...to ask what your usual meal plan/content is on Christmas Day?

[StillSquirrelling]

Following on from the very divisive thread from earlier, asking whether one has a starter before Christmas dinner or not, I am now feeling a bit nosy curious as to what people actually eat on the big day. Here's what ours usually looks like:

Pre-breakfast: Kids usually have some chocolate from their stockings that we politely decline in sharing

Breakfast: Oven goes on for the turkey and we warm croissants and pain au chocolat in it whilst we are waiting for it to get to temperature. These are served with lashings of tea, freshly squeezed breakfast juice (orange and grapefruit) and butter/jam

Mid morning: Probably some more chocolate or some Twiglets savoury nibbles if we fancy some

At some point in the morning we will take all the Christmas dinner peelings to give to our sheep, along with a Christmas swede for each of them!

2pm (ish): Main event - no starter - which comprises turkey, roast spuds, sometimes new potatoes too, roast parsnips , sprouts, mashed carrot and swede, broccoli, peas, pigs in blankets, our special stuffing (cooked in its own dish not in the turkey - pack of stuffing with extra fried onions and a pack of sausage meat, all mixed together and baked) and possibly some Yorkshire puddings if we are feeling particularly hungry. All served with fizz of some sort (Shloer for the kids) and lashings of gravy etc

Pudding may or may not be served after dinner (DH is the only one who likes xmas pud)

Some point in the early evening: a buffet style supper of cold turkey and possibly a baked ham, pickles, cheese and biscuits, fruit and possibly more chocolate.

There are 2 adults and DS.

Our Christmas meals start on Crimbo Eve. It's always a steak baguette for dinner. Lovely cut of steak, nice fresh baguette with lots of butter and sauce. DS was too young last year but will have a mini version this year.

Then it's a free for all, we open any of our goodies we fancy (we have loads of festive snacks and treats) plus the Baileys always gets opened

Crimbo morning it's bacon or sausages sarnies with lots of tea and fresh juice, scrambled egg on toast for DS. We try to hold off anything sweet too early though!!!

We go to my folks for dinner and it's the full shebang [no starter though] turkey and pork, tons of roast potatoes, new spuds as well, mountains of veg, Yorkshire puddings, pigs in blankets, all the sauces, gravy, stuffing.

Dessert is later and it's usually a selection of various things - Christmas Pudding, profiteroles, apple crumple and custard, Yule Log.

All washed down with tons of wine and champagne!

Later its turkey sandwiches, fresh ham on the bone, different pickles, cheese & biscuits and we get packed off with all the leftovers.

Boxing day I always do a buffet (think M&S and Waitrose party food). I start cooking it early afternoon and we nibble on it all day.

At some point before New Year I do my own mini Christmas dinner too.

This year I'll be 8 months pregnant so it will all be minus the booze.

Here will be 11-12 people here at Xmas.
Xmas breakfast will be OJ, croissants and pain au choc/raisin, mini cereals, toast, fruit salad and yoghurt, maybe Xmas shaped crumpets from asda

Starter of prawns cocktail or soup

Roast turkey, roast ham, pigs stuffing, cranberry sauce, bread sauce, gravy, Yorkshires
Roast potatoes, roast parsnips, cabbage, Brussels, mashed swede, carrots, cauli and broccoli cheese, peas,

Choice of puddings as will use them for boxing days too
Xmas pud, trifle, chocolate cheesecake, Xmas pud ice cram bomb

Cheese and crackers

Christmas day's timetable is going to be dictated, to some extent this year, by ds3's work - he has a part time job as a kitchen porter in a local pub/restaurant, and has to work either the lunch shift or the evening shift on Christmas day - and won't know until a week or so beforehand.

I'm hoping he is working the evening shift - then we can do stockings when we wake up, a lazy, light breakfast, then I will do Christmas dinner at about 2pm. We'll do presents after dinner, then tea will be sandwiches or cheese and biscuits, and Christmas cake.

If he's working the lunch shift, we'll do stockings in the morning as usual, have a light breakfast, then I'll aim dinner at about 7pm, and we'll have sandwiches and cake at lunch time, and do presents when he gets back from work.

Christmas dinner this year will be roast goose with stuffing, spiced apple sauce, bread sauce (because it isn't christmas without bread sauce), gravy, roast potatoes, sprouts and chestnuts, and red cabbage and apple braised in red wine. Maybe carrots if I can be bothered. Then Christmas pudding - I used to make my own, but as we are usually too full for pudding, I have stopped bothering, and buy one instead. I might make a pavlova this year - because my BIL might be coming, and the pudding I have bought is a bit teeny - but I might just buy another pudding. I have got the Tesco cherry topped finest one, and might buy the one with a clementine in.

