Free printable Christmas lunch planner (for an Aussie Christmas)

An Australian Christmas lunch is a beautiful kind of chaos: 34 degrees, three generations, a pavlova, an esky full of prawns, and at least one person who’s “just bringing a salad” and arrives with a watermelon.

This free planner won’t stop the chaos, but it will help you organise it.

In our family, I’m the one who does the big spread: my 13-hour lamb with its jus, trays of focaccia, and a tower of profiteroles to finish. This is the planner I use to keep it all on track.

What’s on it

• Guest list, with a column for each guest’s dietary needs
• The menu: starters, mains, sides, desserts and drinks
• Who’s bringing what, so you don’t end up with four potato salads
• A countdown: two weeks out, one week out, Christmas Eve and the day itself
• A shopping list, grouped by aisle, with a “don’t forget the ice” reminder

For the table itself, print our matching menu and place cards.

The countdown

Two weeks out

• Confirm numbers and ask about dietary needs
• Plan the menu and share the “who’s bringing what” list
• Order anything that sells out: the ham, the seafood, the special cheese

One week out

• Do the big shop for pantry and drinks
• Check you have enough chairs, plates and eskies
• Make anything that freezes

Christmas Eve

• Pick up the fresh food
• Prep the salads and desserts that keep overnight
• Chill everything. Then chill some more

Christmas Day

• Set up the shade before the guests arrive
• Cook, graze, nap, repeat

Guests who eat differently

Christmas is when every dietary need in the extended family arrives at once. A few tips:

• Ask early, and write each person’s needs on the guest list
• Make a few dishes that suit everyone, rather than a special plate for one person
• Label the dishes on the table, and keep packaging handy so guests can check ingredients themselves

Always check ingredients and allergen labels, especially for guests with allergies.

Where My Tomte helps

My Tomte keeps your friends’ and family’s dietary needs on file, so the planner already knows who’s coming and what suits them. Plan the meal, and the shopping list writes itself.