To make a busy life with children easier, Suzanne Mulholland started batch cooking, and after sharing videos on YouTube and Instagram, ‘The Batch Lady’ Instagram account was born.
With it, the mum-of-two was able to transform her Christmas so she wasn’t cooking all day.
See Suzanne Mulholland, aka the Batch Lady, in Batch from Scratch Christmas on Friday, December 5 on Channel 4 at 8pm
“I started to change gradually. I would make sure my roast potatoes were done, but I always felt like there was quite a lot that maybe I couldn’t do in advance. And then over the years, I’ve actually managed to do it all in advance. Everything.
“If you happen to have a morning or an evening in November where you’re not doing anything, you can think, actually, I might get four recipes done for Christmas,” says the 49-year-old.
“You can do it all early, when you don’t have every other activity going on, like the Christmas fete at school, your kids’ carol concert and your work night out.”
One of the easiest Christmas recipes to tick off in advance – and maybe the most important – is the roast potatoes. They can be made ready well ahead of Christmas and cooked from frozen on the day.
“Roast potatoes might be the best part of the meal!” says the time-saving expert, whose new Channel 4 series starts next week.
“These made-in-advance roasties cook straight from frozen and are one of my most popular recipes ever.”
Suzanne’s made-in-advance roasties can be cooked straight from frozen on Christmas Day
INGREDIENTS
(Prep: 10 minutes, serves: 4–6)
1kg Maris Piper potatoes
80g melted goose fat or 5tbsp olive oil (use olive oil if cooking for vegetarians or vegans)
Salt and pepper
The Batch Lady Saves Christmas by Suzanne Mulholland is published in hardback by Ebury Press, priced £25
METHOD (if making ahead for the fridge or freezer)
1. Slice the potatoes into quarters and add to a saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil over a high heat. Cook for 6–7 minutes, then drain and return the potatoes to the saucepan to allow to steam dry.
2 Add the melted goose fat or olive oil to a tray, then tip in the hot potatoes. Turn to coat them well in the oil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Flash-freeze the tray of potatoes for 1 hour to allow them to get hard, then transfer them to a large labelled freezer bag and freeze flat.
To cook in an oven: Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan. Place a baking tray in the oven for 3 minutes to heat. Carefully remove from the oven and add the frozen potatoes to the hot tray. Cook for 40–50 minutes until roasted and delicious.
To cook in an air fryer: Preheat the air fryer to 190°C. Add the frozen potatoes to the air fryer basket and cook for 30–35 minutes, shaking them every 10 minutes.
IF COOKING NOW
Follow the method in the ‘making ahead’ section up until the end of step 2.
To cook in an oven: Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan. Place a baking tray in the oven for 3 minutes to heat up. Carefully remove from the oven and add the oiled potatoes to the hot tray. Cook for 35 minutes until roasted and delicious.
To cook in an air fryer: Preheat the air fryer to 190°C. Add the oiled potatoes to the air fryer basket and cook for 20–25 minutes, shaking them every 10 minutes.
In the new book, Suzanne has plenty of tips for taking the stress out of the festive season’s meals without breaking the bank
Other recipes to try…
James Martin’s beef pie with star anise carrots
Clodagh McKenna’s seeded cheddar sunflower bread
Raymond Blanc’s Basque-style cheesecake
Mary Berry’s fuss-free fragrant chicken traybake
Rick Stein’s roast goose
Dining and Cooking