What to do with Christmas leftovers? Tales of the over flowing fridge, and, our first christmas in Bega (and a recipe for Andrew's Mum's brandy sauce)

That is the question on everybody's lips right now; Christmas lunch is well and truly over, it's been picked over again at dinner time, and the tetris like game of finding room in the fridge has started all over again.

So what was the Christmas menu this year? Well of course it's Summer here, so for a lot of people, me included, seafood features predominately. We went very early in the morning to procure an assortment of local seafood, including prawns, and a big fat lobster. I work with a gentleman who has an oyster lease at Wapengo Lake so I ordered a couple of dozen from him.

I was getting a bit over excited about Christmas and really, really wanted to make Nigella Lawson's gravlax, however managed to restrain myself. I knew that what we had ordered would be far too much for the 2 of us, so consoled myself that I will make that another time....

I served a breakfast of bacon and egg muffins (an 'in-joke' for Food Critic Andrew and I), and of course lunch was this magnificent seafood affair, served with a big salad and fresh baked bread rolls. I fully believe that when cooking a Christmas lunch, whether for 2 or 20, relaxed is the key, unless of course you have an army of helpers! So aside from the bread and some puff pastry canapes, that was all the baking I did.

The pudding I made a few weeks ago and turned out lovely. Next year I am going to try a boiled pud. Santa was very good to me this year and I got a Sunbeam Mixmaster, and we made some of Andrew's Mum's Brandy Sauce in it to test it out.
Shirley's Brandy Sauce

Ingredients

1/2 cup whipped cream
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
pinch salt
3 tsp brandy

Method

1. Separate the egg from the yolk
2. Adding a pinch of salt, whip the whites until soft peaks form
3. Slowly add the sugar whilst continuing to whip.
4. Add the yolks, mixing carefully
5. Fold in the cream and brandy
6. Serve over your favourite pudding immediately.

So, what of the leftovers? Well, that's entirely another story. We went for a nice long walk this afternoon and decided to fry up the seafood, some chicken and some bacon in some oyster and soy sauces, along with whatever vegetables we could find in the fridge, add it to some rice, and call it Special Fried rice. I hadn't actually overindulged at lunch time so as long as I controlled my portions here, I was totally fine. And I even had room for another small bit of pudding.....