Holiday Holly Hostessing: Simplify Christmas Brunch for a Crowd

This post is brought to you in partnership with The Honey Baked Ham Company.

It’s entertaining season and I would like to enjoy the entertainment. Confused? Hosting the party is incredibly fun and I love doing it, but it is a harder way to enjoy the celebration. Stressing about the food is just that: stressful! This year I wanted to show off my funky Santa collection and still enjoy the party, so I went for an easy brunch for a crowd. From Christmas morning to fellow White Elephant Brunch parties, there’s a great way to enjoy the season with a huge breakfast buffet that doesn’t leave the hostess glued to the stove.

For the easiest holiday brunch with crowd-sized portions, try these three ideas…

DIY Waffle Bar

One $9 miniature waffle iron + one box of pancake batter + one tray of toppings makes for a party full of opportunities! Every year we make a DIY waffle bar – think an elevated version of the kind you see at hotels – complete with jams, fruits, syrups, and spreads. Our new mini waffle iron is actually perfect for the party because waffles cook in just over one minute, so the line keeps moving quickly. To make pouring easier, we divided the batter among small cups so guests could simply spray a bit of cooking spray, pour their waffle, and wait. Small clean up, little prep work, and a big impact!

Slow Cooker Casserole

Did you know your slow cooker can cook eggs? I was skeptical so I made a test batch and loved it. Add some of your favorite breakfast foods into your slow cooker, like eggs and frozen hashbrowns, then walk away while they finish. It is so simple and easily customizable. We added peppers, but cheese and bacon would be great too!

A HoneyBaked Ham

The centerpiece of our party was “The World’s Best Ham,” aka bone-in ham from The Honey Baked Ham Company. These moist and tender hams are slow-smoked for up to 24 hours which means they arrive to you delicious and ready to eat. No cooking! No thawing! No extra thing to remember when you’re in hostess mode! (Just remove them from your fridge before the party and let them come up to room temperature, which takes about half an hour.) It’s easy to tell from the beautiful, crunchy glaze that it’s HoneyBaked Ham – and the sandwiches you can make with the leftovers are my favorite part. You don’t even have to worry about carving it like you do a turkey, as a HoneyBaked Ham is spiral sliced and simple to serve. Everyone at our party kept wandering to the table to admire it and was quick to dig in when I said it was okay to start eating. Lance and I are already talking about the next holiday that would pair well with ham. Christmas morning sounds like a good idea!

To keep our party extra simple, I added several premade sides like HoneyBaked heat-and-serve cinnamon apples and a box of local donuts to our table to other morning favorites like muffins and fruit. Everyone left with full stomachs and I had actually spent my morning enjoying the party instead of stressing in the kitchen. It was the least amount of work I’ve ever done for a party and one of the best times I’ve had experiencing it.

Sufficiently hungry? Same. Lucky for you, Oh, Julia Ann readers can enjoy 15% off online orders ($149 and below) from HoneyBaked Ham. Yum!

This post was sponsored by The Honey Baked Ham Company.

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