Boxing day buffet - hit me!

[halfwitpicker]

6 adults.
4 kids, ages 2-5.

Given the ages of the kids I do not want to do a roast because I'll be freaking out about the timing etc, plus we will have traditional crimbo dinner at my mums the day before.

What do you recommend? To be served as an early supper, so around 4.30pm ish.

You could make it super easy and get in the prepared party food stuff that all the supermarkets do - pizza slices and so on. And maybe smoked salmon?

Went to a friend's for dinner yesterday and she made a salad, garlic bread and an enormous tray of Ina Garten's pastitsio (beef/lamb sauce, buttery little pasta shells, lovely browned bechamel top). It was cracking and I suspect gets even nicer after it sits for a while. I'm not good at this kind of meal - good at any temp, can be left out, made ahead of time etc - so I made a mental note.
One year dh made a few chicken, leek and ham pies (Jamie Oliver recipe iirc). Delicious hot or cold and keep well.

I'd also go with party food so,

Sausage rolls,
Cocktail sausages,
Filled vol-au-vents,
Chicken nuggets/chicken drumsticks,
mini quiches/or large quiches sliced,
Mini pizzas/or large pizzas sliced,
You can pick up packets of mini spring rolls and mini samosas,
Some bowls of nice crisps,tortilla chips and nuts(if no nut allergys)you could lay out some nice dips,salsa and guacamole.
A mixed salad,with salad though I wouldn't do alot because not everyone always worry's about having anything healthy on they're plate when they're eating from a buffet.

Or you could do a few picky bits and then some nice rolls,salad and roasted sliced meats so beef/chicken/pork and some stuffing along with some apple sauce,cranberry and horseradish.

We usually do a buffet of party types food and we have a nice cheeseboard out with some nice crackers,pickles and chutney and some grapes and crisp apples(the cheeseboard always gets hooverd up by everyone at ours)and then we have a couple of desserts,usually 1 cheesecake and then something chocolatey.

Anything that gets left over can be used up for lunches/supper the following 2 days.

Pulled/shredded ham hock with baked potatoes, warm bread rolls, grated cheese, apple sauce, tomato chutney, caramelised onions and a green salad.

I recommend M&S party food!
Or... sausage rolls, crisps, pizza, breadsticks and dips, quiche, meat and bread rolls, pasta salad.

Macaroni pie is v nice for a buffet and always goes down well. It's a staple of buffets in the Caribbean - just a sort of macaroni cheese but with eggs, so it sets when baked. The only faff when making is grating 400 g of mature Cheddar.
I've done it for Boxing Day, to have with cold turkey/gammon/. salad/baked potatoes, but that's always been after cooking on Chr, Day, so anything else involving major effort has been out of the question.

I agree that M&S party food is brilliant, but it's expensive if you're catering for a crowd - maybe not a factor for the OP.

From experience, bog standard cheese and tomato pizza always goes down well with young children.

It's my 40th in a couple of weeks and I'm doing a buffet at a cottage we're hiring as most of it I can prep at home or chuck in oven from frozen

Smoked salmon blinis
A few of COOK canapés cook from frozen - mini Thai fish cakes, tomato tart tartins, Welsh rarebit bites, duck and hoisin puffs

Sausage and cranberry wreath from COOK
Ham in coke with bread, pickles and mustard
Coronation chicken
Roasted veg couscous (bbc good food)
Green salad
Naice coleslaw
Tomato, avo and mozz salad
Artichoke antipasti
Cheeseboard with crackers, grapes, celery and chutney

Am contemplating adding some little crispy potatoes too...

I'm hoping for leftovers for lunch the following day!

We usually have snacky party food for our Boxing Day buffet, so mini pizzas, chicken strips, chips, cheese and crackers, cocktail sausages, mini sausage rolls, breadsticks and dips, mini sandwiches, cheese biscuits, crisps, peanuts, then puddings are the mini cake selections from Asda like eclairs etc and a gateaux or Christmas themed sponge cake to share. It’s a free for all and the kids love it.

I would add hot baked potatoes with lots of salt butter and chives to the buffet

Oh my god, so many replies!

I'm liking the idea of ham in coke with sides. There'll definitely be a cheese board too. Baked potato could be good too, the oven will be on anyway if the ham is in.

We will be in a holiday cottage too so will have to see how the oven, facilities etc are.

I look forward to the Boxing Day buffet as much as Christmas dinner!

We always have:

Big roast pork joint, cooked overnight and served cold
Various pates
Pickles and chutneys including spicy ones
Huge cheese board, lots of different cheeses to please everyone
Salad
Mixed olives
Cold meats - pastrami, chorizo, salami etc
Assorted biscuits for cheese
Mini bhajis/pakora
Pork pie
Crusty bread and butter
Potato salad and coleslaw
leftover stuffing balls/pigs in blankets/shredded turkey

Trifle, Christmas cake, assorted Turkish delight and posh biscuits