Make something extra tasty with your Christmas leftovers this year with this fabulous Boxing Day menu from Nigella Lawson. The book at the moment doesn't mention dusting with icing sugar, and it certainly isn't obligatory but we just thought it might help. A day or two ahead is about all I can manage, and Nigella caters for all types, including the last minute cook. And, of course, exciting and inspiring variations for the Main Event itself - from traditional super-juicy turkey, festive ginger-baked ham, special trimmings and the Ultimate Christmas Pud, all the way to the special vegetarian Christmas feast, by way of goose or pork-and-cranberry options and a Prodigious Pavlova. In which Nigella wraps her mouth-hole around the impossible task of cooking everything that begins with an 'F' in a demented Scrabble instruction manual.

She has also co-hosted, with David Aaronovitch, Channel 4 books discussion programme 'Booked' in the late 1990s, and was an occasional compere of BBC2's press review 'What the Papers Say', as well as appearing on BBC radio.From the Queen of Gluten-Free cooking, Becky Excell, comes Gluten-Free Christmas and her Cheesy Garlic Gluten-Free Dough Ball Wreath and Mini Gluten-Free Christmas Puddings. All used books might have various degrees of writing, highliting and wear and tear and possibly be an ex-library with the usual stickers and stamps. I wheel this out every year around October time to start my Christmas chutneys, then I move on to the Christmas cake in November.

We take pride in offering a wide selection of used books, from classics to hidden gems, ensuring there is something for every literary palate. It includes everything from scrumptious Christmas cakes and puddings, to quick and easy homemade presents (biscuits, preserves and other standbys) and edible tree-decorations, recipes for feeding friends and family over the holiday season with minimum stress and maximum enjoyment (cook and freeze ahead or slow-cook in the oven), as well as Christmas party food and drinks. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. Made these last week, substituted almonds for the pecans and dark choc chips for the white as those were what I had; also chopped my cranberries as they seemed disproportionately large. This was pretty nice but needs another flavour as a contrast (would make a great lunch with tomato salad).

Nigella Lawson is the daughter of former Conservative cabinet minister Nigel Lawson (now Lord Lawson) and the late Vanessa Salmon, socialite and heir to the Lyons Corner House empire, who died of liver cancer in 1985. Another simple recipe with only three ingredients: "Party Parma Ham Bundles"--prosciutto is wrapped around bite-sized morsels of goat's cheese and figs. Her down-to-earth approach to cooking and entertaining, and her self-admitted indulgent love of eating are as apparent in her cookbooks as they are in her media appearances. I must confess here that I’m one of those bah humbug types who is probably going to be visited by Jacob Marley in chains one of these day. Its quite easy to make, and when cooked in a bundt tin, looks immediately spectacular despite the little effort the cake takes to make!

A warning to sober folks: there's a LOT of booze in this cookbook, and I'm not even talking about the drinks section because it has plenty of mocktails for you. After reading other reviews, I have requested it again because I did not read the text as well as I should have.With recipes for classics like Chestnut Stuffing, and Perfect Roast Potatoes you might think this is a nod to the Spirit of Christmas Past, but Nigella gives things her own unique twist with Pumpkin and Goat Cheese Lasagna, Fully Loaded Potato Skins, and Roast Squash and Sweet Potato Soup with Buttermilk-Blue Cheese Swirl. Teachers receiving a mason jar of “Steeped Christmas Fruits,” or a box of “Christmas Puddini Bonbons” would have cause for celebration (that’s a heads-up if any of my kids’ teachers are reading this). We do not know how the mention of butternut cubes crept in here in place of onion; obviously the Butternut Fan Club has an underground agent at the publishers! With her no-nonsense approach, her inspirational ideas and empathy for the practical realities of the season - combined here with reliable easy-to-follow recipes and reassuring advice about planning and cooking ahead - Nigella Christmas is guaranteed to bring comfort and joy and make sure the season of good will stays that way. Discover the joy of reading with us, your trusted source for affordable books that do not compromise on quality.