Festive Foodies

Being a foodie is part and parcel of working at Higgidy. So, we’re ramping up the Christmas spirit and sharing some of our favourite traditions for the festive season. All of them are wonderful, some even a little weird! Take a look …

Start your Christmas early

Simon’s (our Stock Controller) wife is Polish. Together with their family, they celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve and, in keeping with her Polish traditions, they have Pierogi. This is a delicious dumpling filled with anything from mushroom and sauerkraut to meat and cheese. This could be a perfect Christmas Eve treat to keep everyone’s hearts content, ready for the big day.

Similarly Mark, our Managing Director, lived in Norway when he was little. Every Christmas Eve, he and his parents would join in tradition of making Risgrot for Christmas Eve lunch. Mark described it as a ‘signal that Christmas was coming!’. The dish is a rice porridge with vanilla and is topped with sugar and cinnamon, with a dab of butter in the centre. A lovely winter warmer!

Keep it boozy

Amy, our Brand Manager, makes Christmas cakes every year with her nan and sister; they’ve done this every year since they were young. Each year her nan loves to add a quirky twist to the cakes. A few years back, she soaked the cakes in Malibu rather than brandy, giving them a slightly unusual (but delicious) kick.

Then, for the non-drinkers among us, Alysha our Food Director has created a revolutionary recipe: mulled apple juice. Simply make in the same way as you would mulled wine, but swap the wine for some fresh apple juice.

Spice up your roast

Sometimes stepping out of tradition for something alternative can be a great idea. Abi, our Head of People, adds a bit of a twist to a Christmas gammon. Instead of the traditional Christmas flavourings, Abi creates an exotic jerk gammon packed full of exotic tastes, really brightening up the Christmas spread! Maybe have a practice run before the big day but adding some new seasoning could be a great way to put a smile on everyone’s faces.

What to do with the left-overs

Ana has recently joined the Higgidy team and has brought with her quite a different tradition… ‘my step mum does this funny thing at the end of a roast. She gets the end slice (the crust) of a loaf of bread, puts it on a plate, smothers it in gravy then eats it with a knife and fork’. Quite an excellent way to fill up any hungry bellies and put spare gravy to good use at the same time!

Pudding? We’ve got it covered

Nikki, from our Food Team, has a tradition where she makes a Blackberry Bombe for Christmas pud. This tradition has been in her family for years, passed down from her mum. Sadly, the recipe is top secret and too delicious to share (we’re just hoping that she makes one for the office)!

Nikki also has a wonderful tradition for the kids. When her own children and nieces were young, her mum would make them ‘ice-cream snowmen’. To make these, you simply build a little (or large) snowman as you would normally but made out of ice-cream. Then decorate it with sprinkles, squirty cream and anything you can find! These are a firm favourite in her family and something fun to bring to the dinner table. They’re loved so much that Nikki is asked to make them even now when her children are 21 and 19.

Every family has their own traditions and they are something to be shared and celebrated. Making Christmas your own and spending time with family over delicious and well-loved food is something to be cherished. Our Higgidy family are always sharing recipes and trying out each other’s cooking and so we thought a great way to spread some festive cheer would be to share them with you. We hope you’ve enjoyed them and are inspired.