Christmas, these days, comes with surprises. You may plan for eight people, and get 12 or four instead. There will be surprise guests who don’t eat meat or wheat. The day might be too hot, or too cold. You may have been so busy you have done no planning whatsoever and will need to cover up that fact with some fancy footwork. So here are some last-minute tips and tricks to help save the day, no matter what Santa has in store.

Do a Christmas grazing board

Instead of a formal sit-down meal, create an instant buffet with a Christmas grazing board. It’s easy, adaptable and you can keep adding things all day if you get more guests than you bargained for.

Some ideas:

• Slices of baked ham, salami and mortadella
• Tomatoes and burrata (creamy fresh cheese)
• A very big hunk of cheese and walnuts in the shell
• Bowls of dips, pickles, chilli sauces and mustards
• Roasted peppers in olive oil
• Terrines and pâtés
• Sardines and anchovies
• Lots of good crackers and pull-apart dinner rolls

Escalate

Take the grazing board concept and elevate it with seafood: piles of freshly cooked prawns, sliced avocado, smoked and cured salmon, little gem lettuces and bowls of cocktail sauce on a pretty board. Lay it all out and wait for the oohs and aahs.

Pre-batch your cocktails

Make negroni by the litre – just combine equal parts dry London gin, Campari and sweet vermouth. Bottle, seal and refrigerate until required. Serve over ice and garnish with orange peel (if it’s hot, add a dash of soda).

Do the same with a Christmassy punch – cranberry juice, alcoholic or non-alcohol apple cider, dry ginger ale – and serve over ice with sliced oranges and berries. You don’t have to own a punch bowl to do punch.

Delegate

Tell people what you would like them to bring. They love being able to help out, whether it’s with salads and vegetables, booze, cake, plates, cutlery or bonbons.

No turkey? Roast two chooks instead

Rub the birds with butter and sea salt, truss the legs with kitchen string, and roast at 200C fan-forced (220C conventional) for 15 minutes. Drop the oven to 170C fan-forced (190C conventional) for 15 minutes per 500 grams (for example, 1.5kg chicken will take 1 hour). Spuds and carrots will cook in the same time.

Or bring Boxing Day forward

Given that everyone loves lazing around on Boxing Day eating leftovers more than they love eating too much on Christmas Day, just skip the big one and go to Plan B with loads of sandwich fillings, cold beers and fruit cake.

Dietaries

Do big platters of roasted summer vegetables with creamy white beans, and pomegranate-studded, lemon-drenched quinoa tabbouleh for those who don’t do meat or wheat.

Dining solo

Set the table for one (beautifully), and roast a poussin at 180C fan-forced (200C conventional) for 45 minutes. Serve with peas, gravy and stuffing, because you’re worth it.