Is my Christmas dinner unreasonable?

[shivermytimbers]

I have just done a big chunk of the Xmas food shop today. I'll be cooking for 10 including PILs who haven't had Xmas lunch with us before. I luuurve Christmas dinner and all the leftovers so tend to make a bit of a feast. DH has happily tucked into said feast for many years. I'm doing...
Smoked salmon starter
Turkey
Pigs in blankets
Stuffing
Roasties
Parsnips
Sprouts with bacon
Red cabbage
Gravy
Christmas pudding with brandy butter and cream

Apparently, according to DH, PILs will not be happy because 1) pigs in blankets are a bit common 2) sprouts shouldn't have bacon anywhere near them 3) starters are unnecessary 4) it really is too much food to be able to enjoy it.

My response was that I've bought the food, I will cook the food and if they don't eat it I will happily consume the leftovers. Therefore - tough bloody luck if they don't like it!!!

I know I'm right... aren't I???

Jack

Leftovers. Plus, it's Christmas ;)

Just what I have been thinking...

To Jack.

You only need a small amount of each type of food and we often spread Christmas lunch/dinner over several hours anyway, so effectively two meals in one, with lots of variety of food and not everyone has something of everything.

Serve starters and then rest/chat a bit, then the main dinner, clear up a bit, more chat, maybe presents and/or games, then desserts a couple of hours later.

After more games/chat and maybe a dishwasher run, some people start looking for leftovers, but that's really getting quite late into the evening (maybe 8/9 pm) several hours after a start time of 1 or 2 pm.

Doesn't the good require heating up, though, if you are leaving it to do this or that? I think most people will sit down and treat the event in a much more formal way.
It all seems excessive to me.

...the FOOD

Glad he's apologised. I'd eat all your food or die trying.

Mine isn't very Christmassy:

Starter of foie gras on brioche - someone gave it to us last week.

Roast pork belly - love it and it's the perfect size for the two of us.

Peas, carrots, braised savoy cabbage and roast potatoes (will do tons of these and might add a couple of Aunt Bessie's yorkshires to make a bubble and squeak on Boxing Day to have with sausages and a fried egg).

Tarte tatin for afters made by my husband with about 3lb of Golden Delicious, demerara, lots of butter and ready made puff pastry. Cream to pour.

Cheese, bread and biscuits - cheddar, roquefort, something mild and squidgey. Walnuts and cobnuts

limitedperiodonly YUM!!!

People are quite precious about Christmas dinner, insisting that they way they have always had it is the RIGHT way.
I was amazed first time I had Christmas dinner with DH family to discover that red cabbage was considered normal.

Anyone who is thinking of stir frying sprouts...
Don't. Just don't.

If they don't want it, I'll have it!

Sounds bloody delicious!

Why not?

I suppose it depends what you mean by stir frying...

I plunge mine into boiling water for about 5-7 minutes then plunge into iced water to stop the cooking process and keep them nice and bright green and al dente. Then I put them to one side until needed.

When I am ready to serve, then I drain them, dry them off a bit then toss them in a pan with melted butter and crispy lardons/pancetta and sometimes some chestnuts and give them a couple of minutes more to soften a bit.

Frying and stirring are both involved.

They sound weird. You're the chef, you call the shots

Very kind of you YelloDraw. I like pork. I love a traditional turkey Christmas dinner too, but a whole turkey is too big for two even if you like leftovers.

You have to have plenty of accompaniments for everyone though. I was always suspicious of red cabbage and chestnuts until someone cooked them for me and I realised I'd been missing out.

And I don't understand why anybody who eats pork objects to pigs in blankets. They are lovely.

The existence of sprouts at all is Unreasonable. Bacon and chestnuts fried with them makes them just about edible, but you could probably say the same for grass.

No starter here (small kids wouldn't stay at the table long enough, and ILs may well be late). But olives and cheese straws etc to nibble.

Then turkey roast with bacon on
Pigs in blankets (usually just do chipolatas but ILs like PiBs)
Roast spuds
Roast parsnips
carrots
peas
Sausagemeat stuffing
Bready stuffing
Yorkshire puddings (shedloads for ds, most likely by Aunt Bessie)
Gravy
Bread sauce if MIL wants to make some as she's the only one who likes it

Possibly red cabbage with apple, possibly fried mushrooms, maybe other veg. The plan is to avoid any more cooking until New Year!

The existence of sprouts at all is Unreasonable

How can you say that Citrus?

Sprouts are the Brassica of the Gods.

Everyone's menu's sound lovely.
I agree OP do Christmas dinner YOUR way!

We are not having traditional Christmas dinner for the first time ever instead we are having a buffet:-

Christmas Eve- duck with recurrent sauce

Christmas Day-marmalade gammon ham, rost parsnip and celeriac bake, peas and leeks in butter, pigs in blankets, pigs in puff pastry, sausage and fennel seed rolls, mini chicken fajitas, Thai Turkey in filo pastry, Brie Apple and onion tart, cheesy stars, spicy stuffing, mincemeat and cranberry lattice, Chelsea bun tree, chocolate gateau, salad, rice, bourbon glazed belly pork, Spanish pepper and chorizo kebabs, potatoe cakes with salmon and cream cheese, and lemon and honey chicken.

Boxing Day:- turkey Wellington (breast stuffed with cranberries and incased in mushrooms and bacon)

Christmas Day I'm also cooking the veg- carrots, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, sprouts, potatoes and cabbage so that we can have a nice fry up with our turkey breast :

As yet I don't know if there will be just us 4, 6 if mum and dad come or 7 if also my neighbour comes (I don't know if he's going to family but is welcome if not). Same Boxing Day, so I'm making plenty but of stuff that will also keep and freeze if not being used.
Am I sad that I enjoy reading other people's menu's

SIL is having the in laws this year so it's just DH, DD(5) and I.

We're having;
No starter

Turkey
Pork loin
Roast potatoes
Mashed potatoes (for DD)
Roast parsnip
Carrots
Peas
Broccoli
Pigs in blankets
Sausagemeat stuffing
Sage and onion stuffing
Mini sausages
Rolled bacon
Gravy
Cranberry sauce
Apple sauce

No sprouts because none of us like them. No Yorkshire puddings because I'm traditional and prefer them with beef.

Don't tend to have dessert although DD might ask for a yoghurt

Sounds a lot but we have a little bit of everything and lots of lovely leftovers.

Wow, what a feast Sunnysky

My DM is doing a buffet for when we all go over to theirs just after Christmas and am thinking I really should take a contribution to help her out a bit, possibly a nut roast for the veggies amongst us.

A buffet lunch seems a very good idea, especially for large numbers, and perhaps also for continued feasting after the big day itself. Though I'd be quite happy with a buffet like yours any day Sunny Can you make that 8?!

Yours sounds great too Taylia

Not read the other replies but your lunch sounds like mine, except no starter and i am adding chestnuts to the sprouts too and apple to the red cabb. And brandy cream not butter. Tell dh to not be a Hyacinth Bucket.

I'll come if they don't want to

Was going to say your PILs and your DH can both fuck off to the far side of fuck, but after your update I only think that's necessary for the PILs now.

Sounds amazing!

OMG I am so excited for Christmas dinner now

I'd tell them to go elsewhere if they don't like it! So ungrateful!