Christmas Day Buffet Ideas

[Titsywoo]

So it's been a very hard year for me (health issues, cancer scare and a very very stressful time at work) and I have decided although I am happy to host MIL here I really can't be dealing with cooking a roast on xmas day. I suggested a buffet so MIL can bring a couple of dishes and I can have some stuff pre-prepared and just heat a couple of bits 30 mins before.

Any ideas of what would be good for a xmas day buffet? Cost isn't an issue so can get some nice bits from M&S or Waitrose I guess. What would you fancy if you did this instead of a traditional lunch?

If money is really not an issue then just get a Christmas Dinner delivered.

This is what I am doing this year after DH said he'd like to spend the day with me, not me being in the kitchen cooking followed by him being in the kitchen washing up.

I am really looking forward to doing a small bit of reheating and still having a restaurant quality dinner. And no endless leftovers.

Thanks for the replies.

YOU CAN GET XMAS DINNER DELIVERED??!!

How, why, when, where?!

To those who would be disappointed by a buffet - as I said it has been a tough year and I would hope that my family would be more concerned about making things easy than eating a glorified roast.

Yes it does worry we that a buffet is more work which is why I would keep it simple with a few heated up bits. The thing that drives me mad about xmas dinner is trying to fit everything in the oven and all the timings. I just can't deal with it this year. DH will of course help but he is a shit cook.

I'll be looking into the delivered or catered options though.

That looks delicious! Do you have a recipe?

Yes I'll definitely do a good glazed ham 🙂

OP- re the smoked salmon terrine- I got asked for the recipe on another thread too! TBH, I made it pre-covid and cannot recall the exact recipe now. It was likely a blend of a few recipes. Possibly these 2, but I doubt I would have chosen one with cream in.
www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/salmon-terrine/
The 2nd recipe looks more familiar, but I certainly don't recall faffing with gelatin!
www.greedygourmet.com/recipes-by-cooking-times/more-than-3-hrs/smoked-salmon-terrine/

I think anything you can made ahead of time and either serve from the fridge or just reheat is easiest. Considering the year you've had, I'm surprised someone else isn't hosting YOU!!!

I'd do a charcuterie board and a cheese board. Serve with lovely breads, a nice salad and pickles. You could get a nice ready made seafood platter if you eat it.

Then some cracking ice cream with liquer fruits from a jar (can get these in Waitrose). Then coffee and crocs later.

I want a buffet for Xmas Day now!

@Titsywoo there are a number of restaurants that do delivery nationally, although not as many as during Covid.

Have a look at these to begin with (there are others):

www.dishpatch.co.uk

www.rickstein.com

coteathome.co.uk

You could do a cola ham in the slow cooker. Minimum effort required

YOU CAN GET XMAS DINNER DELIVERED??!!
How, why, when, where?!

Friends order in M&S every year. I assume it arrives chilled and they heat on the day, but they swear by it and it takes the stress out of cooking from scratch.

Waitrose have a nice looking chocolate cherry trifle.

Tons of stuff at cookfood.net

We do a buffet instead of a roast. Have the past couple of years now. Neither my children like a roast, one is vegetarian, I could take it or leave it. I enjoy the buffet much more. We buy things like gammon, French stick brie bites, chicken nibbles and vegetarian things, mozzarella sticks. Will start buying soon. Still have pigs in blankets as love them.

I'm doing a buffet/julbord this year. The teen has an eating disorder, the husband is veggie. I love a roast but it's a lot of work for me and I'd rather have all the things we like available as we want it.

I am doing a ham.
Cheese, nice bread, crackers
Pork pie
Cheese and onion tart
A soup, perhaps
I haven't decided what else yet!

I'll also have all the things to make a roast if people want to put one together for themselves - parboiled potatoes to finish in the airfryer, stuffing balls etc. but I won't be having to get it all out at once.

A friend of mine used to do Christmas dinner Christmas eve and have turkey and chips on Christmas day when her kids were little it sounded fab.

You can get a turkey crown from m&s with cranberry stuffing. Could you maybe include something like this in your buffet, pigs in blankets, cheese board, posh crackers, nice salads, fresh bread, grapes.

Or break with tradition forget the turkey and do a smoked haddock quiche, waldorf salad, nice bread, rice, quinoa, mini samosas or similar.

Another one here doing a buffet this year - we used to have huge family Christmas's but now there are just 4 of us; me, ds (19), Mum and her twin sister (80). Mum and aunt eat like sparrows, ds eats anything. I always make sausage rolls, mince pies, trifle etc, and loads of it goes to waste as no-one wants anything later once they've had a roast dinner. We also have all decided we want to do something different this year as Christmas has got rather dull and samey. So there will be gam, cold beef, crusty bread, salad, grapes, cheese, obligatory pigs in blankets and sausage rolls, ds has requested a bowl of percy pigs, and who knows what else. Time to mix things up a bit this year :)

They have a sausage wreath roll frozen in lidl that looks like a nice centrepiece. Personally I would cook a ham myself, serve with preprepared sides of potatoes dauphinois, red cabbage, mixed roasted veg all in the oven once the ham is done, and steam some green beans (get the prepared ones). Really tasty but minimal effort.

@Quitelikeit vegetarians don’t eat animals.