Christmas Food Ideas

[BackBoiler]

So I said to parents I was having Christmas at home, so the whole family are gatecrashing! (I am looking forward to it however)

I have hosted the meal before so I am not worried about cooking but I had a hysterectomy a week ago and I just cannot think straight for the tiredness. I want to be prepared!

I would like suggestions on easy tasty starters and desserts - I only want to do the one but I need something that will suit all tastebuds! Nothing too chocolatey, we have a vegetarian, something that can be eaten before and after a traditional turkey lunch without it being too stuffed up and something that quite traditional tastebuds will like - 80 odd yr old grandparents also attending.

Help!

I also would like to do food that I can prepare the day/days before and then heat through on the day if necessary.

I wouldn't bother with a starter, and just the traditional Xmas pud for desert - and keep a decent quality vanilla ice cream in the freezer for anyone who doesn't like it. Maybe with some nice caramel sauce or fruit coulis if you want to push the boat out.

I'd keep it easy for yourself - the main meal itself is enough work imo.

Celeriac soup makes a good starter. Prepare in advance and made with an embarrassing amount of butter. Sprinkle it with bacon/chestnuts/truffle oil/croutons.

SO GOOD

Starter: smoked salmon chopped up with dill and run through with sourcream or crime fresh and lemon served with a small green tangy salad (ruccola, lemony salad dressing) and a toasted white sourdough slice (grilled in the oven if you can. Can use the toast slice to dip in the salmon mix. There's a name for this dish but I can't remember, although I'm sure you can find recipie if you google. Not that many ingredients and quick/easy to assemble.

Dessert: I'm serving cheese cake (just doing plain vanilla with a lovely fresh home made strawberry sauce, it's just 400g strawberries crushed with lots of icing sugar). Both can be made the day before and people can have the serving sice they can stomach after the main.

Hope your recovery is easy!

A homemade soup is easy and usually popular with everyone.
Sherry Trifle for dessert? We have that every year.

I must admit I am a sticker for tradition and do a trifle and xmas pud, the trifle is easy to prep ahead and the pud just goes in the microwave! Or have a look on some naice cookery websites, Nigel Slater, Valentine Warner and Diana Hendry recipes always have great ideas and they all work! Starters are a sharing platter of anti pasti, ham, olives etc as that is easy too. Wont be doing a starter this year, the teenage monsters prefer more roast potatoes to starters, funny that!!

Thank you for the ideas/suggestions so far please keep them coming (even if just to drool).

Snuppeline thank you so far so good! I am hoping I am back to normal by Christmas

Asparagus served cold with a few salad leaves and a dressing, perhaps Caesar, add some parmesan shavings or some hard boiled quail eggs to make it extra special.

Sliced cold poached pears on salad leaves with chopped walnuts, crumbled feta, and pomegranate seeds, with French dressing.

Both easy to do ahead of time and quick to assemble, light and colourful

I like to do a starter at Christmas, it contributes to the 'special occasion' of the meal and gets everyone settled at the table ready for the main course.

Have you seen the Nutella tree? Make that but with mincemeat, served with optional brandy butter/cream/ ice cream none of which you need to make yourself. Puff pastry feels light after a big dinner, but it's still very festive.

Otherwise yy trifle.

Don't forget enormous cheese board for the evening: it soaks up alcohol beautifully is just the ticket for later snacking and requires minimal attention from you.

I had maybe another idea of maybe doing a few 'nibbles' (the word canape seems a bit of a formal word) with some fizz/bottles of beer instead of a starter.

To be honest the starter idea was just to appease my dad/other family members who may start to ask when the cooking was done etc. If I set out something light but tasty in the living room then they might stay away from the kitchen!

Cheese board for later is not an option - it is a necessity -even if I eat it all to myself-

Strikeout fail!

I usually serve soup and part baked rolls for starters. This year I'm doing carrot and coriander soup. Leek and potato soups good too. For veggie options I'm cooking garlic mushrooms, mozzarella and pesto in a puff pastry pie. Desserts I always buy :)

Could it just be crisps to stave off the STARVING masses? Posh flavours in naice bowls.

You know what MrsHathaway I may just do that!

Ok so it looks like dessert only!

I may use some of the starter ideas though for a meal for DH and I over the Christmas period! Have a festive date night!

Definitely a mincemeat tree then. Will find link on Poncetastic...

I did a fab and easy starter last year of basically walnut, pear and Roquefort on salad leaves which were dressed. Super easy. Just needs assembling. And trifles are so good for desert. You can go traditional or modern - so many types. A nice clementine one is good for Xmas

Canapés for starter -I use the mini croustades from rahms and fill them with three or four mini fillings that I have prepared beforehand and kept in tubs. Prawn, salmon and cream cheese, caviar and red onion if you want fancy. Easy to make a few plainish ones for fussy eaters as well.

This video but using 750g packet puff and 400g jar mincemeat.

Oh and a saffron cheesecake on a gingernut base with dark berries on top....easy to prep beforehand, and quite festive!

Since your guests invited themselves, I think that it is only fair to ask them to bring a dish.

If you can afford it, buy in everything you can. You are just recovering from a hefty surgery here after all!

Nibbles and fizz for starters. Buy a few sausage rolls, vol au vents etc. There are so many party packs around now. Just twenty minutes in the oven and you're done. Add some posh crisps too. I love the canape/nibble starter as there is no set time to finish it, just throw a few more out.

Buy in your mains. You know where to go for that, and they are very good.

Posh ice cream with Baileys and cream on top. Yum and so easy. Or have a look at the desserts on offer in M+S Waitrose etc.

Oh and at the risk of being told off, if you have a DP/DH/Kids/Friends I hope they will do most of the work, even if it is all bought in!

Have a lovely time.

I'm doing canapes for starters. Salmon and creme fraiche blinis, cheese straws and goats cheese and cranberry tarts (with ready made puff)

Making the BBC good food millionaires bombe for pudding. Made it last year. Much easier than it looks, can be made in advance and looks impressive

My mum will be providing the meat and everything else for the main meal with be prepared Christmas Eve so it can just be cooked. I will also have plenty of help with the washing up - DH, Mum, Dad, Sis and Nan so no trouble there. The kids are good at helping clear the table.

Even if I do not 'make' the dessert I just hadn't a clue what to even suggest to buy!

Ps.....xmas shopping is all being done online (apart from the few pressies I bought before surgery)