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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

frozen roast potatoes are for emergencies not for Christmas day

468 replies

PrincessScrumpy · 30/12/2010 21:41

I made a double chocolate baked cheese cake for Christmas with the in-laws - they didn't eat it and chose tesco value chocolate cake over my homemade dessert. I had to laugh - my dessert was yummy and dh and dd both ate mine. dh was horrified that his family were so rude and also by their taste buds.

I was alarmed when I went to the fridge on Christmas eve for dd's milk to see no sign of a Christmas dinner. My assumptions were correct - all from the freezer - even the veg including roast potatoes and yorkshire puddings to go with the Iceland roast pork and lamb.

Luckily, my aunt made a fab Christmas dinner on Monday so at least I've had real Christmas dinner.

Don't mean to sound snobby, but I come from a family that enjoys homemade food.

OP posts:
TeaOneSugar · 30/12/2010 22:47

MIL did M&S pre-prepared roast potatoes and roast parsnips on christmas day, both were awful.

rinabean · 30/12/2010 22:47

I bake my own bread. Not only that, but I mill my own damn flour. And my MIL and I did Christmas this year and we used frozen roast potatoes! And frozen parsnips! Christmas is for relaxing in front of shit telly with your family, eating too much chocolate, drinking too much wine - not for peeling and parboiling potatoes. There's not much Christmassy about that. (Even if you do it wearing tinsel, which is how I do most things in late December.)

LyingWitchInTheWardrobe2726 · 30/12/2010 22:54

Who knows? Perhaps they don't like your cooking, think your hygiene is suspect or just want to make a pointed snub.

If they thought anything of you, they'd try a little bit of your dessert to spare your feelings. Any reason you can think of why they wouldn't?

Your post reads as if you think you're a cut above.

bringmesomeFIGGYpudding · 30/12/2010 22:59

Nothing wrong with preprepared - had it for xmas day the year dd was born (2 weeks old and had parents and il for xmas day!) but it wasn't frozen.

I don't get the whole frozen potato thing, it isn't that hard to peel and roast a tattie,however pre-prepared other veg or rather pre-cut (oh we know another thread!)veg is perfect for xmas day and relaxing a little!

ItsGraceAgain · 30/12/2010 23:05

I grow my own potatoes organically, roast them in fat from our own geese, dress my (home-grown, organic) parsnips with honey from my own bees AND make the candles with their wax - in fact, our entire Christmas comprises home-grown, organic, home-cooked produce from my acre. I make my own butter & cheese; bread from spelt milled at home and fresh veg from my winter garden. We've had the same tree for twelve years, getting a little taller each year, which the DCs decorate with dried flowers they collected over the summer.

This is all a lie, by the way Xmas Grin I just wanted to join in!

Bessie is my favourite Aunt, and I've never got myself in a tizz over a roast dinner. Life is short.

chipmonkey · 30/12/2010 23:05

Lying, sometimes it's not a case of thinking you're a cut above but if your ILs think you think you're a cut above, even if you're not, you can be in trouble!Grin

I do make mince pies to die for, if I say so myself and SIL ate about 5 one year so I know I'm not just making it up! But if I bring home-made mince pies in a tin to MIL, she either acts insulted that I dared to think my mince pies were better than her Tesco ones or quizzes me on "which mincemeat I bought" as if you suggest I am lying about making them myselfHmm

She uses frozen everything and makes gravy out of packets of soup. But in fairness to her, she says she used to make everything from scratch and "it wasn't appreciated" And knowing what FIL and BIL are like I can well believe that and if I were her, I may very well have resorted to the Auntie Bessies years ago, despite my better judgement.

LyingWitchInTheWardrobe2726 · 30/12/2010 23:11

Chip... I know - ILs can be the very devil; catering for them can feel like an audition/driving test rolled into one. Hmm

My MIL came to us last Christmas, had a nosebleed during dinner and proceeded to drip into her plate.

rupert1 · 30/12/2010 23:48

I like good home made food if i can be bothered to make it but it would be very rare for me to buy anything ie from a village fair or coffee morning other peoples hygiene standards can be constantly tasting what their cooking licking their fingers animals in kitchen cats on work tops even finding it quite normal to stroke a dog while their cooking,you dont know what a close shave you had with food poisoning if they had prepared food on that soiled chopping board.so give me frozen food any day.I would much rather have an airplane meal (which are great)than turn up to someones house just cause its "home cooked"

ratspeakeratHogmanay · 30/12/2010 23:49

So frozen roast tatties should only be used in cases of zombie apocalypse?