Our usual brief is;

Breakfast - nothing, but champagne and toast for DS
Lunch - starter of smoked salmon, quail's eggs, and melba toast. This year I plan on making a cucumber mousse as well, if I can find a recipe.
Main- roasted turkey stuffed with chestnuts and pork, roast potatos, peas, cranberry jelly, honey sesame carrots, parsnips, bread sauce.
Dessert- cheese and fruit.

It is DH and I, DS, Ils and occasionally a random.

Breakfast tends to be what we usually have, i.e. toast. I always used to do Croissants/Pain au chocolate and Bucks Fizz, but because we usually go to the PILs for dinner and they eat quite early (1pm) we try not to eat too much breakfast! I will get some proper bread from the bakers on Christmas Eve for the bread to toast though, and we have butter and jam/marmalade from the Farmers Market with it. Plus proper coffee.

Glass of sherry when we arrive at PILs around 11am.

Dinner - MIL always does melon as a starter. Then turkey, stuffing, pigs in blankets, roast potatoes, mashed potatoes, roast parsnips, carrots and sprouts with gravy, bread sauce and cranberry sauce. Wine. Followed by Christmas pud (which I make and bring) with white sauce (bleugh) or brandy butter.

Tea, still at PILs, at around 5.30 - Turkey, stuffing, bread and butter, pickles, tomatoes. Pot of tea. Then trifle, made with pink blancmange(?!)

Then home as soon as I can manage without being rude

OP I love the word 'lashings', makes everything sound very classy and sophisticated

Anyone else make their sprouts 'a la brigoule' ?? I honestly can't think of any other way to have them that wouldn't be boring, ever grateful for my dad for bringing this dish into my life

Breakfast is a free-for-all: pain-au-chocolat or whatever DD feels like with cups of tea/coffee
Mid-late morning: champagne and smoked salmon
Early afternoon, lunch: turkey; stuffing (in the tray, not the bird); roast and mashed potatoes; parsnips, carrots and purple broccoli; Yorkshire puds and lots of gravy. Accompanied by delicious white - last year was a NZ sauvignon called Ned :)
Pudding: Christmas pudding with brandy custard (me) or chocolate fondant (DD and DH). Dessert wine for DH.
Rest of the afternoon: veg out, more tea +/- wine
Evening: Board games, more wine and nibble on leftovers. Usually turkey sandwiches :)

Breakfast: if we are all together my mum will make us all bacon rolls.

Snacks
nigella's cocktail sausages,chocolate, short bread, mini chedders etc.

Lunch
Starter
Soup
Usually a 2nd choice too that will decided near the time. Something like pâté and fresh homemade bread.

Main
Turkey (If I'm doing it I'll give it a Nigella bath) and usually roast beef or pork.
Mums homemade stuffing, pigs in blankets, Yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes. A choice of around 8 veggies.

Desert
A small chistmas pudding. Few like it so I also buy a really nice one for us.
Luxury ice cream with a black Forrest Gateaux.
Not unusual to have another choice of dessert.

Super
Usually sandwiches with left over meat and homemade coleslaw.

The adults in my family can be fussy no one cares or takes offense if someone doesn't like something or even only chooses to have soup.

My dad was a chef, my mum has worked in kitchens too and both my sister and I enjoy cooking so we all contribute so its not that much of hassle.
If we are at the in-laws I usually do everything and have a well timed schedule.

The last two Christmases have been pretty awful for DH and I but I'm really looking forward to this years and determined no matter what I'm going to enjoy it. Unless I'm in hospital which is a possibility but I'm sure my family will save me some for visiting time.

We don't have our main meal til the evening. So the day roughly goes, open stockings, go Mass in the morning, & have a smoked salmon & scrambled egg brunch when we get back from that around 12ish.
I cook while the others have a walk/sleep/play with new presents, we start on the champagne around 5pm & open main presents, and we eat about 7 pm - turkey & all the trimmings. No starter, I just won't have room in the kitchen or the fridge for it! We finish up with cheese, christmas cake & tea/coffee/armagnac for the die hards.

This year I have the In Laws staying at ours Christmas Day and they are Not Happy as lunch should be at 12 which just doesn't work for me as I go to church.

We are rebellious and don't have a Christmas dinner.

Christmas day:
Early morning biscuits and tea, sweets for kids! Open presents.
Mid morning: humungous cooked breakfast with bacon, eggs etc.
Early afternoon: long walk to pub for pint/ crisps/ juice. Kids use their new scooters/ bikes. Grown ups wear new hats and scarves!
Late afternoon: big buffet style tea of jackets, cold meats, salad, pizza etc etc. We just get everything out of the fridge and chuck and it on the table and few spuds in the oven!
Late evening: cram in mince pie or 2 with a nice glass of wine.

