A Stress Free Christmas – Part 10: Christmas Dinner
Turkey & Trimmings…
Well we’re nearly at an end to my 12 Part Guide to a Stress Free Christmas! Hopefully you’re feeling super organised, with most (if not all) of your present shopping done?
Now, it’s food shopping on the agenda. Whether you’re hosting the whole of Christmas or just a small part of it, now is the time to get your food and drink ordered for Christmas dinner and all the trimmings so there’s no disappointment later on.
If you read Part 7 of My Guide to a Stress Free Christmas then you should already have your menus planned and have a good idea of what your shopping list is going to be. So now it’s just a case of deciding where you’ll be buying your Christmas food and drink from. Here’s a quick reminder…
Chances are that if you want to, you can just order the whole shabang from your local supermarket, but seeing as we’re being really organised here, it’s worth checking if that’s actually the best way to go.
Before I go on, I would like to stress that my suggestions below are NOT based on any commission and neither are they based on any experience of the companies I refer to. I am just sharing the results of my own research in the hope it will help save you a bit of time 🙂
Meat/Fish
Do you have a local butcher of fishmonger? If so, chances are, you’ll certainly get better quality fare from them than from your supermarket. It may even work out cheaper too so it’s definitely worth looking into. Another option to consider is whether you can order any of your meat or fish online – again, potentially it could be cheaper and/or better quality. Plus, I’d much rather support a small business or local farmer than a massive supermarket! I’ve been doing a spot of gentle research and have found a few Christmas deals worth a look…
Stilton Butchers – 30% off Christmas Earlybird Hamper
Piper’s Farm – 10% off first order
Booze
Supermarkets tend to have some good deals on alcohol, especially around Christmas but again, always worth having a little lookie to see if local off licenses can offer you something better. Online options also tend to offer good savings so it definitely pays to shop around. A few more of my findings below:
Bargain Booze (the name says it all!)
World & Craft Beer (got to be worth a look, if only for the great punnage – ‘Good Libations’)
Majestic Wines – their offers are always worth a little look
Naked Wines – get a good bargain AND support independent wine makers!
Fruit & Veg
I recently started getting a weekly veg box from a local farm and I am so glad that I did. Guaranteed freshness, guaranteed organic and guaranteed to support local business rather than faceless supermarkets. Here are a few options to consider:
Some final practicalities
When ordering your food, consider your delivery/pick up date carefully…
Will you be there? Don’t arrange for the food to be delivered when you’re going to be round at Aunt Marjorie’s for her annual mince pie ‘do’
Do you have enough room? Plan where you’re going to put everything. Will the veg go in the garage or in a garden shed for example? If you’re going to struggle for storage space then perhaps consider staggering your deliveries accordingly.
Will your food still be fresh? While it may be most convenient to get your delivery 2 weeks before Christmas, chances are that most of the food will be past its best by the time the big day rolls around!
Take me to Part 11: Christmas Cards & Mince Pies
Catch Up:
Part 2: Making 3 lists & Checking them twice
Part 5: Christmas Party Planning
Part 6: Present Shopping – Round 1
Part 7: Christmas Food & Drink Planning
