Christmas Menu help

[Sugarandsalt]

I'm cooking Christmas dinner at home for the first time this year. 4 adults and a toddler (3 grown men with large appetites!). I've ordered a goose, which I will do with potato stuffing. And Brussels sprout gratin.

Looking for inspiration on starters, sides and desserts please! Preferably something which can be made in advance as I only have one oven. We eat anything except mushrooms.

[Wolpertinger]

I don't bother with a starter as once you've done roast, red cabbage, stuffing, pigs in blankets, potatoes, carrots, parnips, sprouts, cranberry sauce and bread sauce there is ENOUGH!

Also I hate gravy and you can get away with out it with a goose + cranberry and bread sauce as it's v moist. Both go really well with goose.

Delia (the saint of Christmas) has a great cranberry sauce, bread sauce and red cabbage all of which you can make ahead.

[Sugarandsalt]

Monday actually one of my guests loves cheesecake so that's an option too. And I do make a good cheesecake. Not mad about cranberries, maybe a Ferrero Rocher one with some gold sparkle?

Smoked salmon also an option, could bake soda bread the day before maybe.

[DellaPorter]

Doing a few peas and plain ish carrots always in my plan as the children love them. Along with Yorkshire puddings (not very traditional)

[WaccaWacca]

Fledgling - not too rich for xmas dinner! They go really sweet and soft.

[AtleastitsnotMonday]

I'm doing this Cranberry cheesecake as an alternative to Christmas pud.

[sashh]

I've lived all my life (50 years) in England and never had bread sauce.

I was going to suggest chicken liver pate as well.

Other simple starters - smoked salmon wither on brown bread or rolled around some cream cheese. Filo pastry parcels containing brie and mango chutney or mushrooms.

[Sugarandsalt]

This is the sprout gratin. It's delicious!

[HolgerDanske]

Do not plan on having any leftovers from one goose if there are four adults, three of whom are hungry men. It's worth having less of it though as it's so good. And remember to save all the goose fat!

[bookbook]

I'm not a fan of bread sauce tbh, but I know others are. When I cook goose ( and yes, it really doesn't go far) I always do a family forcemeat stuffing recipe using sausage meat .I make it separately the day before, it freezes , It's delicious and everyone fights to take some home for sandwiches .
Everything else sounds lovely!

[TondelayaDellaVentamiglia]

no...it's as well as gravy. Nothing could ever be instead of gravy.

I am worried about the sprout gratin tbh :) ....but then I am no fan of sprouts :o

What's the recipe for that...I do have sprout lovers weirdos in the family

[Sugarandsalt]

Oh butter makes everything taste better! I'm normally roast my veg with honey and balsamic, but think that is too much vinegar if doing cabbage too, so I'll probably do them in oil and cumin.

I wasn't going to bother with mashed potatoes if doing roasties and stuffing. Especially as all my guests are Irish and will just lament the differences between English and Irish potatoes (I don't bother with spuds normally so can't tell the difference). The Sprout gratin is rich and filling anyway.

[FledglingFTB]

Wacca a block of butter on your carrots! Was it not overly rich?

[Sugarandsalt]

Bread sauce sounds delicious. I think I'll try that (time to make some of my own traditions!). I think I'll add beetroot to my roast veg too. I can do my Brussels sprout the night before and reheat, and ditto red cabbage and moose so shouldn't be too terrible. DH can clean the house.

[annandale]

I don't bother with a sit down starter, especially this year - guests arriving 10.30, champagne and bits then before we go for a walk - I will likely do Ritz crackers with a few things, maybe soft cheese and red pepper, smoked salmon and er perhaps pate?

We're having beef this year so will do Yorkshire pudding, with roasts, red cabbage, broccoli and some sort of carrots - I remember doing a thing with carrots roasted in cumin and oil I think, was lush. Will probably do cauliflower cheese. Given all that, I really like the sound of the M&S red cabbage...

