Christmas Day hosting tips

[PurpleSpottedLeopard]

Hi,

This year we will be hosting Christmas for the first time and I’m a little bit nervous! I was wondering if anyone had any tips or advice to help the day run smoothly and keep everyone happy. I’m particularly concerned about cooking for everyone. There will be 8 adults and a toddler eating.

It’s been a difficult few months and it’s the first Christmas for the two youngest guests so I really want to make it extra special. Any advice, however small, will be very gratefully received. I’m a complete Christmas lover but novice host!

I'm hosting this year too for an unknown number of people (SIL will be heavily pregnant by that stage and/or be giving birth and/or have a tiny baby). My plan is to make as much as possible of the food in advance and freeze it so all I have to do on Christmas Day is pop things in the oven and cook the fresh vegetables. I also have a crate of champagne in case all else fails!

My tips.

• Don't go more fancy than you can handle. You don't need 17 types of vegetables or 12 desserts.
• Prep as much as you can the day before
• Write a timetable / checklist so you don't forget things
• Ask for help as needed

Can you cook a roast chicken? If so you can do a turkey. it is just th same only takes longer. It can come out of the oven at least 1 hour before serving and be kept warm under tea towels so you can then use the oven for other stuff as needed.

People would rather have a simpler meal with a relaxed host than a fancy meal and a frazzled host.

(If you can't cook a roast chicken then try one a few times in the next 4 weeks).

Freeze the roast potatoes ahead. I use an easy bbc food recipe. (Par boil, cool, freeze). Then you just put in oil on day. Super way. Have a roast chicken one weekend to practice

Or even easier, buy frozen ones. (Home made should be nicer, but it depends how inexperienced a cook / host you are.)

Give people jobs and accept offers to help. Don't spend the day trying to do it all while everyone sits enjoying themselves and you are trapped in the kitchen.

I did an accidental dry run one year and it was amazingly helpful! Had friends over and decided to do a roast so could test out timings / serving dishes / order to cook stuff etc.

Also I do lots of pre cooking and freezing:

Red cabbage
Swede & carrot mash
Cauli cheese
Yorkies (!)
Parboiled and oiled parsnips and spuds
Chesnut stuffing

Buy gravy.

Only leaves

Turkey
Pigs in blankets
Carrots
Brussels

I cook all meat on Christmas eve - turkey,ham,stuffing and carve and put into parcels. Also cook a roast beef the week before and freeze the stock for nice gravy.

Peel all potatoes and veg on Christmas eve,keep in water.

Don't stress and enjoy. Accept help with starters and dessert

Make
Sure people know when you are eating and make sure there are snacks ( toast even) available just in case

Let people know what you want help with - o"I'm happy cooking but please can everyone else organise the clear up afterwards "

You could ask people to bring cold starter / puddings

Who is is looking after guests duty ? Make sure they know - if it's a teen they need quite clear instructions about taking coats and getting drinks etc

Where will people sit - have you got enough soft chairs

If people offer to help let them! Assign someone to be in charge of drinks. Set the table the day before. Check that you have enough serving bowls and serving spoons? On Christmas Eve peel your veg and pop into freezer bags with sheets of wet kitchen roll, then pop in the fridge. I also wrap the sausages in bacon, make the stuffings and blanch the cauli for the cauli cheese. All that takes 2 hours top Christmas Eve but with help could be done in less. Personally I like to cook most things fresh on the day but do make and freeze my bread sauce and the cheese sauce for the cauliflower cheese and have never had any problems with it. (Just don't forget to move to the fridge to defrost on Christmas Eve.)
If you aren't confident in the kitchen decide which bits you really want to make yourself and then head to M&S for the rest.

re recent posters' lists.

You don't need to have brussels and cauliflower cheese and carrots and swede and red cabbage and parsnips. Pick 2 you actually like. We do broccoli and carrots. You also don't need to make your own pigs in blankets (or even have them at all, though as you just bung them in the oven they aren't hard). You don't need to make your own stuffing either.

I always cook my Turkey on Christmas Eve, even though that’s apparently a crime - it slices so much better cold, then add some water and reheat under foil on the day. Lovely moist Turkey. I peel and chop all my veg on Christmas Eve as well. I make the gravy a week before and freeze.
on the day I cook my gammon, roasties and trimmings.

this year I’m cooking for 13- including 3 vegans, 1 dairy free and fussy child. Vegans are bringing their own main. I’ll do vegan roasties and some in duck fat but everything else will be vegan/dairy free if possible.
for the evening, I’ve asked guests (all family) to bring for evening buffet.

Try to make it as relaxed as possible.
think of it as a roast dinner and don't put pressure on yourself.

Starters and puddings should be chosen for ease of prep and serving.

I cook the Turkey and do nearly all of the prep on Christmas Eve so the day itself is really just heating things up and serving.

It's ok to use shop bought roast potatoes and frozen veg to make life easier. It doesn't all have to be made from scratch.

We leave quite a long time between courses. Takes the stress out. Allows me to sit and enjoy my good. Allows people to digest before the next course.

I usually have to cook for 10-14 people including children and a vegetarian. But it's just about a bigger turkey and more potatoes really.

Check you've got room in the oven for everything!

And don't tilt the parsnip tray as it cooks because your kitchen will become very smokey from the oil dripping down the oven and everything will taste smokey and MIL will give you the look (ask me how I know 🤣🤣🤣)

Totally agree with this.

Know your limits.

If you are nervous about cooking meat, buy a good instant read thermometer, which takes all the guesswork away.

Keep gravy hot in a flask if you don’t have space.

