Think baked goods, puddings, and pastry - plus some optional time and space savings tricks!
1. Weigh out the dry ingredients you need for all your cakes, pastries, and puddings that you are planning to make. Place your ingredients into a sealed bag and label it with your recipes name, all the ingredients and weights you have added. Labelling your bags will help stop any confusion over the remaining wet ingredients that will still need adding to the recipe. Store in a cool, dry place until ready for use.
2. Buy your pastry. For any desserts or snacks that require pastry - whether this is filo, puff, or shortcrust - you can either buy ready-made sheets or make your own ahead of time and store it in the freezer. Remember to defrost the night before use and keep in the fridge until you're ready to bake - cold pastry gives a much better bake.
3. For Mince Pies, pre-cut your pastry circles (don't forget the lids!) and lay between sheets of baking parchment. Place in a plastic bag or airtight container, label and freeze. This is a great time saver and means that you can bake your Mince Pies whenever the time arrives. For your mince pie filling, view our mince pie recipe for some inspiration!
The space-saving trick:
If you are limited to oven space because you have too many pies on the go and are planning on cooking a whole bird or large joint for Christmas dinner, why not cook your meat ahead of time? All you need to do is to cook your meat, slice it into portions, and allow it to cool fully. Once cool, place into plastic bags and then store in the freezer until the day. The meat can be reheated in gravy on the day to prevent it from becoming dry. This space-saving trick truly saves a lot of space in the oven for other dishes. Alternatively, our mini oven is a flexible option that gives extra oven space when you need. it
