Christmas dinner 1950s style

[Arabica]

Help, I have pregnancy brain and my researching skills have deserted me. Does anyone (or their mum) know what might have been served up for Xmas lunch in 1956 or thereabouts, compared to today's festive feast? I promised I'd help teenage neighbour with project, and am drawing a blank.

If there was a main course it would probably be soup, but for a treat you might have had tinned grapefruit segments. Definitely Turkey and christmas pudding. Veg would have been traditional - sprouts, carrots, parsnips, roast potatoes. No broccoli or any veg from abroad. Christmas pudding would be served with custard or brandy butter or some sort of white sauce with brandy (or brandy flavouring)in it. No cream - unless tinned or bottled. Nuts and tangerines. Glass of sweet sherry (kept from year to year) before the meal. If there was any wine it might well be a sweet one like Sauternes.
No sooner had the washing up been done and every one had stood for attention for the Queen, then the women would be back in the kitchen to get the tea on.

Goose was quite a common alternative to turkey, at least in Ireland where my family comes from.

A Christmas project in June?

I think in 1956 it would have most likely been roast pork or a chicken. For ordinary people, that is. There would have been homemade Christmas pudding, served with Birds custard. To drink there may have been raisin or ginger wine (non-alcoholic).

1956 was post rationing so probably wouldn't look that different from today, just lack of exotic veg as mentioned below.
I do remember my mum telling me that christmas pudding was considered too rich for kids so they had jelly instead.

Don't forget the bread sauce!

Some info here

That link mentions the Burco copper. I've only just thrown our (inherited) one out! Used it a couple of times to boil Christmas puddings. It was very good!

Am leafing through my grandmother's Good Housekeeping which seems to be a 1958 edition. I think 'no cream' is pushing it a bit, as rationing ended in 1954 i THINK and certainly cream is a popular ingredient in the recipes. Several versions of 'mock cream' are still given here though (one made of egg white and golden syrup whisked together, another made of butter, sugar, milk and vanilla essence). Also a big section on Economy Cooking. Anyway, unfortunately this book has no specific Christmas section so not much help - just cake and pudding. Roast turkey and roast goose, with chestnut stuffing or sage & onion stuffing respectively. (ds crying )

Thank you so, so much for responses so far, especially to JackieNo for the link!

what about dates and silverskin cocktail onions

sausage meat stuffing as well as sage and onion

mince pies

nestles cream?
mashed and roast potatoes

gin and tonic or martinis as preprandials

stuffed olives

i LOVE that Good Housekeeping edition, is it the big black one with 543 pages of cakes and buns and just the 7 on vegetables? Love it.