Having not had the chance to cook anything over Christmas, I wanted to cook something roasted. Beef it was. Cooking proceeded over a fairly long period, compared with the eating time at least, and I did some of the dishes I've not done in years - like special roasted parsnips.

My lady friend contributed Yorkshire puddings to the ensemble, along with gravy and general advice, support and effort. It was a team exercise.

The whole house smelled of beef. Curiously the beef didn't.