Hit me with your Christmas starters!

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After years of bouncing between the parents of my partner and my own we finally have a place big enough to host everyone.

Mains are traditional and dessert is a sticky toffee pudding but I'm stumped for delicious, manageable starters. I'll be serving 8 adults (kids are having soup).

Please please please hit me with your Christmas starters, all suggestions are welcome

We tend to start very early with starters and eat mains at around 5 so we have room for plenty of starters.. some ideas from my list for this year

Cheeseboard
Vol-au-vents with various fillings
prawn roses or prawn tempura
Mini goats cheese and red onion or spinach tart
salmon blinis
Camembert with crusty bread

I just don't. Once I've dished up Bloody mary or bucks fizz, with bacon sandwiches & smoked salmon bagels, for breakfast - which is boring, but nice - no one needs 3 courses for dinner, especially as there's nuts & crisps & olives all over the place.

Plus - as an ex restaurant owner - starters tend to be quite disproportionally time intensive, as you gently pose one whiskery prawn on the rim of a champagne coupe full of chopped lettuce & defrosted shrimps in marie rose. No one really enjoys them in proportion to the faff!

If I was starting from scratch, I'd get the veggies served out first, in tureens - then people might actually enjoy the sprouts or whatever you've done with the carrots this year.

Then - no rush - the main item arrives.

So - starters - I would start by considering if it's necessary. Does anyone seriously want a handful of prawns or melon balls served on lettuce before they tuck in to an enormous roast?

Smoked salmon with salad, and either ham and melon or mozzarella and tomato salad for the fish haters. Not very exciting but easy.

We spread out the food over most of the day.

No breakfast chocolate
Starters at 12
Mains at 3 ish
Pudding 6 ish
Cheese board at 9 ish

Never done a Xmas starter. Just Turkey roast with all the trimmings. And chocolate gatuex dessert

We don't tend to do starters but if we did it would be a pear and cheese salad with lots of rocket, some walnuts and a sticky balsamic dressing. I'd have a crumbly Cheshire and DP would have Stilton. The kids would have a large slice of fuck all, but they struggle with one course TBF unless it's pudding.)

If you do canapés either have a dedicated canapé helper or pick things that can be assembled in advance. I find that some canapés can go soggy if not freshly assembled and are really time consuming. I like things on those little canapé skewers fig, blue cheese are Parma ham, chilli marinated king prawn with mango , chicken tikka pieces with cucumber and mint that kind of thing. Oh and the obligatory smoked salmon blinis. I mainly stick to things that be served cold so as not to take up valuable oven space but make an exception for a tray of bite size Thai fish cakes that I make in advance and then just heat through on the day.

We have canapés and champagne at midday and then eat meal about 3

canapés usually include:
smoked salmon blinis
homemade chicken liver pate on tiny toasts with a gherkin or cherry tomato
nuts

but maximum respect for “Espresso martini” 😎

two years ago I made THE most amazing cocktail involving blackberries and some apple balsamic vinegar. Took ages to make but was gorgeous

We usually have Coquilles St Jaques as a starter, but this year I've ordered this seafood platter from Waitrose instead for a bit more variety (it still has mini Coquilles though! It is the bit DD1 looks forward to most):
www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/28-piece-seafood-party-pack/510736-783875-783875
I always buy in the starter to lessen the workload.

The talk of canapés has got me thinking perhaps we should sack off our usual breakfast and just have more canapés instead, but starting mid morning. Breakfast is always a little bit too filling, and could be done Xmas eve morning instead to spread the festive favourites over a longer period... 🤔

I was pregnant last Xmas so this year I am eating a whole Terrine to myself. Washed down by a bottle of bubbly 😋

Prawn cocktail and/or smoked salmon. Simple, easy and everyone likes it! Our 4 year old LOVES smoked salmon so always a hit.

Ooh yes, a bit of avocado as well! May be old fashioned, but it's delicious!

I really love Camembert, but not for Christmas as it is too heavy to start and I like to finish with a cheeseboard. So we have it on Christmas eve with some bread and a few canapes. Also sometimes on Boxing day!

Baked camembert wheel sprigged with rosemary and thyme and served with some nice homemade bread and chutneys.

For years, I’ve made this Jamie Oliver smoked fish pate.

www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/fish-recipes/baby-yorkshire-puds-creamy-smoked-trout-horseradish-pate/

Except I make it with hot smoked salmon usually instead of trout as easier to get at Tesco. Serve on little toasts.Delicious and easy!

If I did not have prawn cocktail, there would be complaints. It is not v labour intensive at all. No posing prawns here. I stick a few spoonfuls of the mix into a little gem boat and put it on a plate with a slice of lemon, sprinkle with a bit of cayenne and job done. I also have to have pâté for some though, but that is even less faff as you can make it well in advance.

We do a prawn and smoked salmon centrepiece for everyone to help themselves to. Bit of a family tradition now which we all love!

Pate on toast and melon balls.

Hubby: an unoriginal seafood cocktail. Prawns, mussels, smoked salmon with lettuce, Marie Rose sauce and lemon.
Aunt: fruit juice
Dad: nothing - doesn't like too many courses!
Me: baked cheese (goats or Camembert) with rosemary, garlic bread balls to dip in. Or antipasti. Or beetroot with feta and walnuts drizzled with rapeseed oil. Or melon with Italian meats and cheeses.
Child: combination of all of the above!

Champagne, croissants and chocolate.

Otherwise no starter.

We prefer to have canapés at midday with champagne and then skip starter and eat at about 3pm.

Have done plenty of starters over the years and then have never touched puddings so find this suits us better.