This document discusses several traditional English foods eaten at Christmas, including pigs in blankets (small sausages wrapped in bacon), mince pies (sweet pastries filled with dried fruit and spices), cranberry sauce (served with turkey, originally from Massachusetts), Quality Street chocolates (invented in the late 19th century to make chocolates affordable for all), Yule Log cake (shaped like the traditional log burned in homes), and After Eights mints (thin mint chocolates eaten after dinner and a popular Christmas game involves them).

1. English Food at
Christmas
By Olivia, Gaia and Grace

2. Pigs in Blankets
● Pigs in blankets are small sausages wrapped in bacon,
● We only eat them at Christmas
● The earliest written record of pigs in blankets was in 1957
● They are quite little and are eaten as part of our big meal on Christmas at
lunchtime.

3. Mince pies
● Mince pies are mini sweet puff pastry pies that have dried fruit and spices like
cinnamon and nutmeg in them.
● Mince pies were originally filled with meat, such as lamb.
● During the Stuart and Georgian times mince pies were a status symbol at
Christmas. Very rich people liked to show off at their Christmas parties by
having pies made is different shapes like stars, crescents, hearts and flowers.
● Children in the UK often leave out mince pies with brandy or some similar drink
for Father Christmas, and a carrot for the reindeer.

4. Cranberry Sauce
● Although cranberries cannot be grown in
Britain because we don’t have the right climate,
lots of families enjoy their turkey with cranberry
sauce during christmas dinner.
● Although sweetened with sugar, it is naturally quite sour with a strong flavour.
● Cranberry sauce was first offered to consumers in 1912 in Hanson,
Massachusetts but since then the trend has caught on in Britain and it is now a
tradition for lots of families.
● In 1941 consumers were able to buy it all year round for the first time.

5. Quality Street
● Quality Street was originally invented
by John Machintosh in Halifax, Yorkshire in 1890.
● When he died his son Harold Macintosh inherited
the business and created the commercial quality street we see today because
boxes of chocolate used to only be affordable for the rich and he wanted them
to be available for everyone.
● To achieve this, the packaging costs were cut by wrapping the sweets instead of
separating them in the box. They were also put in one large tin.
● He also created Major Quantity and Miss Sweetly to boost morale during the
economic depression.

6. Yule Log
Yule Log cake comes from the Scandinavian tradition of burning a huge log on the
fire, to protect and bless the house. The log had to be big enough to last the night,
and it was said in some cultures that the ashes from the Yule Log were supposed to
ward off the Devil.
However, as fireplaces in people’s houses became smaller, it was hard for people to
burn Yule Logs, so people made a cake in the shape of the Yule Log to go on the table
as a centrepiece.
They are traditionally made with Genovese sponge cake, buttercream, and
decorations like holly leaves, berries or mushrooms!

7. After Eights
After Eight Mint Chocolate Thins, or “After Eights” are thin mint-flavoured
chocolates eaten after dinner - or after eight!
They are a Christmas favourite in the UK, because they are light but tasty!
They were created by Graham Edwards Rowntree and Company in 1962.
A popular Christmas game to play with After Eights is one where each person has a
chocolate placed on their forehead, and they have to get it into their mouths without
touching it by wiggling their face! This game is very fun, and yummy too...

8. Quiz
● What used to be in mince pies?
● Who invented quality street?i
● What is the earliest written record of pigs in blankets?
● True or false? Cranberries can be grown in Britain