Whether you’re a seasoned professional at festive hosting or this is your first year at the helm, here are our top five apps to help you shop, prep and entertain this Christmas, effortlessly.
Multi Timer App
When it comes to Christmas dinner, timing is everything. Rather than trying to mentally keep track of how long the turkey’s got left and calculating on your fingers when you need to put the veg on, why not use the Multi Timer app? Unlike the standard smartphone stopwatch, this easy-to-use interface allows you to run multiple timers for each of your dinner’s components, ensuring they all come out the oven at the same time, perfectly cooked.
Mixology App
Not strictly speaking a ‘cooking app’, but arguably a vital one if you’re hosting, the Mixologist app offers a range of seasonal tipples to lubricate the festivities. There are a whopping 8000 drinks recipes to choose from, whether you’re after an aperitif to quaff while opening pressies, or a knock-out New Year’s Eve punch. There are tips on how to shake it like a Tom Cruise in Cocktail and the clever Liquor Cabinet tool lets you punch in the spirits you’ve got hanging around and it will give you a list of recipes to make with what you have at your fingertips. Great for last-minute entertaining.
Good Food App
The Good Food app is a great destination for tried and tested festive favourites. The Festive cookbook section includes 180 recipes ranging from the classic roast turkey to easy mince pies. There are instructive cookery technique videos to watch if you need to brush up on your skills, plus kitchen gadget reviews if you’re looking to upgrade your kit in the Boxing Day sales.
Perfect Christmas Dinner Masterclass
Doing exactly what it says on the tin, the Perfect Christmas Dinner Masterclass, from Great British Chefs isn’t strictly speaking an app, but is optimised for mobile and tablet. Download the video and you’ll have professional chef, Richard Bainbridge, on your kitchen counter alongside you throughout the festive season. Learn step-by-step how to prep and cook the ‘perfect Christmas dinner’, with fool-proof recipes and a little ‘cheffy’ flourish to wow your guests. It had everything from brining your turkey and the perfect stuffing to quick and easy homemade sauces and ‘prep ahead’ tips.
Bring! Shopping List app
If you usually juggling countless shopping lists on scraps of paper about now, this year upgrade to Bring! Not only can you keep all your lists safe in one place on your phone or tablet, but you can add items with one tap from a huge list of pre-loaded items and share lists with family and friends to lighten the load. It allows you to keep lists updated in real-time so everyone knows who’s bringing what. You can even save all your loyalty cards in the app’s digital wallet to save as you spend. There’s a seasonal calendar to help you choose sustainable food options, plus you can import recipes from your favourite foodie websites, like Jamie Oliver and Great British Chefs to make ingredient buying a doddle.
Main image: Great British Chefs
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