Mr Merridew's Guide To Christmas

Our resident under-butler takes a break from answering your questions to offer his advice on surviving the season

- Ruth Palmer

1 If we all had an army of elves busying away all year, we might be able to cram the whole of Christmas into just one night too, but we are not Santa – and life doesn’t work that way. So my first tip is not to treat this month like an un-merry marathon or to bite off more of the metaphorical mince pie than you can chew. My list is really a non-list list of things that are nice and helpful to do, but not essential. If you skip a step or two, panic not, have a marzipan fruit, or perhaps a sherry – Christmas will still be magical.

2 When it comes to pre-Christmas entertaining make nothing individual: no canapés, nothing that comes in its own cocotte. Instead, serve big platters of big food – chicken thighs baked in marmalade, oil and spices, or tomatoes, potatoes and onions roasted with chickpeas and lemon zest in a light white sauce. Your guests will thank you for the break from seasonal stodge, and you’ll thank yourself for making it so stress-free.