When a child is born
Netflix film puts Mary in the frame
Play’s new perspective on the Christmas story
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From the
When a woman gives birth she can experience fear, hope, pain and love. And those emotions are felt all the more acutely if the birth happens away from the safe and sterile environment of a local hospital.
So imagine Mary’s emotions 2,000 years ago as she gave birth to Jesus in a country under occupation, in an unfamiliar town and in conditions that meant she had to lay her newborn son in an animal feeding trough. Added to that, before she gave birth, Mary had to tell her partner that she was having a baby that wasn’t his and convince him that the child was, in fact, a gift from God.
If it’s a struggle to imagine all that, then a new Netflix film may help. As we report this week, Mary tells the Nativity story from the point of view of Jesus’ mother. It is one of the latest in a long history of productions that either tell the story of Jesus’ birth or remind audiences of the good news of Christmas.
In this week’s issue we speak with Paul Birch, the artistic director of the Riding Lights Theatre Company, which is presenting the play A Christmas Cracker across the UK this month.
‘It’s about the joy of Christmas,’ he says. ‘It’s about goodwill towards others. The overriding message I want people to go home with is that we are loved and are capable of love. And when we love, it transforms both us and the people we love.’
Paul is right when he talks about joy and love being central to Christmas, even though the birth of Jesus happened in less than ideal circumstances. It was such a special event that heavenly angels turned up to lead the celebrations.
Jesus’ birth means that, when we face times of fear and pain, we can experience love, joy and hope because we can know his presence with us – enabling us to see life in a whole new way.
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Mary does all she can to protect her baby
A Mary Christmas
Netflix tells the story of the mother of Jesus
By Sarah Olowofoyeku
An ordinary girl from an ordinary place, chosen for an extraordinary task –Mary’s story has been told all over the world, especially at Christmas, and now it’s being streamed on Netflix.
The feature-length film follows the life of Mary (Noa Cohen) from her early years. In the Netflix account, her parents have dedicated her life to God, and she lives and serves in the Temple. So it comes as a surprise when an angel tells her that she will give birth to a son who will be known across the world. By a miracle, she becomes pregnant and she is shunned and mistreated, because it is assumed that she has been unfaithful to her fiancé, Joseph (Ido Tako).
For her own safety, Mary goes into hiding only later travelling to Bethlehem. But even after she has given birth to Jesus, her problems aren’t over. Her family are in danger, because Jesus is the promised Messiah.
This is an outrage to the tyrannical King Herod (Anthony Hopkins), who believes his throne to be under threat.
‘You are the king of the Jews, the true saviour,’ he is told. But to be sure that he maintains his rule, he orders that every male infant in Bethlehem be killed.
So Mary and Joseph take Jesus, and
go on the run. Because of her love for God and her child, Mary is determined to go to great lengths to protect him.
‘Love will cost you dearly,’ she says, ‘but in the end, it will save the world.’
The true story is that Jesus’ life was at risk soon after he was born, and Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt to keep him safe. Born in the Middle East, a place where there was political unrest – and where there is still conflict today –Mary’s life was changed for ever when an angel visited her to tell her she would give birth to Jesus, the Son of God.
Herod
The Bible’s account of Mary’s pregnancy doesn’t consist of many words, but it can be found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. They tell of her being chosen by God, of the difficult circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth, and Herod’s plot to kill him.
Those accounts go on to say that the baby Jesus’ life was saved and how he grew up to give up his life to save others.
In another book of the Bible, Jesus’ explained: ‘This is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his
Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him’ (John 3:16 and 17 New Living Translation).
God’s love did indeed save the world, and Christians from many places hold these words to be true. Ordinary people have had their lives transformed by believing in Jesus – but they did not have to pay the cost themselves. When Jesus died on a cross and was raised to life, he paid the price in full for their wrongdoings and conquered death once and for all. Anyone can experience this love. All we need do is believe in Jesus, the Son of God, and our ordinary lives can become extraordinary.
Film feature: Mary Netflix from 6 December
King
(Anthony Hopkins)
j TEA M TALK
An energising peace
Emily Bright gives her take on a story that has caught the attention of War
Cry reporters
Festive programming is under way with the return of BBC series My Life at Christmas, presented by Anita Rani. She interviews celebrities about their upbringing, career and perspective on faith.
