Lets talk food!

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Whats on your Christmas food shopping list that you only buy at Christmas?

Foods you make from scratch?
Food you would only consider eating at Christmas?
Food that make Christmas special?
Funny foods that are traditions in your house?
Less 'sophisticated' food that it wouldn't be Christmas without?
Food that brings back memories?
Do you have a traditional meal on Christmas Eve?

For me, I have to have After Eights on the table after Christmas dinner in memory of my lovely mum. And I buy a box of Ferrero Rocher as well as she only ever bought these at Christmas.

The normal satsumas and chocolate coins in the stockings are traditions here. As is a Lindt Reindeer on their pillow on the 1st Dec.

I always make a www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2793/christmas-pie. It either gets put on the table for the Boxing day buffet or eaten as part of a meal in between Christmas and New Years. I freeze it so its easy to grab and heat and is delicious.

On Christmas Eve my mum always cooked a nice steak meal but we are normally to disorganised and end up grabbing a take away once the dc are in bed .

What about your house?

.

Only at Christmas-
marzipan (Delia recipe but I use Amarretto not sherry) . One plain cake with cheese, one marzipanned and iced.

Sainsburys Taste the Difference Mini Mince Pies

trifle for Christmas Eve

Thorntons Double Cream Mints

Lindt mini figures and a deer for DS, bear for DD

I bought some small Christmas Puds (Costco) DH and I might eat one each and I'll take some up to my family after Christmas.

I need to go to Waitrose- I go twice a year, Christmas and Easter.
It's a few miles to the nearest good one.
I bought some Tivolli (sp) vegetarian frozen escalopes last year (DH and I had these on Christmas Eve, DC have fish fingers) with chips, salad then the trifle.

(I can feel 'The Twitch' rearing it's ugly head at Waitrose)

Prawns cocktail to start, full on retro eighties style, salad cream tangy sauce, paprika dusted on top & a lemon wedge, turkey with bread sauce & cranberry sauce, bread sauce best made from scratch, trifle for pudding, even though I don't like it.

Mulled wine, bucks fuzz, pain au chocolat for breakfast on Xmas day, chiiese on 24th

Foods you make from scratch?

This year is our first xmas at home, so I am doing the whole dinner myself. I have made xmas cakes for presents and will be making mince pies too.

Food you would only consider eating at Christmas?

Mince pies, turkey, stollen.

Food that make Christmas special?

Cranberry sauce, Shloer, chocolate truffles.

Funny foods that are traditions in your house?

Not so much funny food, but a tradition when I was at home was the roasting of the turkey on xmas eve and my dad taking all the meat off it while we ate the crispy skin.

Less 'sophisticated' food that it wouldn't be Christmas without?

Frying the brown meat on the day after boxing day until crispy, and eating it with chips and cranberry sauce.

Food that brings back memories?

All of the above. Also after eights on xmas night.

Do you have a traditional meal on Christmas Eve?

No. I am interested to hear what others eat then. I think we always had takeaway because the oven was full with the turkey etc. Will continue that this year.

I always make mince pies, sausage rolls and cheese and onion rolls which get frozen and cooked as needed. I'll also make a fruit cake even though I don't like it.

I also make my own bread sauce, but we aren't fans of cranberry sauce. I also have to make prawn cocktail for our starter on the day. One year I suggested we had something else and there was an uproar.

I also buy pretty much what we buy during the rest of the year, cheeses, crackers, salads, olives, a gammon joint and lots of yummy bits. The only addition is a massive pork pie.

Food I would only eat at Christmas........
Mince pies
Dates
christmas pud

Food that make Christmas special.........
Ferrero Rocher
christmas cake
Special cheeses with biscuits and pickles

It wouldn't be christmas without........
a nice bottle of Harveys bristol cream
A box of Thorntons cherries in liqueur

Traditions.....
Lovely buffet treats on Christmas day, cheese and biscuits in the evening.
Traditional Christmas roast lunch on boxing day.
(we stopped having a roast on xmas day years ago, as it was too stressful trying to cook whilst the children wanted us to play etc.... so we changed it to boxing day when the excitment has calmed down, and the pressure is off!!)

All this talk of yummy food makes me want to start christmas now!!!

Oh, and Christmas eve is always a meal out with all the neighbours at the local pub!

Love reading these!

I am considering Christmas day breakfast. I did Nigella's muffins last year but I was starving half an hour later. This year I'm thinking of making crepes, but what to stuff them with? I thought about sweetened ? chestnut purée with spiced apple compote. Has anyone got any other ideas? Maybe something orange and cranberryish?

While we open the tree presents we always have smoked salmon on brown bread, with champagne (or Bucks Fizz for those that prefer). Then a walk, then lunch in the afternoon: this year we have guests so probably turkey with potatoes, parsnips, prunes wrapped in bacon, creamed leeks, carrots and sprouts with more bacon. If we have sausages they will be as an accompaniment to the post-walk/pre-lunch champagne, before we sit down. I did stuffing last year and nobody ate it so I may leave it out this year, though it's good in the leftover pie I do on Boxing Day. Pudding will be later, and in the evening people will help themselves to leftovers, cheese, and a big plate I always have on the go over Christmas of satsumas (with leaves on for prettiness), almonds or brazil nuts, dark chocolate, crystallised ginger, pates de fruits and marrons glacées. On Boxing Day we'll pick at ham and cheese, then have pie in the evening.

thereistheball what's your leftover pie? Sounds like it'd make good use of bits and bobs that are lurking

leftover pie recipe

www.mumsnet.com/food/recipe/257-Leftover-pie

excellent, thanks very much. will be doing that this year

Whats on your Christmas food shopping list that you only buy at Christmas?

Lindt chocolates, pigs in blankets, party food from marks and spencer

Foods you make from scratch?

Very little! I do freeze bolognese and curry but generally try and not cook much.

Food you would only consider eating at Christmas?

Champagne and chocolate for breakfast.

Food that make Christmas special?

Nothing specific. We don't buy turkey but will splurge on a beef fillet or good fish. This year is seabass for DH and I have ordered a 3 fish roast from marks and spencer.

Funny foods that are traditions in your house?

Don't think there are any

Less 'sophisticated' food that it wouldn't be Christmas without?

Party food! We get several trays and nibble on those throughout the day saving ourselves for dinner. We don't eat properly until 6 ish.

We do cater for about 20 family and friends on the Saturday between chrsitmas and new year and I usually do a big curry.

Food that brings back memories?

Prawn cocktail and pigs in blankets.

Do you have a traditional meal on Christmas Eve?

No. Usually something quick and easy. DH is never home before 7.30 unfortunately.

In my family it is all about buying the best quality. We save hard. Use small suppliers I.e direct from the farm. This year I am making the mince pies - homemade mincemeat in the cupboard ready - , gingerbread, non boozy cake and sausage rolls. Mum is in charge of the boozy cake and pudding. Sister the stuffing and shortbread. Me and sister make the food over the three days ourselves. Mum sits in the living room as she stresses. Christmas Eve tends to be fishy the on the day a light cooked breakfast, full Christmas lunch and nibbles in the evening. Mum always treats herself to some nice artisan cheese. (does not like sweet puddings) Boxing day is leftover day and is the best bit! Like a huge buffet. A new tradition was started by my husband for boxing day - he didn't do Christmas before me - and that is he makes a big Greek salad. Every year he says he needs it! However there is one cheap thing we get and that is one of those tins of chocolate.