Week of food for Christmas for MIL and FIL visit

[LondonFox]

Long post alert!
Need to provide background.

We are having MIL and FIL for a week staying over Christmas. We have baby (10m) and toddler 2.5y.
Inlaws are quite specific about food regime as they start with first breakfast at 6am and eat every 3h until lunch at 1. They just snack around for the rest of the day. No medical issues, just the way they are used to.

Children have lunch at 12 and during summer inlaws agreed to "eat early" as it is a nightmare to have starving toddlers. However, it was just once a week lunch visit.
Now I need a full week strategy.

We normally have light lunch (soup/sandwich type/salad) and normal dinner when DH is done with work. This is kinda clashing as inlaws eat starter+main+pudding for lunch and not much after. Although FIL eats untill midnight if he likes what is around.

So I need at least five lunches and dinners that are substantial meals but not overly bizzare combos - I cannot imagine cooking pasta bolognese for lunch and stew for dinner as these holidays are last before I return to work and children go to nursery so I'd prefer spending some time with them and DH.
Delivery is out of budget and MIL does not cook.

Any food ideas for lunch and dinner combos for a day are wellcome. I need five days total.
Christmas will be big brunch and turkey for dinner as I am in no scenario roasting it for 12. Boxing Day will be leftovers.

This is great advice!

I couldn’t be annoyed with this.

Get some things in for breakfast and some snacks that you like some that will keep if they don’t all get eaten. At lunch time say I am doing dinner at dinner time this is what we are having for lunch. Completely understand if you prefer to eat out or cater for yourselves but we find this easier. But either way offer up what you normally (soup, salad, sandwiches, light lunch).

At tea or dinner time either roast a ham, cook a chicken, do pulled pork or do a curry or a bolognaise or whatever you normally like to eat (ideally make double quantities (of some meals) and you can have it again the next night or later in the week (to minimise cooking). Or say roast a chicken or cook a joint of beef one night and make a curry the following night etc. Also factor in a couple of very easy quick dinners as you have young children.

Although as I have got older late 50’s I can’t stand eating after 7pm as I find food really lays heavy on my stomach so if you normally eat late this if maybe why they prefer a main meal at mid day but the constant snacking is bonkers.

6am and every 3hrs the. Eat at 1

So they eat 6 9 12 and 1

Cook Extra evening before if they need a large cooked meal

Or can their son sort out meals for his fussy parents

dcadmamagain · Today 14:09
Personally I think the easiest solution is you cook your dinner and eat it and keep their portions to be reheated st lunchtime the next day. Tgst way you’re not cooking twice!

They don't like leftovers sadly.
Although I might get away if I freeze some batch cooked bolognese/chicken in sauce/meatballs etc. and discreetly reheat that for lunch :)
Someone mentioned tray baked dinners and that sounds good, it's holidays time so it can be mix of healthy and more fun/fastfoodish items.

Yes, they normally eat 6-9-11-1-4.
Issue is that they eat half loaf of bread with ham, cheese whatever around 11 so aren't in the mood for cold/light lunch at 12.

I'd bring out the slow cooker and make a casserole or stew one day, a curry another day, chilli another day, spag Bolognese another day. The other 3 days they could have jacket potato and cheese, leftover Bolognese or leftover chilli. I'd offer fruit crumble or a yogurt for dessert.

I'm slightly confused. Do you need 2 different main meals per day if both you and your ILs usually only eat one substantial meal per day, albeit at different times?

Is your DH working during their stay or can you eat your main meal at lunch time with your ILs and a lighter meal in the evening? Maybe everyone could shift their mealtimes by 30 mins so the DC can eat with you too? Do your ILs eat another large meal in the evening when they are staying with you? Could you make soup and bread for you at lunch time and something more substantial for the ILs that you and your DH eat for dinner while they have soup and bread?

How the hell can they eat sandwiches at 11 then 3 course lunch at 1???? Did your DH eat like this growing up?

How anyone can eat thay much food is beyond me. Seriously 😟 I would not be entertaining that. It actually isn't normal to eat so much...
what on earth is wrong with breakfast, lunch and dinner? If I was visiting relatives I wouldn't dream of dictating eating times/habits. So rude of them. And expecting breakfast at 6am when you have two small kids? Give over.