I tuned into the episode with actress Sheila Hancock, who became a Quaker in 1997. During the programme, which is available on BBC iPlayer, she recalled how she grew up attending a Catholic school, became an ardent atheist after the death of her first husband, and then felt drawn back to spirituality after she was diagnosed with cancer in 1988. As she took Anita for a tour round the Quaker meeting house she attends in west London, she revealed more about her beliefs.
Take a moment to be still
‘The life of Christ is very important,’ she explained. ‘Quakers believe in practising their religion, not talking about it. We are supposed to be caring for humanity, trying to get equality, trying to get truth, trying to get peace.’
I admire such a proactive approach to living out faith, based on biblical principles.
But Sheila revealed that, while action is important, an essential element of Quaker meetings is silent contemplation.
‘It’s not meditation,’ she said. ‘You don’t go in on yourself, you don’t go into your own head, but you actually open up and you’re just waiting. And sometimes it’s miraculous and you get a surge of energy, or a surge of peace.’
Her words challenged me. In the lead-up to Christmas, when I’m rushing to meet deadlines, I’m often operating out of exhaustion and not stillness. As I write, my eyes are drawn to a Bible verse hanging in a frame on my wall: ‘Be still, and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10 New International Version). In the midst of my striving, mistakes and irritability, I’ve realised that I simply need to take a moment to be still and remember that God is with me.
From personal experience, I find that it’s when I pause in God’s presence that I feel a surge of energy. In his presence, I’m revitalised and find a powerful peace which surpasses all understanding.
WAR talk talk Team talk Team talk ‘ ’
Seasonal services from the BBC
Television and radio presenter Kate Garraway will narrate the story of the birth of Jesus as told in Luke’s Gospel as Christmas Day comes to a close on BBC1. On Christmas Night is one of the many religious programmes being broadcast on the BBC’s TV and radio stations during the Christmas period.
Songs of Praise will feature a candlelit celebration of carols on BBC1 on Sunday 22 December. But it’s not only TV or the UK wide platforms that are covering Christmas from a spiritual angle.
On the same day Aleighcia Scott will host A Christmas Meditation on Radio Wales, providing a chance to pause in the lead-up to Christmas, with festive readings, music and memories. Throughout Christmas week, Radio Ulster and Radio Foyle’s Thought for the Day will feature a special series of reflections from contributors on the theme of hope.
BBC1 will broadcast Midnight Mass from St Mary’s Church, Warwick, on Christmas Eve, and a celebration of the Nativity live from Halifax Minster on Christmas morning, complete with a live crib of animals, mother and child.
On Christmas Eve BBC2 will broadcast from King’s College, Cambridge, Carols From King’s, the service of choral music which this year marks its 70th anniversary.
Traditional readings filmed with young people from schools in St Andrews will feature in BBC1 Scotland’s Watchnight programme, which will be aired just before midnight on Christmas Eve.
1Xtra’s Swarzy Shire and Jeremiah Asiamah will wake up listeners on Christmas morning with three hours of gospel music. More of the genre can be heard on Radio 2 on Christmas evening, when Beverley Knight hosts Beverley’s Great British Gospel Christmas.
Worship from The Salvation Army’s carol service at the Royal Albert Hall will be broadcast on Christmas morning on Radio 4, and on Sunday 29 December, Sunday Worship comes from Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, which reopened its doors to the public this month.
Actor David Gyasi told Premier Christianity magazine about the important role that faith played in his upbringing. His parents became Christians when he was a child, and his family began going to church.
‘We went to Kensington Temple (KT), which was massive, and then my aunt started a church in her flat,’ he explained.
He said his experience of church ‘was music, food, fellowship and doing life together, you know? We were a family. I learned a lot about what really matters beyond the labels, finances or who’s who. It was much more about connection and character.’
‘Christian content is the centrepiece of what we do at Christmas’
In
the
BBC heads of religion and ethics, DAISY SCALCHI and TIM PEMBERTON, discuss their festive television and radio schedules –and the value of faithbased programmes
Interview by Claire Brine
One hundred years ago, when the BBC made the first live radio broadcast of a church service from St Martin-in-the-Fields in London, it received mixed reviews from the public.
‘Some people welcomed the programme, believing that putting Christian worship on the radio was progressive and exciting,’ says Daisy Scalchi, the BBC’s head of religion and ethics for television. ‘But others were more critical, saying that it was scandalous to think of people hearing the gospel while sitting in the pub with their hats on.
‘Despite the controversy, programmemakers at the BBC ploughed ahead with their religious output – and never looked back. That first church broadcast of 1924 kickstarted a beautiful tradition of Christian programming at the BBC, which is as important to us today as it ever was. And, as we prepare this year’s Christmas schedules for television and radio, that Christian content is still the centrepiece of what we do.’