[WaccaWacca]

Tom Kerridge's Christmas Carrots are amazing and you can make ahead. They were the star of Christmas dinner last year, everyone raved about them.

link

[TondelayaDellaVentamiglia]

my bread sauce starts with half a small onion (a shallot would work too) really really finely chopped, into a pan of milk with a bay leaf, parsley stalks, little bit of celery and a single clove...tie it all in together if you like...like a bouquet garni If you are not keen on the onion being left in then you can leave it in bigger bits and pick it out with the herbs later

I heat that to a boil and then just let it sit until it is cool, pick out the herby bits

Then I break some nice bread into small pieces and drop them into the milk, I don't use breadcrumbs as I think that makes it gluey, if you bash about with a wooden spoon the bread will disintegrate anyways

bring it back to a high heat and keep stirring, and then I let it down with single cream...also at this point add in plenty of S&P and a really good grating of fresh nutmeg

I do mine the day before, it will thicken dramatically overnight, but it will reheat nicely in the micro, and you can always stir in some more cream to let it down again...it wants to be a nice dolloping texture, not runny, sort of like cake mixture

i make mine is a small milk pan, with a couple of slices of bread...and I really really like it in a turkey and ham sandwich spread on the turkey like mayonnaise.

[Sugarandsalt]

And does it take the place of gravy? I love to cook but always struggle about with gravy (mainly because I don't love gravy so find it hard to judge!).

[MrsPnut]

I adore bread sauce and will eat it with almost anything including goose.

[Sugarandsalt]

Sweep potato stuffing is a traditional goose stuffing in Ireland (works well in turkey too). I use my family recipe which is basically cooked potato with scallions, salt, pepper, thyme, a little flour, lots of butter and a little orange zest; it needs to be all mixed very well with you hands. Then added to the bird. Some people grate apple into it as well. I'm not a potato lover but it's delicious.

Getting excited about my first Christmas of my own (and I'm well into my 30s!).

Don't worry everyone, I know the goose won't have lots of meat but it should be enough for 4 adults and a little person- we will eat the legs, wings and giblets too!

[ScenesFromAnItalianRestaurant]

I'm thinking of throwing some beetroot in with the roast potatoes, parsnips and carrots this year, for a change.

[Sugarandsalt]

Thanks Tondelaya, I don't expect much leftovers from the goose, I am working the next day and then travelling so don't want much leftover meat anyway. I prefer turkey but DH loves goose and figured less leftovers anyway.

Can you tell me about bread sauce? It's something I've never tasted (not British!) but some Scottish colleagues tell me it's the best think about dinner! Would it go well with my (hopefully delicious as it's bloody expensive) goose?

[Hassled]

Goose is lovely, but what looks like a sizeable bird turns out to be a third fat - so by the time it's roasted, it's shrunk considerably. I cooked a nightmare meal once where I overestimated the amount of meat and guests ended up with a tiny forkful each. So maybe be mindful of that - you'll need a lot of padding/sides.

[SweepTheHalls]

What's potato stuffing?

[Sugarandsalt]

My toddler will probably try anything. And if she likes it she will pronounce it "yummy and gooey" which she thinks is a compliment! (If I'm sounding a bit smug it's because she ate almost no solids until she was 2 so it makes me very happy to see her eat!).

I love chicken liver pate but it's very rich and heavy before a goose I think! Delighted to hear red cabbage can be made in advance. Parfait sound like a good dessert.

Might make some platters of cheese and nibbles that can be eaten in front of the tv later.

So I'm thinking: prawn cocktail to start, goose, roast potatoes, potato stuffing, roast carrot/parsnip, red cabbage and sprouts, then parfait. And then platter of pig in blankets/other nibbles with leftovers later (we will have dinner at 1ish).

[TondelayaDellaVentamiglia]

double check your goose size...there is not that much meat on a goose compared to size

we don't bother with starters, and for sides I do roast dinner stuff, but fancier

so fancier roasties, colcannon instead of mash, herbed roast parsnips, cheesey leeks, buttery carrots with a orange zest

also love all the sauces, cranberry and especially bread sauce...deeeeeeeeelishh!