This way, everyone enjoys xmas day without slaving over the stove. We all get to relax together playing with new toys and watching Christmas tv.

Boxing day:
I do our huge roast beef christmas dinner, plenty of wine, pull crakers, party poppers, xmas pud. Everyobe enjoys it without being stuffed full of sweets etc.
Not everyone's ideal Christmas but works for us while the kids are small.

We have prezzies followed by OH going to get mcDonalds for breakfast

McDonalds is open Christmas day?!!!!

Its usually just my children and I and they like our traditional Christmas day foods. This year there will also be my partner and his 2 girls,we only moved in last month. think it will mostly stay the same.
Breakfast usually cinnamon rolls or Christmas muffins
Lunch always turkey, homemade chestnut stuffing, honey roast parsnips and carrots, sprouts, roast and mash potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce. I don't drink much so usually some non alcoholic fizz.
Teatime usually the Christmas pudding with brandy sauce or trifle for younger children and snacks if wanted.

Breakfast: chocolate coins
Then either boiled eggs and soldiers or a proper Scottish fry up... bacon, eggs, mushrooms, tattie scones etc

Lunch about three: homemade lentil soup
Turkey or chicken with all the trimmings
Proper Italian ice cream with raspberry sauce.

Supper: wee sausage rolls and madeira cake.

It'll just be me and OH and three dogs this year. I like to have things at Christmas that I wouldn't normally eat and neither of us like white turkey meat. Breakfast will be Buck's Fizz, scrambled egg and smoked salmon on granary bread. There will be a small glass of beer on the table in memory of my late husband and his late father. My late husband used to toast his dad with beer every year so I thought I'd carry on.

Lunch will be around 2pm after a long walk with the dogs in the local forest. This year I am going for scallops and lobster followed by pheasant and quail. I like plum pudding as I find it less heavy than Christmas pudding so that and cheese will be on offer. I have red wine and port and homemade blackberry vodka and spiced brandy.

We will graze on chocolates, crisps and cake all afternoon and may have sandwiches later on. If they are lucky the dogs may get another walk late afternoon.

Christmas Eve, we have a party for friends and family and have canapes, and nibble s and the like.

Santa presents wth coffee.

Breakfast - Porridge with brown sugar, Irish whisky and cream (though not all dc will have that.

About midday SIL and family come over for a drink and nibbles

Then we have our starter, wth wine, prawn cocktail for some and spring rolls for the rest.

Couple of hours later we have dinner,having given the starter a chance to settle. Turkey, ham. Dh's stuffing, sprouts, cauliflower cheese, carrots and parsnips mashed, mash potatoes,gravy and cranberry sauce, and a chicken kiev for ds who hates roast dnners.

Dessert is sherry trifle made by dd mainly for her and Dh, I do a chocolate mousse with meringues for the rest of us, and we get a small pudding for my sister as the rest of us don't really like it.

The kids then do the dishes while Dh falls asleep and I tidy, then it's present from family time, and there are 8 of us including my sis so this takes a while.

Boxing day, my favorite day of the year, is leftovers, with all the taste, and absolutely none of the hassle, with a large glass of wine.....heaven.

breakfast is usually bacon butties

lunch this year honey baked gammon, roast potatoes, roasted carrots and parsnips, mashed potatoes, cabbage, gravy and yorkies

dessert whichever dessert from asda looks nice had the orange bomb last year with cream, one of my children is allergic to eggs so she gets a winter fruit crumble and custard and christmas pud on offer
supper is usually some cheese and crackers with christmas cake for afters

drink is usually beers for the males and baileys or peach snapps and lemonade for the girls

First thing in the morning (usually around 6am ish) dh and I have a cup of tea while the kids open their presents.

Around 7.30am I make sausage/bacon and egg barms for me, dh and Ds and I have some Buck's Fizz. Both dd's just have cereal then the kids dig into their chocolates.

Ds and dd1 get dressed around 8.30am and their dad picks them up at 9am. Dd2 (and this year we now have dd3 too) will get dressed once they've gone then play with their toys.

Around 12pm Ds and dd1 come home and we have Christmas dinner around 2.30pm which is Turkey, pigs in blankets, boiled and roast potatoes, carrot and swede mash, broccoli, stuffing and gravy (nobody likes sprouts so I don't bother). Dessert is chocolate log and ice cream as nobody likes Xmas pudding. We have wine with the meal and the kids can have a small glass mixed with lemonade if they want some.

Then the rest of the day I sip wine happily and eat chocolate while the kids play with their new toys and our family visit throughout the day being given a glass of wine/beer and some nibbles (nuts, crisps, cheese, crackers etc).

