The sweet gift Kate Middleton gave the Queen during her first royal Christmas
Given that she's been married to Prince William for ten years now, it's safe to say that Kate Middleton is well and truly part of the Royal Family – but as fans of The Crown will know, it's apparently not always that easy to be accepted into the clan. In fact, it's rumoured that the Queen and co rather like to put newcomers through their paces, sometimes via what's been dubbed as the 'Balmoral test'.
Unfamiliar? Balmoral is the Scottish castle, situated in Royal Deeside in Aberdeenshire, that the Royals love spending time in. Hunting, long walks and of course, general merriment and pranks are on the cards – as well as, it's rumoured, initiation tests for new partners and even visiting politicians (we all remember that episode where a fictional Queen dragged a fictional Margaret Thatcher quite literally through the mud, right?).
Tough as that may sound, it turns out the Duchess of Cambridge absolutely breezed her first Christmas with the family (which was actually spent at Sandringham, rather than Balmoral) by coming armed with a thoughtful and homemade gift for Her Majesty: some chutney made from her grandmother's recipe. How sweet is that?
Speaking in a documentary created for the Queen's 90th birthday celebrations a few years ago, Kate recalled the first time she spent the holiday with William's side of the family. "I can remember being at Sandringham, for the first time, at Christmas and I was worried what to give the Queen as her Christmas present," she explained.
The Duchess then added, "I was thinking, 'Gosh, what should I give her?' I thought back to what would I give my own grandparents and I thought, 'I'll make her something', which could have gone horribly wrong, but I decided to make my granny's recipe of chutney."
After then confessing that she was "slightly worried about it", Kate shared that the Queen made a special effort to show that the gift was appreciated by featuring it in the Christmas meal the next day.
In the documentary, Kate added that this is a typical demonstration of Her Majesty's "thoughtfulness, really, and her care in looking after everybody."
So, where can we get a hold of this famous chutney recipe, please? If it's good enough for the Queen then...
You Might Also Like