Daisy Scalchi and Tim Pemberton
1924,
BBC broadcast the first live church service, led by the Rev Dick Sheppard
JAMES WATKINS
‘Songs of Praise’ presenter Pam Rhodes celebrates 100 years of religious broadcasting at St Martin-in-the-Fields
When I meet Daisy over a video call – along with Tim Pemberton, the BBC’s head of religion and ethics for radio – our conversation starts with discussion of what she refers to as the BBC’s ‘Christmas staples’: television programmes such as Carols From King’s on Christmas Eve, and Christmas Morning, a worship service broadcast each year on Christmas Day from a different cathedral or church.
But the pair also reflect on the corporation’s history, telling me about its earliest Christian radio programmes, and the first Christmas when a religious programme was televised.
‘The first worship-type programme to be shown on television at Christmastime was called Christmas Carols, and it was broadcast on 25 December 1936,’ Daisy says. ‘It was on at 9pm, and it featured a boys’ choir singing carols. I guess that attitudes towards Christian worship being featured on the radio had changed sufficiently by that stage, and BBC programmers felt that television coverage
was what audiences needed. The needs of the audience have always been at the heart of everything we do.’
The BBC is always very serious about Christmas
As the years went by, the BBC increased its Christian programming across radio and television platforms. Today Daisy and Tim describe themselves as ‘proud custodians’ of a number of long-running faith-focused series, including BBC1’s Songs of Praise – which turned 63 years old this year – and Radio 4’s Sunday programme, launched in 1970, which features discussion on religious and ethical topics.
‘In terms of exploring faith, I’d say that our remit is broader now than it used to be,’ explains Daisy. ‘So Tim and I need to represent other religious communities as well as people who are not sure if they have faith at all. We are always asking
ourselves: “What do audiences want? What do they need at certain times of the year?”
‘When it comes to Christmas, which is such a crucial moment in the Christian calendar, those questions become even more focused: “How do we hold an audience in a place of worship and reverence? How do we keep people engaged with this foundational story in the Christian liturgy?”’
Tim adds: ‘At this time of year, people might be a bit more receptive to the content that we make. It means that in editorial meetings, our programmes are top of the agenda. The BBC is always very serious about Christmas and what we, as heads of religion and ethics, are putting out there for our audiences.’
As well as broadcasting familiar worship services each year which focus on the Nativity – such as BBC1’s
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Midnight Mass and Radio 4’s A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols – Daisy and Tim are keen to make Christmas programmes which allow a non-churchgoing audience, or individuals questioning their beliefs, to explore the subject of faith.
‘Christmas prompts many people to stop and ask themselves big questions,’ says Daisy. ‘So, for anyone in that headspace, we are broadcasting on BBC1 our third Advent series of My Life at Christmas, presented this year by Anita Rani. She’s interviewing three celebrities about their life through the lens of faith and what Christmas means to them.
One of her guests is Sheila Hancock, who was Catholic as a child, lost her faith for a time, then rediscovered it years later as a Quaker.
Life at Christmas’
‘My hope is that Sheila’s interview, in which she talks about her spiritual journey, will connect with people who don’t necessarily have a linear progression of faith. Her perspective is that when you face difficult times, all is not lost, because your faith may come back to you in a different way from before.’
However they choose to present the subjects of religion and ethics on their respective platforms, Daisy and Tim are confident that they have the backing of BBC bosses, who value their contribution to broadcasting schedules. Every year they are told that their ‘Christmas staples’ are protected.
‘And these programmes aren’t just protected, they’re looked forward to,’ explains Daisy. ‘The BBC is passionate about making sure that religious content stays at the centre of its schedules. It’s in our charter. It’s something we believe we need to be doing.’
But why? What are the benefits of providing audiences with faith-based programmes?
‘I always smile when people ask me that question,’ says Tim. ‘And my answer is that I think religion and ethics are the most interesting areas for enquiry. They’re subjects that make you engage with life and death – and everything in between.
‘The Covid-19 pandemic was a really good example of why our work matters. Back then, people faced the
toughest situations of their lives, and they started thinking bigger and deeper than before. They were seeking meaningful connections. They valued community. They considered what was important in life. And those are the subjects we tackle week in, week out in our religious radio broadcasts.