Around 7pm we then have turkey and pickle sandwiches and flake out in front of the TV. The kids are allowed to stay up as late as they like so fall asleep on the sofa usually and we carry them up (although obviously not Ds as he's 13 so just goes to bed when we do). We all have a nice lie in on Boxing Day too. Lovely!

I have been reminded, by this thread and another one, that I had forgotten to put parsnips on the Christmas day menu!

I'll be doing sausages wrapped in bacon - well, I will be bunging a trayful of Tesco finest ones in the oven. I did that for the first time last year, and it was the most popular part of the meal - they enjoyed the goose that I had slaved over and stuffed and roasted and basted, and all the other things I had lovingly prepared and cooked to go with the goose - but the bloody supermarket sausages in bacon were the real hit.

SDT - same here. Industrial quantities of chipolatas in bacon are consumed.

You'd think the turkey (which is so big it's like something from Honey, I Blew Up the Baby) and stuffing would be enough meat, but no.

The best eating of all is done on Boxing Day though. We always have open house and a great big, grazey sort of afternoon buffet. Home made veggie soup, cold turkey, ham, lovely cheeses, baked potatoes, salads, more cake. All eaten around a blazing open fire with occasional forays out to walk the dog.

I love this thread! Making me feel all Christmassy!

At home Dh usually makes breakfast for us- last year it was eggs Benedict but the sauce was a bit of a disaster! Ds's will have usual. This is after ds1 opened his stocking in our bed. (Ds2 only 13 months so probably won't have one. Will I get away with that?) and opened presents under the tree.

We will get dressed and drive to my Nan's who lives 30mins away. The rest of my family live there too and we all congregate there for drinks- tea/coffee wine beer etc for a couple of hours. My nan always puts on a little spread of nibbles. We have done this since I was a baby so a firm tradition that I love!

We drive back to where we live and go to pil for around miday and have light nibbles alcohol is served all day! It's fab

Christmas lunch is around 3pm. We used to have starters before ds1 was born but now find he can't sit at the table all that time for us to eat 3 courses as he get bored so now we go straight to the main of turkey, ham and all the trimmings! Mil is an excellent cook so it's my favourite meal if the year!
Pudding is different each year. Last year I made baileys trifles. This year mil is buying something from m&s and Christmas pud for whoever wants it.

After dinner we open presents with chocolats nibbles if wanted. Then we play with ds's and generally relax. Then after kids in bed trivial pursuit comes out along with alcoholic beverage of your choice along with the left over meats for a sarnie, cheese bread and any other goodies mil gets in!

My mum works over Xmas most years so we will generally see her at my Nan's or have a gathering at another point with my siblings etc.

I love Christmas!!

Christmas Eve: pork pie with pickled onions, salad, cheese, naice bread or crackers

Christmas morning: bacon sandwiches with Bucks Fizz

Christmas dinner (lunch): turkey, pigs in blankets, roasties, veg etc. Christmas cake or chocolate cake for who wants them.

Christmas tea: cold turkey, crackers, cheese etc.

Buckets of chocolate and wine throughout the day

We're up early, so usually something like gingerbread muffins to keep us going through the present opening.

Then a nice breakfast - not sure this year, possibly scrambled eggs with venison sausages and bucks fizz.

Around 12-1pm we'll have our starter (soup) for 'lunch' as DS really can't manage a big meal mid afternoon.

Potter around in the kitchen cooking Christmas dinner (lots prepped in advance and plenty of cheats), help build toys, play a board game etc. Some chocolate is likely to be involved somewhere.

Sit down for Christmas dinner (turkey and trimmings followed by pudding) around 5pm.

Some Christmas telly.

Nice cheese and fizz for DH and I once DS is in bed.

Breakfast -Scrambled egg on toast or toasted bagels and cream cheese. Lots of tea.

Out to walk the dogs.

Chocolates and coffee while opening the presents.

Lunch - Turkey crown, roast potatoes, stuffing balls, chipolatas, peas, sprouts, roast parsnips, cauliflower cheese, carrots, cranberry sauce and gravy.

Haven't decided on pudding yet.

Our ritual:

Breakfast - always toasted brioche with apricot jam, tinned grapefruit.

12 noon - champagne and canapés, usually blinis olives and toasted almonds

2pm - Chrismas Lunch, Veggie - braised tofu and veggi sos, meat eaters have turkey, sprouts, roast potato, bread sauce ( my mother only) carrots peas and roasted parsnips, stuffing, lots of gravy, cranberry sauce.
Christmas pudding for all except awkward son, who has whatever else I can find.

Evening - Buffet, if anyone wants it, Christmas cake. Buffet has to include pineapple and toritilla chips, as it has done for 40 years now.

All accompanied by lots of chocolate, wine ad loads of nuts.