Cook the main meal ready for lunch then leave leftovers for DH? Just swap it around.

For the other food just get in what they like and let them help themselves.

Honestly this is too much. If they won't eat leftovers, they should fend for themselves.

They don't like leftovers

It's the same blood meal they ate the night before ffs

Hope they are contributing to food bill as well

Oh my word I would not be pandering to this level of fussiness/complexity.

Your DH will be doing his bit to accommodate his parents, won’t he? (Won’t he??)

There is no accounting for in laws…🙄

I see why you feel pressure to accommodate their food preferences, but I think you might find you end up hating them if you try to cater for them and your children for an entire week.

If they can sort their own breakfast, I would just have bread/ham/cheese/crackers/salady bits & nibbles in the fridge and suggest they help themselves at a time which suits their digestion. If they like puddings maybe have some pot deserts and a couple of cakes available for them to work their way through. You can feed some of it to your kids at their lunchtime.

It’s a pain that they don’t want to eat with the rest of you in the evening but all you can do is offer. I think I’d do a couple of slow cooker meals and tray roasts ready to serve at kids dinner time. They can be invited to ‘graze’ on what they would like from that in the evenings. They might not eat a full chilli with rice, but they might have some of the sauce and dip in some nachos just to be sociable? But either way it sounds like as long as you have a freezer full of bread and a wheel of cheese, they will be more than able to fend for themselves.

This really isn't an issue.

You don't eat the main meal until evening so dont change that

Get In lots of breakfast items. Croissants, pan au chocolate etc.

Crackers , cheese, dips , quiches, crisps

Make a soup, jacket spuds or salad for lunch

Main meals at night.

I would get some things done and bunged in the freezer

Lasagne
Chilli

It really annoys me that this is somehow your problem to solve. I bet your DH their son is not posting on bloody forums asking for advice.

Given however that this is how society is constructed. Get a load of stuff in. They help themselves/DH makes it. You can do tinkly laughs that you're busy with the children.

Yes! He did.
When I met him it was just bizzare, like pork chops sandwich at 11 and full lunch quick after.
He is happy now with light lunch (easier to keep in shape and not sleep during work) and substantial dinner as it is also time when we all socialize as family. Especially when it gets dark early it is a nice event to fill evening (we eat around 5-5:30)

Yep. If you have the funds just go to whatever naice supermarket is nearest to you (or make an online order, or better yet send your DH out with that very, very long list) and pick up lots and lots of single serve lunch/dinner and pudding options. Put it all on a shelf in the fridge and let them cater to their own needs as suits them.

Do not be running around after them whilst trying to keep on top of absolutely everything else.

You eat your main meals in the evenings just as you normally would. Have naice soups in case they decide they would like a supper.

Sorry the ‘yep’ was in reply to and agreement with what @OhamIreally said above.

Batch cook sone one pot things and freeze in advance? Chilli, bolognese, mince (can be mince and tatties one day, shepherds pie another day? Couple of pots of soup you can pull out of the freezer too? Maybe a lentil, a cream of mushroom or a tomato based one? That way you just need to cook veg or ice etc to go with and zap the soup or main course? Then add salad, bread, cheese etc for the week and there will always be a main course and soup available for lunch or dinner? Means the bulk of the shopping and cooking is done in advance too.

Extremely odd habits- I would leave it to them to buy and cook their own stuff- haven't they got anything better to do with their time?

What sort of food do they give you if you visit?

Do you have a big freezer?

They "don't like leftovers," tell them to go fuck themselves and their entitlement. And get your DH to take the week off to deal with their batshittery. It's Not. Your. Job.

Where are they coming from? I’m going to guess Spain?

Sounds like they’re going to moan anyway so I wouldn’t try very hard to be honest.

It won't be leftovers - it will be fresh meals batch-cooked in advance!

Breakfast - have a stock of eggs, yoghurt, cereal, preserves, bread/pastries, cooked breakfast items if they eat those, tomato/cucumber, cheese. They can prepare their own and snacks or light supper as needed.

Dinner - what time do they normally eat an evening meal? Presumably you don't eat that late with young children?

Slow cooker /soup/traybakes are your friends