Boxing Day

Today is a good day. A little hungover but a good day. Despite pandemics and lockdowns and the challenges they present, I think I’ve just had the best Christmas Day ever.

Christmas has always been a simple formula for me. Wake up, crack an alcoholic beverage, wash down a bacon sarnie and slowly watch my day slide downhill. Hopefully by mid-afternoon, I’d be at least sober enough to get the timings somewhere near for Christmas dinner. I’ve always hidden away in the kitchen, working my way though bottles of wine, peeling potatoes and carrots for the family. I’m not sure why, if I’m totally honest, but I suppose we are creatures of habit.

This year was set to be different. I’ve felt so many benefits on a Ketogenic diet that I wasn’t about to change that, for any reason. On Facebook groups and Instagram posts, scores of people were talking about falling (or deliberately jumping) off the wagon. Be it food or alcohol, most people had decided that they would be taking a few days off, washing down a Terrys Chocolate Orange with their favourite Craft Ale. Not me. I was resolute. So I set out to make a plan.

Food

For me this felt like the easy part. Turkey is Keto after all, I found some pigs-in-blankets that had low carb content and some stuffing made mainly with meat. I’d roast some celeriac, add brocoli, cauliflower and a few green beans. Most of which everyone would be having anyway. I’m not a big fan of the humble sprout, but it’s Christmas, so I’d even tackle a couple of those as well.

My daughter, like many I’m sure, is a bit of a Yorkshire Pudding connoisseur. So no roast dinner would be complete without them. Now I’m not a huge fan of trying to manipulate recipes to make them Keto, as it feels like you’re trying to beat the system. I’m here for the long haul and the health benefits. Honest, fresh, simple ingredients wherever I can. But I’m also a realist. Now and again we need a little something to keep us on track. If you only remember three things from this blog it should be:

60ml Double Cream

16g Arrowroot

1 Egg

The combining of the above produces Arrowroot Yorkshire Pudding batter. Couldn’t be simpler, but these are a GAME CHANGER!!! I plated them separately to the regular Yorkshire puddings and set them on the table. Unbeknown to me, the puddings were about to pass the ultimate blind taste test. Before I’d realised my daughter had fully demolished the first Yorkshire Pudding. She had no awareness that they’d been made separately, just for me, and it turns out she didn’t know afterwards either. Judging by the rate at which it was eaten, I’d say she might even have preferred it too.

So that was how my Christmas dinner looked. Plating for 8 gets a bit frantic, so it’s not pretty, but it was fully on plan and very tasty.

Alcohol

While it’s true that in recent months my relationship with alcohol has improved, it’s still not what you’d call ‘healthy’ and I knew if anything had the capacity to derail my day, alcohol would be it. I probably drink about once a fortnight on average at the moment. That’s significantly down from every Friday and Saturday without fail. I’ve always been a social drinker, not really a sit-at-home drinker. Partly because once I start, I don’t really know when to stop. But also because I’ve always found alcohol taken regularly really affects my mental health and mood. I know guys who can drink every night, get up and have a brew, quick shower and head off to work. I’d be useless. Not physically ill, as my tolerances are pretty high, but just not motivated. For this reason I’ve avoided weekday drinking for some time.

Anyhow, I digress. My plan was simple. I would not touch a drop of alcohol until dinner was served and then what I did drink would be low or zero carb. I’d dedicate my morning to the family, clear and sober. I firmly believe that my choice to do this, is what made Christmas so pleasurable.

When you’re on the inside of things, you don’t always notice the impact your having on people and events. This year, I saw the faces of my children opening presets and remember them clearly. I built levels on Mario Marker with my son. Christmas dinner timings were good and I didn’t snap at my long suffering wife when dishing up dinner together, or at any part in the day for that matter. In fact it was entirely pleasurable. I even had a go on a hoverboard. Unsuccessfully, but I had a go.

When things had settled, I did enjoy several whiskies and as bed time arrived I was very well oiled. But I didn’t miss the important bits of the day, I stuck on plan, and today I fair much better than those who did not. If I search deep down, there’s a bit of a hangover, but that’s okay. Merry Christmas one and all, here’s to many more like this.