I think Christmas is about love
‘When we do our worship programmes well, they transcend any religious setting and reach into the secular world. Obviously, I want our programmes to reach people all the time and not just when they are facing trauma. So that’s the challenge I face in my role. I’m always asking: “Are we doing this right? Are we making programmes in such a way that compels people to listen?”’
Daisy adds: ‘The word “religion” comes with a huge amount of preconceptions for people, both positive and negative. But if you take away those things that people
associate with religion, you’re left with the question: “What makes us human?” Some people would put God and divinity at the centre of that conversation – and other people wouldn’t. But for everybody, there’s a sense of shared humanity. And I think a lot of us really lean into that at Christmastime.’
While Daisy and Tim are used to reflecting on questions of faith for their programme-making, they admit that the run-up to Christmas often prompts them to consider their own understanding of the Nativity. The story of the birth of God’s Son, Jesus, inspires them both.
‘As a Christian, I love Christmas,’ says Tim. ‘I find the Nativity an important story – and, whether people accept it or not, it offers them a moment to see something beautiful and challenging.’
‘I think it’s about love,’ adds Daisy. ‘Christmas gives us something to look forward to that is beautiful and light in a season which feels very dark, both literally and metaphorically. It’s a time which invites people to come together, often in one house, and at the centre of that togetherness lies a story of hope, love and joy – the story of baby Jesus.’
Actress Sheila Hancock, discusses her faith with presenter Anita Rani in BBC1’s ‘My
IT’SPLAYTIME!
Artistic director PAUL BIRCH talks about the latest play to be staged by
Riding Lights Theatre Company and the value of the Christmas story
Interview by Claire Brine
As children across the UK are counting down to the big day, actors from the Riding Lights Theatre Company are spreading some Christmas joy with their latest production, A Christmas Cracker. Touring primary schools and churches, then concluding its run at the Friargate Theatre in York, the show invites audiences to celebrate the festive season by hearing some powerful tales delivered by a world-class storyteller.
‘The play begins when a character called Ebeneezer Sneezer and her dog, Cracker, need to take shelter in a barn because a storm is preventing them from travelling to their storytelling show,’ says Paul Birch, the artistic director of Riding Lights, who also wrote the script. ‘Unfortunately, they discover that the barn is owned by a very suspicious farmer called Mrs McGinty and her donkey, Deadly. They do not like trespassers at all – but Mrs McGinty allows them to stay on the condition that they tell her some stories.’
If Ebeneezer can succeed in warming Mrs McGinty’s frozen heart, she and Cracker are promised a hot supper on the farm. But if they fail in their efforts, the storytelling duo will be thrown back out into the storm.
‘Without going into spoiler territory, it’s a play about the power of stories and the
stories that God wants to tell us,’ explains Paul. ‘It’s about identity and the fact that sometimes we act out stories about ourselves which aren’t necessarily true, because that’s not how God sees us. The play also touches on the Nativity, telling the story of the birth of Jesus in a light but clear way.
‘In terms of style, I’d say the show is a bit like the animations of Pixar or Wallace and Gromit, featuring slapstick, comedy chases and puppets. In one scene, we
Paul Birch
have two dodgy shepherds constantly trying to rob each other of the same sheep. They keep on tricking each other, but then become amazed to learn that they have been invited to the birth of Jesus.
‘Other comedy moments include a fight over Deadly the Donkey’s favourite blanket, and a scene with a mischievous turkey that keeps on popping up everywhere.’
Performed by just two actors playing a handful of roles, A Christmas Cracker runs for 60 minutes and is suitable for audiences of all ages – or, as Paul likes to put it, ‘for children big and small’. One of the stories to be enjoyed focuses on the journey of the wise men as they travel from the East in search of a newborn King.
‘Ebeneezer tells Mrs McGinty the story of the 50 wise men,’ says Paul. ‘She explains that 50 wise men set out to find Jesus, but there was only one who made it through the stable doors. So it’s a story which also serves as a parable, highlighting all the things which may stop us from coming closer to God.’
As well as listening to the stories depicted in the play, audiences are invited to see scenes of transformation
as the characters are changed by their conversations and encounters.
‘At the start of the play, Ebeneezer Sneezer loves the sparkle of Christmas,’ Paul tells me. ‘But she is a little suspicious of anything that isn’t sparkly. So one thing she learns through the play is that sometimes the most important stories can be found in unlikely places. Sometimes the best moments don’t happen in the glitter.
