The Christmas feast that feeds 8 and costs under $50

Brought to you in partnership with Woolworths.

What did one reindeer say to the other reindeer?

Look, I don’t know. But I do know how to make a cracking Christmas feast on a budget. THAT I do know. I’m not just saying it, I’ve done it, and I’m sharing it with you below. This feasts costs just $47.95, and feeds 8 adults or even more if you’ve got a mix of adults and kids.

It’s easy to go overboard at Christmas time, and that often ends in stress. It’s not necessary, you can have fun, entertain loved ones and not break the bank. It’s really easy when shopping at Woolworths. It’s always comes back to these things for me:

1. Plan ahead. Choose a menu {just copy mine, easy!}

2. Shop online. I tend to only buy what I need when I shop online, which is super budget-friendly.

3. Always look for Woolworths Own Brand products. They’re better on the budget and the quality is always spot on.

You’ll see below that I’ve broken down what each dish costs to create, so you can swap and change out what suits your event. If you’ve got more people, it’s easy to make it for more. Add another chicken, buy more potatoes, or simply add a favourite salad to the table {grilled zucchini, sprinkled with herbs and fetta is always a winner}.

Here’s how to make a Christmas lunch extravaganza for 8 people for under fifty bucks!

ROAST CHICKEN: Every feast needs a star of the show, and for our dinner we had roast chickens. Now, this is the key to budget, because if we’d opted for a roast lamb or beef the spend would have been much higher. One chicken I made my own stuffing {day-old bread torn, Woolworths stuffing mix, a chopped brown onion sauteed, and a little water to moisten}, and the other I just stuffed with a lemon {easiest way to add flavour to a chicken}. The key to a really delicious chicken is BUTTER. Run a single finger between the skin and the chicken breast, and then pop butter underneath. Pop into a preheated oven at 190ºC for 30 minutes per 500g {so if your chicken weighs 1kg, you’d cook it for an hour}.

POTATO BAKE: Who doesn’t love a potato bake? Peel, halve, and slice one kilogram of brushed potatoes and place into a baking dish. Drizzle half a container of thickened cream over the top, season with salt and pepper and then pop into the microwave for 10 minutes to soften the potatoes. You can do this the day before and then pop into the fridge. When you’re ready, sprinkle with a handful of cheese  and pop into an oven at 180ºC for 40 minutes until golden and delicious.

CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI BAKE: My family loves me for this dish! I quickly boil or steam the cauliflower and broccoli until tender {or until the broccoli is bright green, don’t cook it beyond that!}. Drain and place into a large baking dish. To make the cheese sauce, place 125g of butter into a saucepan and allow to melt over medium heat. Add in 1/4 cup of plain flour, and stir until it forms a paste. Let it cook out for 1-2 minutes. Slowly pour in milk {you’ll end up using around 500ml} and whisk to mix everything, cook over low heat until it thickens. Add in a handful of cheese, and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper and then pour over your cauliflower and broccoli. Sprinkle with a little more cheese, and I also like to crush up a handful of plain chips and sprinkle over the top. Trust me, it’s a game changer. Cook for around 40 minutes until lovely and golden.

MAPLE ROASTED PUMPKIN AND COUSCOUS SALAD: You are going to love this! Peel and dice pumpkin into cubes {around 1.5cm} and then place onto a roasting tray, along with slices of red onion. Drizzle with a little oil and a little maple syrup and cook at 180ºC until the pumpkin is soft. Prepare the couscous per the packet instructions {I doubled my quantities}. Once cooked, add in 50g of butter and allow to melt throw. Break up the couscous with a fork and place into a serving dish, along with half a packet of Woolworths Baby Spinach. Top with the pumpkin and red onion. Drizzle with a little more olive oil.

BAKE-AT-HOME BREAD ROLLS: Everyone loves bread, so these are the perfect ones to buy and bake on the day of your Christmas celebration. Sprinkle with water and pop into the oven. Serve with cubes of butter.

LEMON TART: This is my favourite thing at Woolworths at the moment. This lemon tart only costs $6 and it tastes SOOOO good, and is the perfect way to end a filling, indulgent dinner party. Serve with cream and rasperries, or just on it’s own. Totally up to you. Just take it out of the freezer and rest it before your guests arrive, so it can slowly defrost.

Here’s what I bought:

+ Inghams Whole Chickens : $3.90/kg : $11.86 for 8 serves
+ lemon for stuffing : $6.80/kg : $1.16 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Stuffing Mix : $1.35 for 200g : $0.33 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths salted butter : $5.00 for 500g : $1.00 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths brushed potatoes : $1.48/kg : $1.75 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Thickened Cream : $2.90 per 600ml : $1.45 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Tasty Grated Cheese : $5.40 per 500g : $1.00 for 8 serves
+ Cauliflower : $6.90 per cauliflower head : $6.90 for 8 serves
+ Broccoli : $2.37 per broccoli head : $2.37 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths salted butter : $5.00 for 500g : $1.25 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Drought Relief Full Cream Milk : $2.39 for 2L : $0.60 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Tasty Grated Cheese : $5.40 per 500g : $1.08 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths plain flour : $1.00/1kg : $0.15 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Crinkle Cut Chips : $1.60 for 175g : $0.70 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Cous Cous : $1.77 for 500g : $0.44 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths salted butter : $5.00 for 500g : $0.50 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Olive Oil : $4.00 for 500ml : $0.40 for 8 serves
+ Butternut Pumpkin : $4.90/kg : $3.43 for 8 serves
+ Red onion : $3.50 for 1kg : $0.58 for 8 serves
+ Maple Syrup : $5.00 per 100ml : $0.50 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Baby Spinach : $2.00 per bag : $1.00 for 8 serves
+ Bake at home bread rolls : $3.50 for 12 rolls : $3.50 for 8 serves
+ Woolworths Lemon Tart : $6 for 450g : $6 for 8 serves

P.S, if you’re looking for something a little bit special, I can’t recommend the brand new Woolworths Mini Dessert Selection enough ($20 for 20 serves) – perfect for entertaining and just $1 a serve! It has mini lemon tarts, gooey caramel chocolate brownies, red velvet cake and ripple cheesecake. Stop me, I’m drooling.

So there you go! That’s it. The budget-friendly Christmas lunch that you can totally make and not break the bank!

What are you doing this Christmas? Got plans for great things?

 

Prices correct as at 17th November 2019.

from
https://fatmumslim.com.au/the-christmas-feast-that-feeds-8-and-costs-under-50/