< shakes head and wanders out of conversation >

JennyRobyn · 30/12/2010 23:56

You should be thankful you had roasties with your dinner!!
We went without this year, I knew something was missing and couldn't figure out what it was.
I realised at 10.30 christmas night that they were still in the oven!! Blush

You simply cannot have a christmas dinner without roasties!!

Yes they were aunt bessies but nothing can beat the bisto ones if you ever manage to find a shop that has them....they are like goldust round here.

TriggersBroom · 31/12/2010 00:01

I think if you'd phrased your OP a little differently you would have had more YANBU responses.

I agree that it's worth making an effort and personally don't even entertain Aunt Bessie's roasties even in an emergency. (Yorkshire puddings are another matter because I'm crap at those). Why don't you cook for them next year and dazzle them with your homemade cooking (and wait for their AIBU to hate my DIL's poncey cooking thread).

A1980 · 31/12/2010 00:04

OP how do you home make a potato?

If you're going to be so precious about everything then I trust you insist on home growing all of your vegetables and fruit in your back garden right?!

Unless you're actaully going to grow them yourself, you have to buy potatoes in the shops and take them home to cook. So what does it matter if those potaotes are bought fresh or frozen.

I would dish up frozen food to guests personally but i wouldn't judge my guests on this basis.

YABU

A1980 · 31/12/2010 00:04

Sorry that ahoud have said I wouldn't dish up frozen food.

I can't type tonight.

rupert1 · 31/12/2010 00:05

well said a1980

hmc · 31/12/2010 00:10

I had the most delicious Christmas Dinner - I didn't make any of it. T'was all Waitrose Entertaining - including the sprouts with chestnuts, parsnips, roast potatoes everything. I am a very competent cook and could discern no difference between this food (which I merely bunged in the oven) and Christmas dinners I have laboured over from scratch in the past. Buggering about with Christmas dinner is a mugs game - would interfere with my tv viewing and sherry drinking!

However, if you are going the 'convenience' route I would imagine there is a qualitative difference between Waitrose Entertaining and Iceland

cat64 · 31/12/2010 00:15

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

TriggersBroom · 31/12/2010 00:16

Actually hmc I'd rather have your Waitrose ready made meal than my mum's dry old frozen turkey from Asda with bisto gravy. (Although I have to admit her spuds and stuffing would take some beating).

hmc · 31/12/2010 00:21

It was blimmin good TriggersBroom - perhaps you can get your mum the waitrose entertaining catalogue next November...sort of shove it under her nose Grin

LyingWitchInTheWardrobe2726 · 31/12/2010 00:22

Now I can't make Yorkshire Puddings, I've tried and tried and they're horrid. Aunt Bessie makes them better than I do so rather than foist my shatterproof monstrosities on the family, they're happy with bought in ones. :)

TriggersBroom · 31/12/2010 00:24

Oh I tried so hard to hint: "y'know mum, why don't you let us buy the turkey this year to help you out, maybe a fresh one from the butcher we use..." She was completely baffled, and the next thing I knew, she had run down to Asda and filled up her freezer.

hmc · 31/12/2010 00:24

Bless her Grin

1234ThumbScrew · 31/12/2010 00:25

Is your dh known at home as Lurch?

escape · 31/12/2010 00:26

Incredibly precious, sorry .
I too am a competant cook and would never serve guests a frozen dinner, but you made one cake?
Big wow.
They were rude not to even try it, though.

KirstyAllsoap · 31/12/2010 00:31

Holy Shit

this thread has just reminded me I left a Tesco Finest fresh cream chocolate log in our outbuilding for Christmas Day Tea and I forgot all about it.

I bet it'll be out of date now

(weeps into pillow)

FWIW OP it wouldn't be my ideal Christmas dinner, but maybe your inlaws aren't confident cooks and Christmas dinner is enough to break the most confident of cooks

Soups · 31/12/2010 00:33

I like to cook but don't mind using a few cheats. We had roast beef for xmas dinner this year and did use frozen yorkshire puds. I would have some level of disapointment if my entire xmas dinner, including the meat, came from the freezer of Icelands tho.

Taking into account personal finance, cooking abilities, other problems ...

If the company and atmosphere fun Grin the disapointment would be at a low level and easily covered with wine. If everything was strained and tedious then the lack of some nice food could well be one of the things that stuck in my mind to moan about. Then there's all sorts inbetween Wink.