It’s about goodwill towards others
‘As for Mrs McGinty, she reminds me initially of Mrs Tweedy in the Aardman film Chicken Run. She’s quite stern – but perhaps that’s just how she appears to be. Underneath her harsh exterior, audiences might find that she’s something very different.’
While the characters on stage are considering the kind of people they are, audiences too may find themselves wanting to take a moment to stop and reflect.
Paul says that as well as touching on
The dastardly shepherds (Holly Cassidy and Grace Husey-Burd) don’t see eye to eye
Mrs McGinty isn’t happy to find strangers in her barn
identity, the play explores themes of pain and healing, peace and joy – things that everyone can relate to.
‘And it’s about the joy of Christmas. It’s about goodwill towards others. The overriding message I want people to go home with is that we are loved and are capable of love. And when we love, it transforms both us and the people we love.’
Making creative and entertaining theatre that tells powerful and lifechanging stories has been the ethos of Riding Lights since the company was founded nearly 50 years ago. Its plays – which align with Christian beliefs and values – have been performed in theatres, schools, churches, prisons and community centres across the world.
‘I love theatre that speaks to all ages,’ says Paul, reflecting on why he wrote A Christmas Cracker. ‘I also have a deep and profound love of comedy. The actor and director Peter Ustinov once said: “Comedy is simply a funny way of being serious.” I think that’s great. So I enjoy using comedy to help communicate
serious and profound things – and I’d say that’s what we are doing in this play.’
Though Riding Lights has staged countless Christmas plays since its beginnings, Paul explains that the story of the birth of Jesus never fails to inspire him.
The Nativity has so many facets to it
‘It’s
easy to be creative when you’re working with stories that are like diamonds,’ he says. ‘If there’s not much content in a story, if it’s pale and insipid, then there’s not much you can do with it. But the Nativity has so many facets to it.
‘I also think that, in terms of writing plays, I’m not the same person today that I was 20 years ago. So when I come to write a play about a story that I’ve written about before, the “me” today sees that story differently, because I’m in a different place in my spiritual journey. You bring fresh life experience to it.’
Reflecting on the stage of life he’s in
today, Paul says that what the story of Christmas means to him personally can be summed up by one of the names given to Jesus – Immanuel, which means ‘God with us’.
‘Obviously that’s a familiar Bible phrase to many,’ he says, ‘but the older I get, the more I treasure the depth of it.
‘Having gone through some very tough things, I’ve been really grateful this year for the sense I’ve had that God has been present. He has been with me – even in territory that I wouldn’t necessarily want to visit, just like Ebeneezer Sneezer. And knowing that God is with me in difficult and uncomfortable spaces is affirming, encouraging and uplifting.’
l A Christmas Cracker is being staged at the Friargate Theatre in York from 21 to 24 December.
For more information visit ridinglights.org
Cracker the dog assesses the scene
The War Cry invites readers to send in requests for prayer, including the first names of individuals and details of their circumstances, for publication. Send your Prayerlink requests to warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk or to War Cry, 1 Champion Park, London SE5 8FJ. Mark your correspondence ‘Confidential’.
jBecoming a Christian
There is no set formula to becoming a Christian, but many people have found saying this prayer to be a helpful first step to a relationship with God
Lord Jesus Christ,
I am truly sorry for the things I have done wrong in my life. Please forgive me. I now turn from everything that I know is wrong.
Thank you that you died on the cross for me so that I could be forgiven and set free.
Thank you that you offer me forgiveness and the gift of your Holy Spirit. Please come into my life by your Holy Spirit to be with me for ever.
Thank you, Lord Jesus. Amen
NO W, THERE’S A THOUGHT!
by Jim Burns
Web story brings joy
Real Christmas tree or artificial? And how do you decorate it – with baubles, lights, angels? What goes on the top of your tree? Festive decorations can bring joy to lots of people, but everyone has their own preferences.
I recently learnt about a legend relating to one type of decoration – tinsel –and the birth of Jesus.
Some 2,000 years ago Joseph took Mary and the baby Jesus to Egypt, having been warned in a dream that King Herod wanted to kill Jesus – that part of the story is in the Bible. But legend has it that one frosty evening, the family sought refuge in a cave and a little spider saw the baby. This little spider so wished that he could help to keep the child warm, but the only thing that he could think of doing was to spin a web across the entrance to the cave.
Later a group of Herod’s soldiers went in the direction of Egypt, intent on carrying out his orders. They were passing the cave where Jesus and his family were sheltering, and were about to search it when the captain saw the spider’s web intact and covered with frost across the entrance. He decided that there could be no one in the cave, as anyone entering would have broken the web. At that, the soldiers moved on, and the family was safe to continue their journey.
