Sunday Lunch - What’s Missing?

[HostieForARoastie]

I’ve for 6 coming for Sunday lunch. No vegetarians. Doing roast chicken as I know I cook a blinding one. Broccoli is delicious but has no place on a roast IMHO, however one of my guests has a weakness for it with chicken so, absolutely, I’m serving it. Same with Yorkshires - I’m not a fan but I know others are, so Yorkies it is. Two types of potatoes because we are Irish and it’s the Irish Law.

To be clear, all of the below is being served and will be (to use the MN term) ‘cooked from scratch’. What I’m looking for is: Anything Missing?

Roast chicken (with lemon rind, thyme, pancetta mixed with butter and stuffed under the skin)
Pigs in blankets
Stuffing (chestnut based)
Cauliflower cheese
Red cabbage
Roasted carrots (& boiled carrots in case they become blacker than my soul)
Roasted parsnips
Roast potatoes
Mashed potatoes
Yorkshires
Runner beans
Broccoli
Peas (and maybe sprouts)
Gravy
Bread sauce (maaaaaaybe)

Pudding will be a Blackberry Pavlova with all the creams / ice creams etc.

I want my guests to be more than replete at the end; I want them reminiscent of a landed, red cheeked and rounded bodied Georgian countryman tasting the bounty of his green and pleasant fields, whose breaches burst as as he reaches for the port. Human and modern day Toby Jugs if you like. To speak of this meal in tones of awe and glory (I’ll be giving them enough booze to ensure this) and to have enough left over to feed us for an evening of picking days.

What have I forgotten?

@LardoBurrows two puddings a good shout. Sticky Toffee pretty easy to do. And thank you for lovely words!

@AlltheFs I’ll try and remember to! I’m planning an autumn themed table. Got a squirrel candle waiting to be melted!

A defibrillator?

Only joking - sounds amazing!

The stuffing will be pork and chestnuts.

I think even more roast potatoes, and also some crispy bacon because my mum would do that.

To the PP counselling against two cabbages - red cabbage is nice cold as a salad so doesn't need to be soup. Would also be ace in a chicken and stuffing sandwich.

@ohtowinthelottery I’m making gravy in advance AND gravy on the day!

@BarnacleBeasley spot on with red cabbage as a sandwich filling. It’s delicious (and already part of my cunning plan!)

Can I make a case for chipolatas, and bacon draped over the chicken (just for the last part of cooking), rather than pigs in blankets? With pigs, the inside of the bacon and the outside of the sausage is always pale and claggy, whereas cooking them separately creates pleasingly crisp bacon and a proper sausage, both excellently complementary to chicken. Think of it as deconstructing the pig in blanket, very Heston.

Also crumble and custard.

I’m still agog at the idea you might have “forgotten” frozen sweetcorn, good Lord.

Roasted sweet potato, I also like roasted onions

Also please don't cut your roast parsnips in the same shape as your roast potatoes - this can lead to disappointment.

I find mash with roast odd and I am not keen on bread sauce but the rest is how I'd do it (although your chicken sounds better than mine!). Cranberry jelly.

Are you doing any home deliveries or collection ?

@spitefulandbadgrammar how very dare you?! <wink> my Pigs in Blankets are never claggy! Truth be told, I am buying these ready made but from a butcher at a farm. I’ve probably met the piggy.

@gotomomo sweet potato?! On a ROAST? Afraid that sits with sweetcorn as far as I am concerned.

@BarnacleBeasley no no no! Sliced (into long wedges with the core removed), not diced.

Wow!!! I don't do all of that for Christmas day dinner 😱😀🤔 I thought Geordie hospitality was good but clearly Irish hospitality is on another level entirely. You have forgotten nothing op. If anyone forgets to come (highly unlikely!!!) I will be ready and waiting for a call up to fill the gap, complete with a good bottle of wine, posh chocolates and flowers. 🤞🤞🤞 Enjoy your day. 😀

@Sorrynotsorry2 bring a chair and a bottle and you’re welcome to join!

Could just eat some. I love bacon with Brussels sprouts too

Sounds FAB! Commit to the bread sauce for sure! Another vote for the savoy cabbage - great shout. I love creamy leeks on any roast or even adding leeks to the cauliflower cheese.

@shiningstar2 how lovely you are! I’m actually half Georgie / half Irish - must have created some molecular ‘can’t leave my house hungry’ dynamic in me!

I would:
Use tenderstem broccoli
Lose the peas
Consider leek gratin instead of cauli cheese, as leeks go nicely with chicken - could fancy it up by making a rarebit sauce for it

Sounds fab! That is pretty much my thanksgiving menu except no red cabbage, and addition of gratin (I make individual ones in muffin tins that cook really quickly), and roast acorn squash with parmesan and herbs if there are real Americans coming. I usually roast a chicken a week in advance and make extra gravy and freeze it just in case.

One year I did roast stuffed onions - big hit.

@HostieForARoastie please take pics for us poor little matchstick type people to metaphorically peep through your Georgian glass windows...
sounds incredible- have fun

@LardoBurrows re-reading and must agree that Delia’s chocolate bread and butter pudding is incredible. I usually do it for Easter Sunday lunch.

@beachcitygirl I’ll leave a porter in a pewter tankard for you! It’ll be under the lamp above the coach arch!

I've just clocked you're Irish, you're a feeder aren't you op?! It sounds bloody lovely.

I know it's been said above but it is never possible to have too many roast potatoes. NEVER!!

I’m not really a dessert person but blackberry pavlova sounds pretty epic, I’d smash that in!