Xmas dinner

[ghostspirit]

What's the difference between Xmas dinner and a Sunday roast. I feel it's the same things with maybe few extras. Or am I just being grumpy.

What do you do that's different. And do you do anything to make it easyer. Do you cheat?

I know what you mean, I think there are a few differences though and I think each household does it slightly differently.

In ours, it's a usual Sunday roast PLUS pigs in blankets, sprouts, chestnut stuffing and cranberry sauce etc. We have Yorkshire puddings too (I'm lead to believe this is controversial!) just because they're everyone's favourite at our house and a roast wouldn't be the same without them! We tend to have beef AND turkey, because some people aren't keen on turkey.

Bread sauce. We only have that at Christmas. And the compulsory hats while eating that make you look a tit.

It is basically just a fancier version of a roast dinner, but what makes it special for us is nicer wine than usual, Christmas crackers, and other table decorations. Also we use a tablecloth and our 'best' crockery and cutlery.

I am slowly collecting xmas crockery, xmas table cloth, have you looked at pin interest? The table is more dressed, opulent, busy, candelabra, sparkling, usually we would carve meat in the kitchen and service but at xmas I like to see the bird in one piece with stuff round it - carve at table, * my dad used to make a big show of this and was usually in a tux , and all the rest crackers, YES TO BREAD SOURCE, nicer gravey...more accompaniments eg pigs in blankets etc

PJ I have re discovered my love of YP and will also be having them this year, controversy or not

We don't do a Sunday roast anymore - for various reasons.

But even when we did, Christmas dinner was more special.

We never had starters weekly - maybe on a special occasion. But always have smoked salmon on brown bread or else prawn cocktail on Christmas Day.

Rather than 1 meat weekly, Christmas has turkey, usually ham, and probably spiced beef. If reduced, ham is first dropped. If we go "home" to our DPs, all 3 are on the table.

Proper gravy. DM makes giblet stock for the purpose. I make giblet stock for the purpose. Meat juices are added, and a slug of wine in my case. (I would generally have decent gravy with a roast, but it is different somehow).

Sundays are 1 or maybe 2 veg dishes. Often 1 is a mixed veg, so not totally boring. But Christmas has sprouts (not the only time they get eaten but not everyone does here), a mixed roasted root veg, and cauliflower cheese - at least. I may do another veg dish. Something like French beans with bacon and cream, or plain peas, or glazed carrots, or steamed brocolli.

LOADS of roasties - but proper full sized potatoes. Regular roasts are smaller so I tend to cut the potatoes for faster cooking.

I rarely do stuffing, unless its a chicken AND I feel like it. But have to have stuffing with turkey.

Yes, to nicer wine - I buy 2 bottles (in case we feel like opening the 2nd) in September and put them away. I also buy a half bottle of dessert wine, for with the pudding - and that's the only bottle of that which I buy in the year.

Cheese board, then pudding.

Nicely made table. The good crockery, a particular set of wine glasses (we do use those occasionally during the year but it is not often), candles.

And also a sense of not having to rush anything. We start cooking when we get in from visiting, have nibbles to keep us going until its ready, so it can take as long as it needs, and then we are relaxed and enjoy savouring the meal whereas Sundays do tend to be more rushed.

(We are also usually looking forward to a specific other dinner, later that week, using turkey stock and leftover ham and leftover (?! - specially bought!) stilton to make a festive potato gratin dish.)

It is probably the only meal in the year where there are no expectations and where we have no other things that need doing which are distracting us - so that is probably the thing that makes it most special for us.

I don't have a table :( we could just eat out

Christmas dinner for us starts with cava or prosecco, smoked salmon and a salad. Then we pull crackers and move on to wine, and main meal - like a normal Sunday roast but with pigs in blankets, two meats (turkey and pork), and what we call jacksey meat but others would recognise as the sausage meat used to stuff the turkey. After that, pudding is either trifle or Xmas pud or cheese and biscuits depending on who it is as some of us like different desserts.

We spread our christmas 'dinner' over the whole afternoon. We don't do that at any other time of the year.

This year the plan is to have the starter (pate and/or smoked salmon) at noon, the main about 2 and then the pudding at 4pm. There'll be cheese and biscuits and sausage rolls around for anyone who feels like something else to eat later into the evening.