What are your plans for Christmas Eve Dinner?

[pinkksugarmouse]

In the past we have had a takeaway and will probably do that again this year, probably Indian as DH isn't a big fan of pizza and I find Chinese too salty.

What do you think you will have? 🤔

Lunch we have a Full Cooked Breakfast, mainly because of what we have for tea.

Tea is Treize Desserts, a Provencal tradition: three fresh fruit, three dried fruit, three nuts, three sweetmeats and a centrepiece. A large part of the reasoning for this was that we'd both felt for years that we just weren't appreciating the Christmas Pudding after the turkey main course, so we have it on Christmas Eve instead, with spiced ice cream the next day.

Tangerines, grapes, pomegranate, dates, figs, apricots, walnuts, hazelnuts (originally brazils but substituted pistachios the year there was a supply problem), shortbread, Finnish cinnamon biscuits, Viennese truffles, Christmas pudding; cream, brandy butter, custard option; dessert wine

Usually my daughter does a buffet in the evening followed by party games. I then host Christmas lunch.
This year will be different. They'll have a 13 week old baby and my daughters bedtime is now 7pm to get some sleep before the night shift!
Liking some of the suggestions. Probably a takeaway...... not quite the same though!

We usually go to my parents for a bit of a buffet and they give us and the children Christmas pjs like they used to do when we were little and we give them a hamper of goodies to enjoy after we've been round again for Christmas dinner the next day, this years been crap and I know people say it's only a day but I'm really going to miss doing the little traditions we've done forever, this year.

We always have Gammon with broad beans and roast potatoes on Christmas Eve.

@AdoraBell. I’m in Perth, Western Australia.

We have always met (this would be our 19th year!) with friends and all the kids for pizza and wine. Sadly not happening this year as if local restaurants are open (Scotland and looking like closing by Friday) then everywhere closes by 6pm and no alcohol permitted.

Instead we are planning to order in pizza and snuggle up with a film.

Nothing much. We go out for lunch and a walk do its a sandwich or something light

Something fishy.
Fish pie if with my side of the family or salmon and sweetcorn quiche if with DH's.
Some of these suggestions are fab though, but the children would never allow us to change!!

throughout the evening oysters, seafood platter (a la M&S) cheeseboard with some nice accompaniments-, (eg from the truffle hamper from the fine cheese co) and fresh fruit, this will also be the Christmas day meal, just with a variation on the seafood and featured cheeses
during the day it will be flask of coffee and sandwich on a country walk

and a crate of cremant de bordeaux

We usually have M&S party food after SIL's christingle service.
I think this year we might go to the local Italian restaurant with DD (1 year old) for lunch, and then just have less party food for dinner. Or go for an early dinner with DD depending on her sleeping situation then

My family always had curry with side dishes. Last 2 years me and DP have had a takeaway. This year will be hot roast pork on fresh baked baguette with apple sauce Stuffing with a nice pudding to follow.

Platter.
Lots of cold bits that are treats to us to pick at - a mix of cooked and cured meats, fish and seafood, cheese, salad, dips, maybe sausage rolls, breadsticks/crusty bread/crackers etc.

Any leftovers will be used up over the following few days.

Always a dominos on Christmas Eve here!

We do the baked Camembert with crusty rolls here too. Usually some onion chutney, Boursin, crackers, cured meats and whatever party pack freezer shite looks particularly tempting. We stick it all on the coffee table and watch a film. I do like the idea of going out for a meal when children are older though.

We’ve always done a canapé dinner on Christmas Eve

Blinis with smoked salmon, sour cream, half quails egg and caviar
Vol-au-vents with crab mousse/mackerel mousse, with a tiny slice of lemon or cucumber on top, and dill
Mini Yorkshires with roast beef and horseradish, with tomato
German bread cut into bite size pieces with Brie/Gorgonzola/Wensleydale blue and cranberry sauce for the Brie, chutney for the blue cheeses

My girls love them and we all enjoy eating things we really wouldn’t eat any other time of year.

This year it’s just the two of us on Christmas Eve so we’ll do a simple easy dinner and I’ll do canapés on Christmas Day instead.

@userxx

should have known that there would be some competitive undereating at christmas dinner posts on mumsnet.

I will have half a roast potato and a quarter of a sprout..... will probably need to lie down for half an hour due to bloating.

But if you had actually read the thread you would have seen that I wrote I eat less dinner because the pudding will be favourite part and I want plenty of room for it. Maybe this is competitive main undereating/dessert overcompansating. Ffs. 😕

Every other thread seems to have people in it who go out of their way to get offended about every tiny thing. 🤷‍♀️

It's just me and DP for xmas eve this year, for the first year ever I'm not going to be at my parents. So not sure what to have! I feel like baking a nice pie or something and having a nice ice creamy dessert

@helloxhristmas

We have french dip sandwiches and fries.

Have just heard of this! Came on mumsnet to search it. We normally have hot beef sandwiches but....beef and cheese and beefy dip? What's not to like?

I don't know how to describe what we have, it's like a very smart buffet.

Jamon Iberico, Rochfort or truffled brie, parfait or fois gras with hm walnut bread washed down with Sauternes. Maybe some nice olives and crisps.

Finished of with something rich and chocolatey.

I'm going to help steward Mass this year so it helps that we don't really bother cooking on Christmas Eve.

@AdoraBell

Ooh, do you mind saying where you are TheSandGroper? We used to live in Chile and I really miss the BBQ Christmas lunches with lots of salad.

We are in Scotland and will BBQ at Christmas. We don’t eat outside but still BBQ.

We’re having cheese, mince pies and Christmas cake at MIL’s.

We always have 'a bready/cakey tea' - crumpets, pikelets and those fancypants cheese and black pepper muffins, with butter, peanut butter, marmite etc. Then American muffins for after. It's instant, and 'cosy'. Not very healthy though! It's the one meal I have all year without any salad or veggies with it!

There's a birthday on my DP's side so last year we all had a get together and it was buffet food.

Prior to that it has always being a takeaway. Until only a few years ago me and my family would go to the panto, we'd have a McDonald's on the way home (when kids) and when grown up, a Chinese takeaway.

Haven't been to the panto for a few years but carried on the Chinese tradition... May bring it back this year! Although I find it likely that DP's mum (in our Xmas bubble) will want us to go around there's for a buffet.

We usually have a meatball lasagne, as there's probably only going to be 3 of us I suggested a takeaway you'd have thought I'd suggested running naked down the high street.

Sandwiches, hot homemade sausage rolls, homemade cheese straws. Beige stuff mostly. Not a vegetable in sight.