I go for the traditional side of things. With Christmas puddings and mince pies, yes it's nice if you want to experiment, but I think most people want something fairly traditional.
The secret to a good mince pie? I always macerate the fruit first, marinating it in some alcohol, so the fruit becomes nice and plump. If you just use it straight from the packet it's quite dry. It's a long job, but it's quite easy.
Recently, I got involved in the Mince Pie Project, which started last year. Lots of different chefs make mince pies and they auction them off for charity.
I fell into my career. I did cooking when I was at school and was entered into a competition. I did quite well and I thought it was something I could do. So I went to college and started to really enjoy it – now I'm the chef-proprietor at The Vanilla Pod. Like any job, if you don't enjoy it, there's no point doing it because you won't work to the best of your ability.
I think people appreciate the work that goes into Christmas cooking. For the average person, when they cook at home, they're usually stressing about the food. But if you just remember that it's just like a Sunday dinner but with different meat, it becomes a bit more relaxed.
It's always a pleasure to cook Christmas dinner at home. Some people say, "I've been cooking turkeys all month, I don't want one on Christmas day." But that's missing what it's all about. Because it is a special day and when you're doing it with your family, it isn't a chore.
My family always has a turkey, but we also have gammon, which we do with honey and sugar. We normally just have a turkey breast, but I go a bit crazy with the vegetables – we have about seven or eight different types.
A lot of people say they don't like Christmas pudding, because it's usually quite dense and hard when you buy it in the shops. But when you make them by hand, they're really different and much lighter. I've converted quite a few people.
Sometimes when people are cooking for another chef they get stressed out. But it's always a pleasure if someone's cooking for me, no matter how it turns out.
The good thing about being a chef is that you always learn new things and your days are always different. And it's always nice to have good feedback. It's one of those jobs where you see the customers after and they tell you how it was, which is really rewarding.
After Christmas, it's always nice to start cooking new things for the new season. The next one to come along will be the rhubarb in February. I'll look forward to that.
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