Food to buy this Christmas

I spent a few hours in delis, Melissa's, Pick n' Pay, Checkers and Woolworths to see what has been launched to make our feasts delicious, fun and well Christmassy.  In general, I was very disappointed.  Although there is a lot of tinsel and shiny stars adorning shelves and surrounding the aisles there is very little Christmas fare launched just for Christmas.  Pick n Pay was the most disappointing.  Other than some not very nice looking Christmas cakes and mince pies there was no other Christmas themed bakery or dessert products.  Checkers was as dismal however, I found this Whiskey cake which looked like a nice stocking filler for a dad or a grandpa.  Perhaps you could match it up with a bottle of Glenfiddich.

Whisky Cake from Glenfiddich

 

Melissa's Christmas wreaths are lovely - but Pricey!

Melissa's Christmas fare was very pretty and the display was festive and everything is beautiful wrapped and displayed, but where does she get those prices.  These Candy Cane Biscuits were R32 for 3 tiny little biscuits with a bit of sugar icing.  The cannot cost more than R5 to make!  I get very tired of being ripped off for novelty.  Melissa needs to realise that rich people are rich because they do not spend their money so stupidly.

These looked lovely and great to be able to buy only 1 for a treat for yourself and not a 6 pack

Woolworths is the only retailer who has some Christmas cheer and i found some really stunning meat and Poultry products worth buying but I still feel that across the categories it is a pretty poor show.  Perhaps South Africans don't 

buy into Christmas food shopping enough for the retailers to warrant the volume. Perhaps its too early and the really exciting stuff will come next week.

How can this cost R32!

Jammy Stars for the kids. 

So...from Woolies I liked their range of whole birds smoked.

Lightly Smoked Turkey

Melissa's Christmas Wreaths

 I also like their Free Range Duck stuffed with chicken and yummy things.  This is ready to roast and makes preparing duck so much easier.  It also guides you well on how to cook it if you are not used to cooking duck.  I will definitely be buying this.  Depending on weight it is around R150.

Lightly Smoked Chicken

 Don't forget to buy a corned beef and Woolies have the best.  It is great if you have a crowd and is awesome cold on sarnies.  You can layer left over turkey and corned beef for a christmassy club sandwich instead of using bacon. 

I didn't find anything new in terms of Christmas cake or mince pies or stollen, but i loved their mini Christmas selection which is really great for a christmassy bite without the heaviness of some of these Christmas specialities.  I find a nibble of Christmas cake, marzipan and plastic icing quite enough and this pack is reasonably priced at R50 and is great for a granny present or if you want to bring a slight christmassy end to your dinner or lunch.   A few on  plate for an afternoon tea party round this time of year is also well worth the spend.  The stollen was a bit dry but quite edible.

the Yule Log is back and was a great success last year, so if you have missed it go and indulge.  Same old in terms of other desserts though.  Does no-one get bored of the bulk trifle and bulk profiterole.  Is it that good?

Lastly the cheese dome is a nice hostess gift on the shelves and at a good price.

Enjoy Christmas and I will be searching the tables for interesting holiday feasts.