Spanish Christmas

Spanish Christmas foods include all the celebratory dishes prepared for the occasion of Christmas in Spain. The eve of Christmas, in fact ,calls for more of a celebration with families reuniting and revelling in the spirit of Christmas. In keeping with traditional Spanish customs, Christmas Eve known as "La Noche Buena," literally interpreted as "The Good Night" is a night of merry-making with families attending the midnight masses at church and then following up with special dinner with friends and dear ones. This Christmas eve dinner, on the 24th of December, is considered by far, the most important meal in the Spanish calendar. Spaniards rejoice with family reunions and elaborate feasts that usually last a few hours and include several courses. In fact, the day of Christmas is itself a quiet affair with the family singing traditional Christmas songs and exchanging sweets and gifts. 

Customarily, the Spanish Christmas Feast or Christmas Eve ceremonial dinner begins with some tapas or appetizers, a first course, the main course, and finally the dessert followed by coffee or some after-dinner drinks.

Appetizers or Tapas

• Garlic Shrimp or Gambas al Ajillo- a quick but extremely appreciated appetizer with each bite of the juicy prawns exuding the flavour of garlic, paprika and lime.

• Deep Fried Squid Rings or Calamares a la Romana/Fritos are a much-liked tasty, fried, appetizer flavoured with thyme, paprika, garlic and lemon. 

• Ham and Cheese Spanish Chorizo Sausage or Jamón, Queso y Chorizo eaten with bread.

These exclusive appetizers are served along with superior quality Spanish red wines.

The first course or Primer Plato

This usually consists of a soup or salad starter and is maintained light keeping in mind the main course that is to follow.

• White Asparagus with oil and vinegar or Esparragos Blancos are soft spears of the vegetable that are very delicate in flavour and texture.

• Spanish Pasta and Seafood Salad with Classic Romesco sauce made using almonds, roasted red peppers, oil, vinegar and garlic. Pasta and choicest seafood are tossed in this rich sauce before serving with mayonnaise.

• Creamy Spanish Prawn Soup or Sopa de Carabineros is a thick creamy soup using fish broth flavoured with tarragon.

Main Course or Plato Principal

Generally the main course is called segundo plato, or the "second" course and consists of Beef, lamb, poultry, fish or game that may be served with rice or potatoes that feature as part of this filling course.

• Spanish Egg and Sausage Casserole – is a true comfort food that may easily form part of Christmas feasts.

• "Pavo Trufado de Navidad" - is the celebrated Christmas turkey with truffles, which are a mushroom-like delicacy from underground used to provide a distinctive flavour to this prominent dish.

• Roast Lamb or Cordero Asado - Christmas is incomplete without indulging in delicious and flavour rich lamb roast.

• Home-fried Potatoes or Patatas Fritas - As a side dish alongside roast lamb, these home-fried potatoes make the ultimate pair.

• Mixed Green Salad or Ensalada Mixta – Since the Christmas dinner is full of so many rich and heavy dishes, a healthy light salad must be present to cleanse the palate and balance the meal.

Dessert or Postre

One of the most anticipated courses, the dessert course, keenly awaited by guests and prepared by the host with utmost care, has a selection of Spanish delicacies with traditional treats like:

• Spanish Crumble Cake or Mantecados
• Famous Almond cookies or Polvorones that simply melt in the mouth
• Spanish nougat or Turron consisting of honey roasted almonds with caramel

all of which are synonymous with Christmas festivities all through Spain.

Beverages

Christmas celebrations most certainly include high-quality drinks such as cava i.e. Spanish sparkling wine and other traditional Spanish red wines.

More often than not, a final round of either a piping hot cup of espresso coffee and/or a small shot of Spanish brandy such as anise liqueur or the Cardenal Mendoza brand etc. are called for, in keeping with the high spirits.  

A Healthy Christmas Eve 

A few tips in order to make the festivities a little more health oriented –

·        Tapas or appetizers may be steamed instead of being deep-fried or they may be oven baked for equally good results with much less fat and calories.  Seafood tastes great both ways.

·        Tapas maybe served with flavoured tahini as the sesame seeds are high in Vitamin E, protein, calcium, zinc and manganese.

·        A healthy hearty soup using avocados, cucumber, garlic and olives which may be served hot or cold; would provide a good source of monounsaturated fats that help to fight the bad cholesterol, LDL. Also this would help to fill the stomach and have lesser of the other foods.

·        Main course dishes may be prepared using minimum amounts of olive oil, meats should be lean cuts, and cooking methods like braising, grilling and steaming used, so as to minimise fat content in dishes. A lot of vegetables can be used in different ways to increase vitamin, mineral and fiber content of the dishes. Spanish Paellas and traditional Stews and Casseroles may be prepared following these procedures. 

·        Dessert may be made of fat-free yoghurt, sweetened with blueberries and dates to cut back on fat and sugar intake while increasing the anti-oxidant and iron content of the meal.