IN SEASON
Get ready for Christmas
With Christmas around the corner, it’s time to start planning – if you haven’t already!
from last year show that the average family spends over £800 on Christmas celebrations – and food and drink makes up around 28% of the total spend. From groceries, Christmas meats and kitchen equipment to Christmas
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shopping breaks, here are some ways in which you can start the preparation early and get ahead before the big day.
While some of your Christmas groceries will need to wait until closer to the date, it’s important to plan ahead as
Tamsyn Gregory, Farm Shop Supervisor at Lagan Farm Shop in Gillingham, Dorset, explains…
How early should we be starting our Christmas grocery shopping? Now is a good time to start looking for those special items that will make Christmas extra special. Consider things like local chutneys which would create interest when you bring out the cheeseboard and be a talking point for visitors, along with local beers, wine and spirits, which are good to store up from October. T ey also make lovely presents.
How close to Christmas should we leave it to buy fresh ingredients? Vegetables and meat are best leſt to the last week. It makes sense to order in advance and just pick up nearer the time, knowing you will be getting everything you want and avoiding the long queues! We will start taking Christmas meat orders from October and people can pick them up right up to Christmas Eve.
What would be your advice for those who have limited space? If you have limited space it would be best to buy as much as possible nearer the 25th December. Ordering in advance would defi nitely help with this and take the pressure off .
Is there anything you’d recommend buying early, freezing and defrosting for Christmas? All of the fresh ingredients are available early and ideal to freeze, from vegetables and Yorkshire puddings to desserts. Christmas meat is ideal to freeze, and it’s worth having a joint or two in the freezer for unexpected guests.
Do you have any tips for those shopping for groceries on a limited budget? Spreading the cost by buying a few luxury items each week helps. Also, look out for off ers and put them away till Christmas. Adding a few locally made tasty products to your basic groceries can add a bit of luxury. Cooking from scratch and forward planning your Christmas meals helps.
Do you have any other great tips for Christmas grocery shopping? To get that extra special homemade taste without having to do too much cooking, look out for local food fairs and Christmas markets. We are having a ‘Meet T e Producer’ Day on the 20th of November, which is an ideal opportunity to see what local artisan producers are making and have a taste before buying.
As Christmas approaches, we see our farm shops and butchers pack their shops full of whole turkeys, turkey crowns, beef joints and other large cuts of meat that are perfect for festive entertaining. But should you leave your meat shopping until the last minute? Somerset butchers Jon T orner’s say no…
T ere is always enough food in the shops right up until Christmas, so you may ask why you need to prepare and plan your Christmas food shopping in advance? Everyone wants their Christmas
dinner to taste incredible and look impeccable, so you need to decide on what you want to serve your guests. Are you a traditionalist? Do
36 | THE WEST COUNTRY FOODLOVER
t’s never too early to start planning for Christmas – aſt er all, some people start their Christmas shopping in the Boxing Day sales! Getting things ready for the festive period nice and early not only means that you’ll feel more organised and less stressed, but it’ll also help you to spread the cost: statistics
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