What food to put on for a daytime family visit

[HappyKite2067]

I have family dropping in between midday and 5pm on a weekend over Christmas. I do not know how long any of them will stay and they are not very organised, so I could end up with ten at one time or a couple here and there!

It’s a bit of an odd time for food, and none of them will commit to if they will eat. ‘If there’s something I might have a bite’, that type of thing. All my family are quite fussy, with a range of dietary requirements.

I don’t want to come across like a rude host, and I also don’t want to waste food/money! Any ideas?

Small buffet, ham or salmon, a few salad items and cheesy puffs.

Get a load of those part-baked rolls, and you can cook as many as you need when you know who's coming. Keep a quiche, chicken/veggie nuggets and some sausage rolls in the freezer, maybe a pizza as well, and if you are good at batch-cooking chilli then a vat of that portioned out and frozen might come in handy as well.

As long as you have a white cabbage, carrots, onions and some mayo you can whip up coleslaw in no time at all, again, according to the volume required.

Will you be cooking a large joint of gammon at any point over the holiday? That goes a very long way and lasts pretty well too.

Oh yes, and cheese. Don't forget cheese and a variety of pickles.

A couple of different soups, eg minestrone & French onion, some part baked bread rolls, some cheese & crackers, some eggs so you can offer omelette if required.

I'd leave out some stuff that won't spoil (crisps, nuts, posh cheesy breadsticks, festive fancy biscuits) and then have a cheeseboard prepped in the fridge, plus biscuits for cheese, chutney, grapes etc. pre-prepped and ready to go for when the first people arrive.

Any dietary stuff on a separate platter, eg gluten-free biscuits for cheese.

Most people aren't that fussy if cheese is fridge cold and it'll last a few hours outside the fridge if it starts out like that, especially if you serve it on a glass or marble cheeseboard that went in the fridge with it.

I'd so a simple Christmassy buffet.

Home made sausage rolls, veggie samosas, a good cheeseboard, warm bread, maybe a baked ham or side of poached salmon as you could freeze what you don't use. Salads, crisps, olives, mince pies, sliced stollen or pannetone or yule log.

All stuff that can be wrapped up and used for lunch the following day if they don't eat anything.

My family are a bit the same. Sometimes I just message them with a menu so they know to come hungry!