Traditional meals over Xmas

[Fuschia]

Just being nosy really

Do you have a tradition for meals on Xmas eve, Xmas day breakfast, tea, boxing day lunch etc ...

I used to make blueberry pancakes on Xmas day but recently discovered baked fruit clafoutis which us similar but diesnt involve toiling over the frying pans ...

[BeccaL]

Father Christmas breakfast courtesy of the Raymond Briggs book - bacon, eggs and toast. If it's good enough for the man himself after all his hard work, it's good enough for us to start our day!

[sillywoman]

I'm afraid that Christmas and birthdays are the only day's we're allowed outrageously expensive and completely sugar-laden "lucky Charms" for breakfast. Along with the bucks fizz for me of course ;)

Also, turkey curry on boxing day - well it has to be doesn't it?

[jollybaby]

Shepherds' pie on Christmas eve. Breakfast on Christmas day tends to be ferrero rocher!

[Fuschia]

I had to look that up, sw

How did you get into those?

Boxing day is always salads, cheese, left over turkey etc, for us (was traditional Xmas day evening food when I was small but we have lunch later than I did as a child so there isn't much need for a big tea)

[crystal7]

Smoked salmon, scrambled eggs and bucks fizz on xmas morning after all the choc coins in stocking of course! Left overs on boxing day.

[sillywoman]

Dad is American F, & I lived a large part of my early childhood there. Hence a real predilection for junk food (well that's my story & I'm sticking it). Nothing to do with being naturally greedy of course!

[Fuschia]

Ah sw

:-)

[snowboarder]

Can we agree that chocolate orange is a meal? I don't really feel that christmas day has begun unless I have eaten at least one...:-)

Otherwise we just have the usual - but I do like nice comfort food on christmas eve.

[Fuschia]

Sb: so nothing particular Xmas day diary from Xmas lunch? Nothing boxing day?

[ClareC]

Nothing set on Christmas eve, smoked salmon and scrambled egg Christmas morning, boxing day is always cold meats (turkey and bacon joint) with bubble and squeak, pickles and chutneys.

There is ALWAYS a large tube of smarties consumed!

Out of interest @ how many presents does rather Christmas bring each child these days? My two have a sack each which is bulging!!! Not actually a huge number of presents, more bulky packaging.....

[sillywoman]

ClareC, this year FC is working on 9 pressies (1 big, 8 small-ish) each child and a stocking. He's nearly bankrupt & wondering why he does this (goes over the top) each year.

[Fuschia]

5 each for the twins plus a few bits

2 biggish ones and a fed bits for the 8 up

Baby hasnt got much

Oops

[snowboarder]

But that's another complication - how you 'do' presents! In our house father Christmas leaves you a stocking of fairly small presents, and then your 'main' presents (3 each this year) are under the tree and are from mummy and daddy. But I know in some families father Christmas is the only bestower of gifts...

Saying that I have yet to do a final tally of the unopened amazon parcels, think might have gone overboard on duplo..

[Belle]

feel mean now - J getting one main present + stocking, and one 'from' his little brother. that's it! mind you stocking has some nice stuff in it i guess. It's just I know the family will go mad with pressies. and birthday a month after xmas!

we vary food each year - this year doing either a capon or 2 chickens, with a big ham, leftovers for boxing day. always have red cabbage etc. bucks fizz/champagne and smoked salmon on brown bread when opening presents.

[Fuschia]

Sb: one present left by Santa on Xmas eve as he passes by early in the evening

Two piles each on

The day colour coded

From us

From fc

That's 8 sorts of paper we need

Presents from family usually on boxing day

[Ruth_Baldock]

Disclaimer: i am Jewish, which makes this all hilarious.

With Mr B and extended B family ( ILs)

Bacon baguettes for brekkie

Always always ways have prawn cocktail as a starter. Always.

Also, mr b and family are Portuguese and its tradition to have salted cod (bachalau) on xmas eve. Vay nice.

[crystal7]

We've only got E 1 present and a stocking belle for the same reason! Do people wrap the presents in the stocking?

[Mellors]

Husband has informed me stocking presents must also be wrapped (note: he does no wrapping!) *sigh*. We never had stockings as kids, so I had no idea how the what we've bought/what FC has brought thing works, but have settled on FC bringing stockings, and family doing tree presents.

Fish pie Xmas Eve (fish is traditional on my side - Russian)

Homemade Norwegian cinnamon rolls for brekkie (just cause they are yum). And Quality Street.

Roast for lunch (beef this year)

Cold cuts, baked pots & ham thereafter.

Trifle, mince pies, Xmas pudding.

:O)

[Pickle]

We didn't do stockings as children either, I find it all very confusing!

Hubby in charge of wrapping this year so I'll leave it up to him whether or not he wraps all the tat he insisted I buy to put in said stockings. Personally I'm a fan of a couple of big pressies, and would rather steer clear of all the unnecessary extra stuff.

We've decided the kids "main" presents are from Santa, the rest from us (although that said, we've really only got them a main present, plus all the stocking tat). However Santa delivers all the presents from Grandparents etc., so we only have a few things under our tree pre-Xmas.

Our breakfast on Xmas day was always a bowl of honey puffs (the kiwi equivalent of sugar puffs - full of everything bad and nothing good) and toast while sitting on the living room floor opening presents. My Mum was always pretty anal about us eating in the living room so it seemed like a massive treat :)

NZ Christmas dinner (in our house anyway) never involved roast vegetables due to it being summer time, so for us it was minted new potatoes, peas and baby carrots along with the meat - which more often than not was lamb or cold ham rather than turkey. Yum.

[Fuschia]

Thank goodness one of mr f's sisters buys and wraps stockings for us (all 6 of us) and I just pay

Have settled on cold meat, baked potatoes, red cabbage and a parsnip gratin for boxing day (various relatives coming, about half of us are veggy) and I will

Make a pear and mincemeat strudel

[crystal7]

Hm think we might need to wrap them though ours never were... There's been some discussion about which presents are from FC and which from us. I prefer it to be just stockings from FC and everything else from us, relatives etc. OH thinks everything should be from FC. We're doing it my way as I bought and wrapped all of them!