Being part of Hampshire Fare is a big benefit for me. It does a great job in bringing like-minded farmers, producers and artisan suppliers together to form a community which shares the ethos of working with local sustainable produce and reducing the carbon footprint, while at the same time promoting the very best food and drink that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight has to offer.  

Living in Hampshire, I feel very privileged. We have such a natural larder from the New Forest, rivers to the shore – it’s all at our fingertips. This enables us to make greater and more sustainable choices, which I feel very passionately about. 

To create a great stress-free Christmas feast, it’s all about preparation, and this starts with where to buy your ingredients from. I try to avoid supermarkets as much as possible as I’d much rather use and support local businesses. 

It really doesn’t cost that much more, and not only will you get fresh produce often just pulled from the ground that morning but you can often buy the quantities you need and get advice on how best to prepare and cook your produce. 

Something I believe should be on every table this Christmas is one of my favourite Hampshire producers; ChalkStream Trout. Their hot and cold smoked trout is great for canapés and tastes amazing on little blinis, with cream cheese and lemon.

The fresh fillets of farmed trout which I salt and sugar cure along with The River Test Sunset Citrus Gin for 12 hours in the fridge, served with beetroot, pickled vegetables and crème fraiche, just makes for an amazing starter. It’s so easy to do and can be done two or three days in advance and kept in the fridge. You can then just cut at the table and serve with some fresh sourdough. 

Forget about making mince pies – you have to try the mince pies or Stollen cake from 108 Bakery in Romsey. Their mince pies have a topping of crumble or almond frangipane and the Stollen loaves, topped with icing sugar, taste out of this world and go really well with mulled Hydes Cyder.

One of the great advantages of using smaller businesses and local suppliers is that many of these don’t produce in large quantities, so they are made to be consumed within a few days, as opposed to being mass-produced where additives are key parts of the ingredients.

This also does make it easier if you need to cook for family and friends with dietary issues. When it comes to gluten-free or dairy-free alternatives there are so many different options nowadays. Most butchers will offer sausages and sausage meat as gluten-free if they are given notice. With the rising trend of non-alcoholic wines and beers there are many to choose from to help you celebrate this Christmas.