Christmas cook follows Mary Berry 1970s blueprint

Tahnee Beck is following the entire 1977 guide, "cheesy bits" and all

A mum-of-two has hit headlines across the world for preparing and freezing her family's Christmas food weeks ahead and in 1970s style.

Tahnee Beck, of Holt, Norfolk, has created festive meals, side dishes and desserts since September and squirreled them away in her chock-full freezers.

Having only prepped spuds previously, she is going the "whole hog" and following a 1977 book by Mary Berry.

"I liked to be prepared," she told BBC Radio Norfolk.

"This year I decided to follow my mother-in-law's book called Freezing for Christmas, and I thought I'd try to make everything the book tells me to."

The A5 guide, priced 35p, includes recipes for family meals for the entire Christmas week.

"I've made sweet and sour meatballs and sauce for Christmas Eve, with sliced oranges and melons," explained Ms Beck.

She can also put a great big tick beside red cabbage with apple, Christmas pudding, Christmas cake, brandy butter, mincemeat, pineapple ice cream, light fruit cake, four types of cookie, and smoked mackerel pate.

Christmas 1977

Morecambe and Wise's 1977 Christmas special was watched by 28 million viewers

Anyone tucking into Mary Berry's defrosted feast at the time of the book's publication could have settled down to watch the Morecambe & Wise Christmas Show, which commanded one of the biggest audiences in British TV history.

The news followed, read by Angela Rippon, now aged 79 and wowing the judges on Strictly Come Dancing.

She possibly informed viewers of the passing of film star Charlie Chaplin, who had died, aged 88

The number one single was Mull of Kintyre by Wings and on 27 December, Star Wars opened in UK cinemas

Home cooks had to be extra careful not to burn the turkey. Firefighters were on their first-ever national strike over pay, until January 1978.

The book did not contain stereotypical recipes from the era, such as prawn cocktail and pink blancmange, she said, but it did feature a mysterious "buckling fish sandwich", believed to be herring.

And she admitted she had "no idea what Mary Berry was thinking" with the cheesy bits recipe, which is "basically cheese on toast".

Money-saver

"I think my family think I'm a bit strange but they reap the benefits of my prepping," she said.

"I saw this little book and I thought it was amazing; they did it in the 1970s so I thought I would give it a go."

Asked if it saved money, she said: "I think so.

"There's a recipe for cabbage and red apple and it costs a third of the price to make it myself, compared to the shops.

"Obviously, you don't have to make your entire Christmas dinner beforehand but there are a few things you can make ready to pull out on the day to save your stress.

"Things like potatoes, gravy, a few sides, Christmas cake, your pudding."

She hopes her planning ahead will lead to a more relaxed Christmas - but she will not put her feet up for long, or have an empty freezer.

"After the Christmas season is over, I'll start thinking about Easter," she added.