Meat keeps warm for ages out of the oven, cover with foil and pile clean tea towels on top.

Fewer options but more of them, and if you do starters/puds, go for something that needs no last minute prep. We do profiteroles and trifle; profiteroles are stuffed the day before and you can bung the cream on the trifle first thing in the morning and forget about it.

Delia has a good cheat sheet with timings.

I've have ordered Turkey and ham already cooked and sliced from the butchers. Will just heat up on the day.
Spuds and veg prepped the night before.
Have ordered dessert (huge cheesecake) from a local supplier that comes frozen so just need to leave that in the fridge night before.

Will hopefully only have an hour or so work to do on the day.

How long are your guests staying for? My MIL usually offers to make dinner on Christmas Eve so that helps. Or get something nice from a local delicatessen, to save yourself cooking a meal. Lots of breakfast treats in the house. And overcater on Christmas Day so there are enough leftovers for Boxing Day (cheeses, hams, smoked salmon, nice bread etc). Give people jobs to do, and ask them to bring food or drink. When we were younger and were still visiting family at Christmas we'd buy case of wine and take a homemade Xmas Pudding. DBro lives in Switzerland so always takes a massive box of chocolates. Don't have a baby at Christmas time, hosting birthday parties at Christmas time is not a good way to relieve stress.

On the day itself, cooked breakfast for everyone (allocate to someone else to do) with lots of bucks fizz to drink so people are full and not getting hungry waiting for Xmas dinner. Have all your veg prepped the day before. Have at least one slow cooker, I like to do my pudding in mine, SIL likes to do a soup course in hers. It's not time precious so you don't need to worry about it. I like to have a cold starter that can be preprepped.

Make sure you have a few days off work after the guests leave so you have time to relax before starting work in the New Year.

Some great advice here!

Buy 2-3 potato peelers so people can help.

Let people help. It’s a good icebreaker and they relax more if you’re not stressed.

Check your glassware, cutlery, plates and table cloth is all present and correct at the start of December. Borrow more as you need to or get some cheap additions from IKEA ahead of time.

Prep veg on Christmas Eve where possible.

Plenty of croissants/pain au chocolate on Christmas morning so people can grab what they would like and not be too desperately hungry for lunch.

Lay table on Christmas Eve.

Write yourself a schedule so you know exactly what needs to be done, sequentially, when. Put it in your phone if needed. Takes the pressure off.

Make someone in charge of drinks - charging and recharging glasses.

Make someone else in charge of coats/music.

Wear something comfortable but glam - black always good so if you get splattered with something when cooking it is less obvious/easier to hide!

Don’t forget to order in dishwasher salt/tabs/foil/bin bags/napkins/candles ahead of the big day

Cut corners where you can. People will remember if they were made welcome and had fun. They won’t care if you were up at 4am making your own stuffing.

If you think your way through the day in advance and make a list you will feel more in control and, most importantly, ENJOY it!

Set your phone alarm for a couple of moments during the day so you remember to take a beat and appreciate everyone being around you. Like your wedding day, if you don’t make sure you stop to appreciate it, it is suddenly over!

Have board games, charades, conversation starters to hand. If things start to get tense, deploy as helpful to move things to safer ground.

Make sure you have things planned to reward yourself late Christmas Night or on Boxing Day. A hot bath, a movie you love, a walk you especially like to take…

Good luck, it will be brilliant!

Ah OP - enjoy! Easier said than done, but I loved planning our first hosted Christmas.

I always go for a buffet / help yourself style arrangement in the kitchen so everyone can plate up themselves then take it to the dining table.

I set up a drinks station, with bottles and glasses all set up together, make sure everyone knows where the ice is in the freezer and insist everyone feels free to help themselves. This way no one is on drinks duty.

I like to use a few foil trays to cook everything in, as it helps with the washing up afterwards.

Get a selection of puddings, custard, double cream, ice cream so everyone can help themselves and no one has to eat something they don't like.

Have a few bowls of nibbles, crisps, chocolates out for guests to graze on.

And like others have said - just keep things simple, make sure people are willing to help themselves to drinks so you're not running around after them and washing up afterwards!

Have fun! X

Make your gravy ahead. I have just made mine and stuck it in the freezer. Used the Jamie Oliver tip of making it with cheap chicken wings and just adding turkey juices when ready-heat on the day

Prep ahead or buy pre prepared so you can be present and have fun - the best host is the one who is having a nice time, otherwise everyone else feels a bit on edge that one person is harassed!
Plenty of snacks.
Ask someone to be on drinks duty so they can do top-ups / make tea and coffee. People usually don't mind having an easy job like that as feels like they're helping whilst not having to do much!
Don't bother with an extensive Xmas tea and making piles of sandwiches- cheese board, Xmas cake, pre brought sausage rolls is plenty after a big dinner.

Basically @ginandheels said!! - 'Cut corners where you can. People will remember if they were made welcome and had fun. They won’t care if you were up at 4am making your own stuffing.' A good reminder for all us hosts.

the best host is the one who is having a nice time, otherwise everyone else feels a bit on edge that one person is harassed!

That is so true!

Buy lots of foil trays and prep everything in them the day before. And do anything else possible the day before like laying the table, getting plates/glasses ready.
Keep all your booze in a box outside the back door to save space in your fridge.
We hosted for 12 last year and I actually had a lovely lazy morning in bed as I’d done so much prep the day before so really it was a case of putting things in the oven and constructing some canapés. I told everyone to arrive for 2 so we had plenty of time and I didn’t need to entertain them for hours before dinner.