If you’re like me, the best part of Christmas has to be the food, the entertaining, and spending time with friends and family. I’m not the type to get too flustered by cooking, but I don’t like to spend a lot of time in the kitchen when there’s so much else to do, so my favourite way to feed the masses over Christmas is with a big cold buffet spread.

Can you believe I got this whole spread from Aldi for under £25?!

One of my treats every year is to nab a big potted Stilton, and this was only £2.85. It’s fabulous with preserved pears, chutneys, or stirred into a creamy soup with broccoli for a light and comforting meal.

There’s always going to be leftover turkey hanging around, but honestly, who wants to eat that on the third day in a row? Save your dry turkey for some proper leftover meals and get a helping of prosciutto – £3.99. Its strong flavour means you don’t need a lot, but it’s a festive addition and makes the spread even more special.

And I always say it wouldn’t be Christmas without smoked salmon! This is actually one of the nicest smoked salmons I’ve had – oak smoked and infused with Monsigny Brut champagne and orange oil. It really elevates it to something magical, and it’s another really special addition to a Christmas spread. You can also purchase a version with Scottish whisky, both £3.99.

I couldn’t resist snapping up these crimson jewelled pork pies either! Tiny bite-sized mouthfuls with a rich and tangy cranberry sauce on the top, they’re perfect for making it look like you’ve made an effort – and they’re only £1.59. All you need to do is open the packet…

I don’t know about your house, but in mine, there’s always a pâté on the go at Christmas time. It’s a great starter for Christmas dinner, a great evening meal when you need to eat but you just want something light, and it’s so easy to add to a spread like this. I selected the Brussels pâté with garlic, but Aldi do some gorgeous pâté jars including Brussels Pâté with Camembert & Cranberry, Chicken Liver Parfait with Thyme & Basil, a Vegetarian Potted Cheddar & Red Onion Chutney or Smoked Salmon with Chilli Jelly, all for £2.99 each.

I also couldn’t walk past these adorable mini quiches in the freezer section. SO handy to have at home – you can keep them safely frozen for the whole holiday season, and break them out for lunches in January if they don’t get eaten. But I don’t know how you can resist these, because they’re so cute and really delicious. Adding these to a spread rather than a whole quiche means that there are more flavours for people to try, and they’re not put off by having to balance a plate in hand and cut a slice for themselves. The flavours were Stilton and broccoli, quiche Lorraine and goats cheese and red pepper.

Now, here’s the centrepiece – the cheeseboard! I’m a massive cheese fan and my friends and I always have a pre-Christmas cheese feast, where everyone brings cheese and crackers and we get stuck in. You don’t have to buy the most expensive cheese you can find to get a quality product – all of these cheeses were just £4.49, and they were all flavoursome and disappeared pretty quickly! Inside the British Luxury Cheese Selection I picked up were a slice of St Endellion Brie, mature red Leicester, Shropshire Blue, Coastal Bite Cheddar and White Stilton with blueberries.

The selection even came with name tags for all the cheese and wine pairings inside! Such a great extra, especially when you have a lot of people over and they keep asking which cheese is which!

I served them with the sea salted crackers, a punnet of white grapes, and a carton of festive, leafy clementines. There’s nothing like a big bowl of clementines to make you feel Christmassy! I also picked up a jar of sun dried tomatoes and a jar of onion chutney too. This spread will feed 4-6 people easily with leftovers for you later on!

Aldi is full to the brim right now with gorgeous treats and delectable feasts – check out their range here. Their puddings and roast joints are off the scale, and they have some incredible ready made party platters too.

Thank you to Aldi for providing me with a gift card that went towards purchasing this feast! Opinions and photography are my own.