

1. To make the pastry, put the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold butter and rub it into the flour with your fingers. Add the cold water drop by drop, mixing just until everything comes together into a ball. Cover with a butter wrapper or wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour, until chilled.

2. Roll out the chilled pastry to line a 20cm flan dish. Put the butter wrapper or cling film on top of the pastry and place the pastry-lined dish in the freezer for another couple of hours, until it’s hard and frozen. (If you want to keep it in the freezer for longer, then completely wrap it in cling film first to protect it.) Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan).

3. Prick the base of the pastry all over with a fork, then pre-bake the pastry in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, until golden. There is no need to use baking beans if using this frozen dough.

4. To make the filling, melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the leeks and sauté for about 5 minutes, until they start to soften. Add the water and season with salt. Cover and cook for a further 5 minutes. Season again, this time with black pepper and the roughly chopped dillisk. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

5. Beat the eggs in a bowl and stir in the grated cheese, cream and mustard, then fold in the cooled leeks. Pour this custard into the part-cooked pastry shell and bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes, until the filling is just firm. Cut into wedges to serve.
   The Gathered Table: A Taste of Home (€30) is compiled by Gather & Gather, with all proceeds going to Peter McVerry Trust. ninebeanrowsbooks.com

Smoked Salmon, Chorizo & Potato Gratin 

Recipe by Ruth Healy, Urru Culinary Store 

Home is arriving in to the aroma of baking or cooking and knowing straightaway what is in the oven. It’s the freedom to open the fridge, turn on the kettle and pick at whatever is on the counter without asking – like this potato gratin.

Potato gratin ticks all the boxes: tasty and nutritious; a flexible one-dish wonder; veggie or meaty; elegant or rustic; penny-pinching or extravagant. The basic recipe consists of potatoes, creamy milk, seasoning and a grated cheese topping. This is my preferred version but use your personal taste, creativity and availability of ingredients to make up your own satisfying gratin based on the basic recipe.

Smoked Salmon, Chorizo & Potato Gratin

recipe by:Ruth Healy, Urru Culinary Store

Potato gratin ticks all the boxes: tasty and nutritious; a flexible one-dish wonder; veggie or meaty; elegant or rustic; penny-pinching or extravagant.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 45 mins

Total Time

 60 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• a knob of butter

• 1 garlic clove, cut in half across the short side

• 8 medium or large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

• 100g smoked salmon, torn into manageable strips

• 100g chorizo, sliced a pinch of grated nutmeg salt and ground white pepper

• 500ml milk 200ml cream

• 200g Cheddar or Gruyère cheese, grated

• To serve:

• buttered peas green leafy vegetables or salad

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Butter the base and sides of a 35cm x 20cm dish, then rub it with the cut side of the halved garlic clove.

2. Soak the potato slices in cold water until ready to use, then drain and pat dry in a clean tea towel. Start with an overlapping layer of potatoes in the bottom of the dish, then add a layer of the smoked salmon, more potatoes, a layer of chorizo and finish with a layer of potatoes. Sprinkle a little nutmeg, salt and white pepper on each layer as you go.

3. Stir the milk and cream together and pour it over the potatoes. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, until the potatoes are soft and creamy.

4. Serve with buttered peas and green leafy vegetables or a salad.
   The Gathered Table: A Taste of Home (€30) is compiled by Gather & Gather, with all proceeds going to Peter McVerry Trust. ninebeanrowsbooks.com

Granny Campbell’s Retro Sherry Trifle

Recipe by Georgina Campbell, Georgina Campbell’s Ireland Guides 

While many recipes become part of a family’s best-loved repertoire, very few have followed ours down the generations as persistently as my mother’s traditional trifle, which is an absolute must at every Christmas gathering. Served in an old cut-glass bowl dating back to who-knows-when and presented retro-style with blanched split almonds and glacé cherry flowers with angelica leaves, it never fails to raise a smile – and I always make two or there would be no leftovers to enjoy the next day.

Granny Campbell’s Retro Sherry Trifle

recipe by:Georgina Campbell, Georgina Campbell’s Ireland Guides

My mother’s traditional trifle is an absolute must at every Christmas gathering

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 30 mins

Total Time

 40 mins

Course

 Dessert

Ingredients

• 1 small shop-bought sponge cake or premium-quality trifle sponges

• raspberry jam, preferably homemade

• 150ml approx. sherry, preferably medium or sweet

• 450g fruit, e.g. poached pears

• 1 jar of cocktail cherries, drained

• 300ml cream

• For the custard:

• 425ml creamy milk

• 1 vanilla pod or a few drops of vanilla extract

• 3 eggs

• 25g caster sugar

• To decorate (optional):

• blanched almonds, glacé cherries and angelica OR toasted flaked almonds

Method

1. To make the custard, put the milk in a pan with the vanilla pod (if using) and bring almost to a boil. Take the pan off the heat, then remove the vanilla pod. You can wash the vanilla pod and pat it dry to reuse.

2. Whisk the eggs and sugar together lightly in a separate bowl. Gradually whisk the hot milk into the egg mixture. Rinse the pan out with cold water, return the mixture to it and stir over a low heat until it thickens enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Do not allow it to boil. Pour the custard into a mixing bowl and set aside, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin forming. If using vanilla extract, stir it in now.

3. Halve the sponge cake horizontally and spread with raspberry jam to make a sandwich. Cut into slices and use to line the bottom and the lower sides of a large glass trifle dish. Drizzle generously with the sherry. Slice the fruit if necessary, then spread it out over the sponge and intersperse with cocktail cherries tucked in around the fruit to make an even layer. Pour the custard on top, cover with a plate and leave to cool and thicken in the fridge.

4. Before serving, whip the cream and spread it over the custard, then decorate with the traditional blanched split almonds and the glacé cherry and angelica ‘flowers’ – or, more simply, with a casual scattering of toasted flaked almonds if you like.
   The Gathered Table: A Taste of Home (€30) is compiled by Gather & Gather, with all proceeds going to Peter McVerry Trust. ninebeanrowsbooks.com

The Gathered Table: A Taste of Home (€30) is compiled by Gather & Gather, with all proceeds going to Peter McVerry Trust. ninebeanrowsbooks.com