Advice on hosting my first Christmas!

[ScrabbleChamp64]

I am hosting Christmas this year for my in-laws.

Was originally going to be PILs, BIL and the two of us however BIL now has a gf he wants to spend Xmas with which takes us up to six and MIL has asked if her single friend can join us as she will otherwise be alone on Xmas day so we are at 7.

It will be a squeeze around the table and we don’t have a very big house but I’m happy to try and be accommodating and welcoming to our extra guests.

However a combination of it being the middle of November and having additional people to “host”, I’m now feeling the pressure of “bringing Christmas” for everyone.

Hit me with your advice for hosting Christmas for the first time please?!

Follow Delia’s timeline fir the cooking. Have a good game for the afternoon. Get people to bring pudding, starters or sides.

Cook your turkey overnight on low, buy everything else from m&s, it's worth it.

Do you have a garden the you can bring inside and put a table cloth over?

If you're in the kitchen, dp is hosting or vice versa or all tasks split 50/50. You'll be fine, remember this is dp's family not Ofsted 🤣

If you're having turkey, and unless you're an experienced turkey cooker, get a turkey crown. Really easy to cook and no stress about whether its cooked properly (my first Christmas our turkey wasn't cooked enough!).
I second a good board game.

I’m thinking about buying a dining bench for the table so three people can fit on one side more easily? And buying disposable foil trays for cooking to reduce washing up. My mum sometimes would cook and carve the turkey xmas eve and reheat slowly in gravy on the hob so I’ll probably do that too?

I know ultimately it’s just dinner with family but we haven’t spent Xmas with them since 2019 due to lockdown and last year they had Covid so I really want it to be a success 🙈

Write down all timings. Absolutely NO present opening until everyone has eaten, all washed up and put away. Then sit down with a cup of tea or a glass of bubbly and enjoy the pressie opening and banter. Obviously stockings get opened earlier.

What do people think of cranium as a board game? I think it’s quite inclusive and my oh tends to destroy everyone at general knowledge so we can’t do trivial pursuit 🤣

I like the no present opening thing.

looking for advice also on getting to enjoy it myself and not just everyone else having a fab time and me being stressed!

Also, it's just one meal. You are going to spend it with family and friends. Have a wonderful Christmas but try not to burn the roast potatoes. 😜

And don't faff about with the gravy. Bisto granules, boiling water, juice from the turkey and you are good to go. Add a dollop of cranberry sauce if you want to go posh.

Make a proper plan. I use Nigella’s timings, but I write it out to fit my own. Make sure you know exactly what’s going on which pan, oven tray, oven etc. Work out anything that can be made in advance and do it (e.g. stuffing and parboiling). Disposable trays are a boon.

good luck!

If you want 'proper' stuffing use paxo mix with sausage meat.

Prep anything you the night before between you and dp. Make sides, peel veg, make Yorkshire pudding batter, make starters if you’re planning on having them. Cook in stages if your oven isn’t big enough and cover with foil to keep hot.

Agree to gravy being either bought or made weeks in advance and frozen - Jamie Oliver has a great recipe for this. Saves last minute panicking when the gravy won't thicken!

Do as much as possible ahead. Make the bread sauce red cabbage, gravy, cauliflower cheese, stuffing, Yorkshire puddings, even part cooked potatoes and then freeze them.

Yes to foil trays. Even paper napkins if you can bear it.

Grt people to bring something. Most want to - but be specific. Bring a pudding for six and thecbrandy butter or can you bring enough salmon for six please? Ask them to each bring a bottle but again be specific.

Make sure you've checked preferences and dietary needs. Nothing worse than a sour puss face because they hadn't mentioned they don't eat gluten anymore. Most things can be made gluten free as long as you know. Gravy or cauliflower cheese with cornflour is actually nicer.

Don't overdo everything and not enjoy it yourself. Nobody minds a squash at the table or a dreadful board game. Nobody cares the cracker hats tear. Get everyone to help by laying the table or putting plates to warm. Don't fret about perfection. Serve red and white in same sized glasses. Not too many things to overcrowd the table with resultant spills and burns.

Have a spills kit to hand.

Articulate is a good game.

Definitely go for a Turkey crown - game changer, much less faff. Also I make things like stuffing, cranberry sauce and bread sauce in advance and freeze. Also specify what you’d like guests to bring with them, shouldn’t all fall on your shoulders.

Peel and cut your potatoes and veg the night before then leave in cold water. Don't try and cut corners like I did once and par boiled my potatoes on Christmas Eve. Ugly mess in the morning which meant finding a shop open on Christmas Day to buy more spuds.

I’m going to have to do a whole turkey I think - PILs have (generously) already ordered all the meat from the butchers

Write out your timings.
Do what you can the day before.
Delia online is a safe bet.

Most of all - Don't aim for perfection.

Things may go awry, stuffing left in the oven, soggy parsnips whatever and that's ok.
The year the oven blew up was memorable and we laughed a lot that day and still joke about it.

It's just a nice roast and good company.

The logo game is a good game.

Interesting about the parboiling - I was hoping to do this Xmas eve and then roast the next day. Does it not work?!

Adding napkins to my online shop now - completely forgot about them 😂

I've had problems doing this, the potatoes go funny. If they are prepped and ready to be boiled it's not much more work. I hope you have a wonderful time. Our older family have passed away and our children will be working so it will be off to the beach hut, me DH and the 3 labradors. I can't complain. 😍

If you are doing pigs in blanket, chipolata sausages with streaky bacon wrapped around. Much better than those thumb size things that go hard.

Keep it simple.

The more options you have the harder it is - e,g. I do roast potatoes I refuse to do mash as well!! Pick a cut of meat that carves easily (once did duck as a special extra and never again!). Get a nice ready made pudding (I like M&S ones)… as others have said, no fancy gravy or home made stuffing!!

Games wise.. we’ve got crackers with games in them before, that worked well. But mostly I find people just chat. We have a bauble that doubles as a Bluetooth speaker and we’ll have some Christmas songs in the background.

and limit the bubbly until after everything is dished up (then get an extra big glass)

oh and don’t wear a Christmas jumper. I foolishly did and nearly cooked!! And set the ground rules for relatives early on … my MIL always want to help but she just gets in the way so I’m quite good at putting a glass in her hand quickly and sitting her next to my mum so that they chat along nicely and keep away from me!!