Apparently, to remember the little spider’s web, people started putting tinsel on their Christmas trees.
Whatever the truth of this well-spun yarn, it is good to remember what we can be sure of at Christmas – that Jesus, the Son of God, was born. And more than that, his purpose in coming was to die on a cross for our sins, and then rise again, so that we may have eternal life.
How we choose to decorate our trees isn’t so important. What can give us lasting joy is putting our focus at Christmas on receiving God’s gift for us –and, like the spider, finding the opportunities to help others.
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Extract from Why Jesus? by Nicky Gumbel published by Alpha International, 2011. Used by kind permission of Alpha International
QUICK QUIZ
Edd Kimber was the first champion of which TV cooking competition in 2010?
Which 2003 animated film features the advice ‘Just keep swimming’?
What is the title of Boris Johnson’s memoir published this year?
Which singer had a hit in 2016 with his song ‘Human’?
Which church and charity was originally known as the East London Christian Mission when it started in 1865?
In which country is the headquarters of toy company Lego located?
WINTER WANDER-LAND
Historic properties are offering visitors the chance step into Narnia
Feature by Philip Halcrow
Houses steeped in history are making room for a fantasy world this Christmastime. Wrest Park, an 18th-century mansion in Bedfordshire, and Nymans, a house and garden in West Sussex, are inviting visitors to step inside the Narnia of CS Lewis’s children’s books. Wrest Park – says English Heritage – has been put under the White Witch’s spell so that it is, in the words of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, ‘always winter, but never Christmas’. Thankfully as they encounter scenes from the story, visitors will be able to escape the curse.
Meanwhile, the National Trust has collaborated with theatrical scenery company Tin Shed to transform the site at Nymans. A wardrobe leads visitors into a woodland where they can peek into the homes of friendly faun Mr Tumnus and the Beavers, and a trail leads them to the key figure of Aslan the lion.
Author of two guides to the books, Jem Bloomfield, can see why people are so grabbed by Narnia that they want to recreate and visit it.
He tells the War Cry: ‘Narnia offers people the idea that the world is enchanted, that there is much more to it all than the surface reality we’re used to encountering. At the same time, that deeper meaning and that mystery is very close to us.
‘Lewis’s stories don’t just tell us about another realm. They enliven the world we live in. They offer a vision of reality where our choices are part of a great adventure.’
In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Aslan tells the children that in their world he has ‘another name’.
And the real-world figure known by that other name spoke of how knowing him helps people grasp a deeper understanding of reality.
Arriving in our world in the event now celebrated at Christmas, Jesus brought the message that God is willing to forgive the attitudes and actions that can make the world a cold place. Demonstrating a love that even death could not keep down, he invited people to put their trust in him and follow in his footsteps.
The rest is history.
Narnia at Nymans
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Chestnut loaf
INGREDIENTS
1tsp olive oil
METHOD
1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
225g cooked and peeled chestnuts
227g can chopped tomatoes
100g wholemeal breadcrumbs
1 stick celery, chopped
100g mushrooms, chopped
2tbsp fresh sage, chopped
Parsley, to garnish
2tbsp tomato relish, to serve
Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas Mark 6. Line a 1lb loaf tin with greaseproof paper.
Heat the oil in a thick-based saucepan and cook the onion and garlic on a medium heat for 5 minutes, until the onion softens. Add the chestnuts, tomatoes, breadcrumbs, celery, mushrooms and sage, then stir well to break up the chestnuts. Spoon the mixture into the tin, firmly pressing it down. Bake in the oven for 1 hour, until golden brown
Apple, sage and onion quinoa stuffing
INGREDIENTS
120g dried quinoa, rinsed
360ml water
1tsp oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 celery sticks, diced
1 eating apple, diced
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1tsp dried sage
Freshly ground black pepper
70ml reduced-salt vegetable stock Oil spray
Heat the quinoa and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the onion, celery and apple on a medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring until the onions and celery start to soften. Stir in the garlic, sage and black pepper and cook for another minute.
Add the contents of the frying pan to the quinoa and mix thoroughly, then slowly stir.
Spray the oil into an oven-proof dish and add the stuffing to the dish, spreading it out evenly. Alternatively, roll the stuffing into small balls.
Bake in the oven for 40 minutes, until the stuffing is golden brown and crispy on top. Serve immediately.
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