Delia Smith, the doyenne of Christmas dinners, is taking a year off from cooking the festive feast for the first time in more than 50 years.
The 83-year-old has been dishing out Christmas dinners and advice on how to prepare them for more than half a century.
But this year the daunting task of cooking the Christmas turkey for the woman who has taught a nation how to do it will fall to someone else. And Smith says she is thrilled to be taking a break.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s This Natural Life from her Suffolk home, Smith said: “In 52 years, this will be the first year I’m not doing it. I’m so excited. I’m going to my nephew and his wife for Christmas lunch, they live in Norfolk, so I’m really happy about that.”
Asked if the couple were terrified by the prospect, Smith said “no, not at all”.
But how long will they parboil the potatoes before roasting them? And do they plan cooking pigs in blankets – a Christmas staple popularised by Auntie Delia? Such questions were not asked.
Smith did say she will be contributing a few Christmas treats, including mince pies. And speaking from her walled vegetable garden she had some advice about sprouts and parsnips. “If you’re a cook, you don’t eat sprouts until after the first frost, because you get more flavour. Same with parsnips,” she said.
Smith’s cookery books have sold more than 21.5m copies and this year, her Complete Cookery Course made it to third place on the Sunday Times’s all-time bestseller list.
Her reputation for calm and sober advice took a dent in 2005 when she delivered a half-time rallying cry during a football match at the ground of her beloved Norwich City. Her infamous shout of “Let’s be having you, come on!” were later turned into a chant by the club’s fans.
This year is also the first Christmas for more 25 years that Smith and her husband, Michael Wynn-Jones, have not owned the club.
Earlier this year, they handed over their majority stake to Mark Attanasio, an American businessman who owns the Milwaukee Brewers baseball club. They remain honorary life presidents at the club and still attend home games.
“It is really nice going to bed not having to worry about debt,” Smith said. She added: “We gave it everything, we loved it, but we’re very happy not to be owners.”
