Would someone be willing to share an approximate bubble & squeak recipe?

also, please:
Is there any difference from colcannon, which I've been making a vegetarian version of lately because austerity is newly fashionable and because it's so tasty?

I'm struggling to think of what a non-vegetarian version of colcannon would look like. Colcannon was certainly a luxury food, for the days you had veg. It wasn't a fantasy dream food for the handful of super-rich who could afford meat.

Neither colcannon nor bubble have anything remotely resembling an authentic recipe.

But the basic differnce is that colcannon usually just mixes fried shredded greens and onion into mash, while bubble needs you to fry (or sometimes bake) the gunk to get a crispy top and bottom. That's where it's supposed to get its name from: the squeaky noise the greens make as you fry them.

THe flanner Boxing Day bubble recipe:

Make twice as much mash as you think you're going to need. Put the sprouts no-one ate yesterday into the processor for a few seconds, shake it then nuke for another second or two (you want them shredded, not mushy).

Fry nice fatty bacon slowly (or if you're posh, melt the goose fat from yesterdsay's lunch), then add an onion and fry till it's melted. Add the sprouts till they're wilted and covered in fat. Mix the gunk in a bowl with the mash and add more goose or bacon fat so it's yummy. Some people grate a bit of cheese in at this point: I like a good dollop of creme fraiche.

Now either make this into a few cakes and fryy them individually, or if you've got a decent size frying pan get it hot and fry the cake on both sides till it's crisp.

No-one else will agree. That's the whole point about bubble

It's one of those great leftovers dishes.
I did spiced brisket at the weekend and resurrected it as a cottage pie.
I have had American friends asking me for a recipe for shepherd's/cottage pie, but like bubble, there really isn't one.
I just chop or mince the meat, add any leftover veg., add leftover gravy, top with mashed or sliced leftover spud and pop it in the oven.

BTW, an American friend of mine loved Christmas in England.
She really liked Christmas crackers and sent some through the post to her grandchildren back home.
When she told us, we had visions of them catching fire on the plane, but she said that they got there quite safely and the grandchildren loved them.
I believe that they are now much more available over there.

Like most women and some blokes, I am going into full panic mode, making lists with timings, so that we don't get a "Oh, my gord. I haven't done the bread sauce!" moment.
BTW I hope that somebody has told Pal Joey when to tune into the Queen's Speech ;-)

Oh MissP, it'll be on the interweb thingy. No need to book an appointment. I rather like the image of PQ trying to curtsey to the computer screen.

Creme Fraiche in bubble and squeak?

That, ladies and gentlemen is what living in the Cotswolds will do to you.

I also love sprouts (as long as they are not cooked to b*ggery) and have successfully trained DH (brought up on them c.t.b.) to like them too. Although I like them plain, I also enjoyed them last Sunday steamed then rolled in garlic and butter, and tomorrow we'll be having Martin Wishart's recipe which is a bit like the Times one (I think it involves pancetta, carrots & cream).

Er, stokebailey, "I'll use homemade mincemeat this year for the pudding" ? Christmas pudding doesn't involve mincemeat...

Hi stokebaily - Yes, the pinch or quarter teaspoon's more like it, is to enhance the bright green colour but this is where you must not cook them for longer than a few minutes as the Bi-carbonate of Soda does terrible things to green veg of all kinds - making it soft and soggy! Hence the rinsing briefly under a cold running tap. Of course the worst thing Bi-carb does is kill off any vitamins. Won't hurt just this one time?!

As for Colcannon - Never remember ever making it but I do know its mash potatoes and cabbage - so I guess thats' where the sprouts come into play. I saw a version with chopped spring onion but I think that is called something else.

Hm, I don't understand the 'bicarb for colour' thing as mine seem to end up bright green anyway ? I just steam them for 5 minutes - no rinsing or other intervention required.

Yes, sprouts do go bright green initially with direct steaming or boiling but it seems with the slightest bit of overcooking or standing around for folks to finish their aperitifs and get noshing, seems to turn them an odinile green and most unattractive. Served right away is probably the best!

Hi tod. I know that if I see yellow sprouts I won't eat them as it means they are overcooked !

'Odinile' is a new word to me - what does it mean, please ?

Speaking of finishing aperitifs - I understood DH's former horror of sprouts when we first visited his parents for Xmas, and his mum was going to put them on before we went to the pub !!

Mashed Potatoes and spring onions is called Champ. It's found all over but I think it's considered more of a Northern Irish dish.

caroline - I'd guess "eau de nil" but, thinking about it, odinile sounds like it could well be used to describe overcooked sprouts - as in, do you like your sprouts al dente or odinile.

The colour Odinile or maybe Odinille?! sounds kinda French to me, All I know is that I was looking at fabric for curtains once and the assistant described a certain pale green/grey swatch as Odinille! Somewhat similar to dried Bay leaves or that other leafy herb thats kind of soft & fury.
Heavens Caroline - those sprouts would have been totally inedible!! never mind the colour..............!

Thanks, flanner. I'll use yours. "Posh" is about right for the goose: ~$50 for a nine-pounder the other day, while nuisance Canadian geese mill around ponds all over our county. And you wonder why we want guns.

I'd think some nouveau riche Irish might add bacon to colcannon. Not unlike topping B&S with creme fraiche.

caroline_e, Since I've never had authentic Christmas pudding as mother makes it, the quick Delia recipe above using mincemeat tastes fine to me. We love the flaming brandy, a novelty around these parts.

Oh MissP, it'll be on the interweb thingy. No need to book an appointment. I rather like the image of PQ trying to curtsey to the computer screen.

Curtsey, eh.
You have now put the thought into my mind that "he" is really a sweet little old lady from somewhere in the Mid-West.
He wears a gingham bonnet and rocks on his veranda dreaming of all the exotic locations he's like to visit.
His favourite nephew from out East has bought him a computer and introduced him to that thar new-fangled Internet thing.
As I type, Mrs. J. is cooking a nice ham for Christmas Eve dinner.
The smell is driving me mad.
Merry Christmas, everyone.

update:
I microwaved halved sprouts until half done, then sauteed them in olive oil, garlic, and butter. Threw in handful of grated parmesan, since I'm American and therefore not bound by ordinary rules of civilized behavior. They were delicious and well-received by all.

My older daughter, 18, tactfully suggested that it would be all right if I didn't make the pudding, while admitting that the flaming brandy part last year was very impressive.

My younger daughter, 17, kept an eye on the bubble & squeak preparation to ensure that the yummy parts that make it squeak were kept to a minimum. Together they make up the Saturated Fats Police in our kitchen. It was still very good. If I'd had creme fraiche I'd have slipped it in when no one was looking.