Irish Favour Traditional Christmas

We’re a traditional old lot here in Ireland it seems, especially when it comes to Christmas. According to a survey carried out by Avonmore Cream this year, we Irish favour a traditional Christmas over all.  86.5% of us will sit down to a Christmas feast of turkey and ham with all the trimmings. 52% of us will dive into Christmas pudding, with 32% digging into trifle and cream.

Our enthusiasm for choosing different desserts on Christmas Day could be attributed to a new generation of home cooks who like to experiment more. According to Irish TV celebrity chef Neven Maguire, who has created a range of recipes for Avonmore Cream says. “Christmas for me is a very special time for family and friends and most people still stick to traditional recipes passed down from generation to generation. However, when it comes to desserts, we are definitely more daring and I believe this is down to some of the great cookery TV programmes at the moment. Among my favourite desserts are Raspberry Almond & White Chocolate Tart; Eton Mess, which takes minutes to prepare but can be dressed up in the most dramatic way; and my twin brother David’s favourite, Baked Alaska.”*

Christmas is a time for spending with family and this year will be no different according to the survey which shows that 55.2% intend to eat Christmas dinner in their own homes, compared to 43.4% who will go to family and friends. The most popular times to serve Christmas dinner is between 2-3pm (36%) followed by 3-4pm (26.5%).

We are a generous lot when it comes to spending money on presents for family and friends! 35.5% intend to spend between €200-400; 25.1% between €500 and €600; 9.8% between €600-700 and 20% will splash out between €600-1,000 while 8.3% said they intend to spend between €1,000 and 2,000. When asked if they would spend more on Christmas presents this year than before 18.8% said that they would; 49.2% it will be the same as before, whereas 31.9% said they would spend less.

Asked if there are family arguments on Christmas day, the answers were split almost in two with 49.9% saying ‘never’, 44.2% saying they quarrel ‘a little’ while 5.9% said that here is always squabbling on Christmas Day in their homes! As for the cause of these rows 15.9% said it is over toys/presents; 6.2% say it is about food; 26% said it involves arguments over what to watch on TV while 40.9% said it has to do with helping out with preparations and the serving of Christmas dinner.

According to Eithne O Hara, Marketing Manager, Glanbia Consumer Foods Division “Christmas is our busiest trading time and 1.5 million households in Ireland will buy Avonmore Cream during Christmas week which equates to almost 300 units bought every minute during Christmas Week.”

The Avonmore Cream survey was carried out in association with its recipe website cookwithavonmore.ie which features a wide selection of Christmas favourite recipes, celebrity chef tips and tricks and a special Christmas Emag containing exclusive Christmas recipes and free competitions.