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???

You don't think 3 vegetables is enough?

Sounds great to me. The whole point of a gert big roast is to have leftovers for scavenging on the next day (and for me to steal crispy roasties dipped in cold gravy while making coffee later on).

Hoxton - swede is the food of the gods! I could just eat a plateful for my Christmas dinner

Sounds lovely to me. I hate smoked salmon, but apart from that it sounds great. The pigs in blankets are the best bit and I don't care if they're common. I'd leave the bacon out of the sprouts but only because a sprout is a perfect thing without!

Where's the Mash, ham, frozen peas and yorkshires?
Kidding op, there's plenty, if snobby fil doesn't like pigs, just say, oh well more for everyone else. If you are lucky enough to be a guest you do not winge.

MaryPoppins I enjoy it as part of a stew or occasionally mixed with potatoes in mash. But such a thing will never sully my Christmas table.
However we are all unique and I hope you enjoy your festive Swede

I'm bewildered by the cauliflower cheese side because I hate the idea of cheese sauce and gravy mingling . However, if I were lucky enough to have my Xmas dinner cooked by you, I'd just quietly pass on the cauli. No one notices as there are so many dishes. I am probably going to do Xmas bingo with DB and SIL. B is a killjoy and will moan about rich food and booze, all the while availing himself of plenty of both! SIL is lovely but batty. She is on a "white food" diet to combat the effects of the menopause. She will insist on cooking fucking salmon and then offering it round. Steamed salmon is not really compatible with a full Xmas dinner and the privately prescribed "diet" is a load of woo anyway but I'm fond of her and she's suffering with depression at the moment too.

No, 3 veg are not enough because parsnips barely count, not vegetable-y enough, some guests will probably not like one veg and therefore end up with, effectively 1 veg and an Xmas dinner should be heaving with veg.

Mashed swede with lots of butter and black pepper is gorgeous.

meanwhile some people have nowt

This thread has really helped me remember what I need to add to my Xmas food shop order, so thanks!

I'd no clue pigs in blankets were common, but those and stuffing are the best bits, yum.

The thread also solved the dilemma I was facing over starters, I'm going to do canapés earlier instead, so thanks to the poster who suggested that. 😍

I would add on some lamb, beef and rice with that. Plus a salad and coleslaw.

Rice?? Coleslaw?? With Xmas dinner?

You hear something new every day

How come they have such a detailed grasp of menu? If someone asks me what's for lunch, I just say turkey.

But but but wtf salmon is not white . OTOH, turkey, cauliflower cheese, bread sauce and roast potatoes are white-ish, so she could have those couldn't she?

Sprouts & bacon & chestnuts rock.

Pigs in blankets are a Christmas staple.

We don't do starters either but do canapés with champagne earlier in the a
day instead.

Potato croquettes people are in Debretts. And bonkers.

We are having:

Prawn cocktail starter
Goose
Roast potatoes
Two types of stuffing (cranberry and plain)
Pigs in blankets
Spiced red cabbage
Cauli cheese
Carrots
Leeks
Bread sauce
Cranberry sauce
Gravy
Christmas pudding
Sherry Trifle

Sorry for weird typo and spacing. Stupid iPad.

I'm doing a ham this year too for the evening. We don't usually bother but we're all at home this year so I'm making a fuss.

PIL's should be old enough to know what is expected of a guest and that does not include criticism of the menu. Your dinner looks lovely and they don't have to have the pigs in blankets if they are too up themselves for that. Any comments can be met with "I am cooking for ten you know" because this meal does not revolve around them and their pretensions.

We scrapped the starter decades ago because it spoiled the main course. I used to do both mashed and roast potatoes and I stopped doing the mash because all anyone wanted was the roast. I cook a joint of something on Christmas Eve so any turkey hating meat eaters have an alternative choice. I am the only one that likes cranberry sauce, DH is the only one that likes bread sauce but I do both because for each of us Christmas dinner would not be the same without it.

No cauli here - peas, roast parsnips, sprouts and a big tray of roast veg with aim of leftovers for soup on Boxing Day.

Oh, and parsnips, and possibly a celeriac purée too. Forgot those.

I would have a couple of lines up your sleeves that show how much you love things the way you do them rather than pick up on what dh said - so 'I think these sprouts are so much better with bacon in - I can't believe that there are still people that don't bother, especially on Christmas Day when you want things to be special!' (And they're excellent with bacon and chestnuts added in together if you want to pimp them even more, pretend to dh that you thought he meant that sprouts with bacon weren't good enough because they were missing the chestnut). Or serve out the pigs in bacon commenting that apparently these are the queen's most favourite bit of Xmas lunch... (Disclaimer I have no idea if they are or not).

And another vote to say that it's actually a very sensible and restrained Christmas lunch, not excessive at all.

When my gran (dad's mum) used to come to Xmas lunch she used to bring a tray of cooked stuffing with her - apparently the first time my mother made her Christmas lunch she was so horrified by the lack of 'proper' sausage meat stuffing she brought her own. My mother made stuffing to her own mum's recipe which is absolutely amazing - my gran never noticed that most people had loads of mum's stuffing but a tiny snippet of hers. Even when tiny I always thought it was an incredibly rude thing to do.

Just finalised the online shop...two autistic fussy eater to cater for!

Autistic child 1 = mini toad in the hole (12) carrots, roast potatoes, peas, pigs 'n' blankets, broccoli and a bucket of gravy. (All items are served in seperate little pots with their own spoon/fork as nowt can touch)

Autistic child 2 = pork, carrots, roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, pigs 'n' blankets and a touch of gravy (food can be served on one plate)

Toddler = chicken, roast potatoes, peas, Yorkshire puddings...NO GRAVY!

Me = festive nut roast, red cabbage with apple, mashed swede, sprouts, roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding (mine will last for the entire week)

Mice = raw carrots NO WE DON'T HAVE AN INFESTATION...they belong to the school and we get them EVERY holiday and weekend :)

Your menu sounds delightful OP :)

Sounds fine to me, OP.

If Dh had carped at me like that he'd have found himself nominated chief cook and bottlewasher pretty sharpish.

Your menu sounds fabulous. To be fair to your DH, my DM (posh and sheltered) probably wouldn't know what pigs in blankets are - but she'd be happy with sausages wrapped in bacon. She is odd about terminology, for example babies have their napkins changed rather than nappies ...

We are having the Booths Christmas box, which includes pigs in blankets. So they are definitely posh.

Pigs in blankets definitely make Christmas dinner!

We are having

Starter - baked Camembert

Lamb (Not turkey!)
Roast potatoes
Parsnips
Honey carrots
Pigs in blankets
Stuffing
Cauliflower cheese
Potato dauphinois
Cranberry Sauce
Mint sauce
Gravy
Leeks
Peas
Was considering Aldi's sprouts with bacon and chestnuts

Dessert - M&S choc and salted caramel present cake

Sounds like what he said came out wrong and he meant to say "thank you so much for going to all the trouble of making Christmas dinner. My parents feel very pleased to be included this year. Here's a diamond/Bailey's/half hour of cunnilingus".

Pigs in blankets are not common. Bet the Queen has then with her swan.