“Made in Denmark” not only describes our tasty bars, but also a wide range of cosy Christmas traditions. In this post, we’re sharing four Danish Christmas traditions that will up the good cheer factor in your home for an unforgettable festive season. Happy holidays to all!
Kalenderlys – the Danish Christmas candle
Like an advent calendar, the calendar candle counts down the days to Christmas. The numbers 1 to 24 are printed down the side of the candle, and the idea is to burn the candle down a little bit every day until Christmas Eve.
The Danish word “lys” (pronounced lewss) can mean both light and candle. The Danes call burning candles “levende lys”, or living lights. Candlelight plays a key role in hygge, the motto of the cold and dark winter season – and what could be cosier and more inviting than gently flickering candles.
Risalamande – the Danish Christmas dessert with a surprise
Danes love to celebrate Christmas with a Julefrokost, a lavish Christmas meal that can last all day and invariably includes Risalamande as a dessert. This dish is cold rice pudding served with whipped cream, chopped almonds and vanilla. The festive pudding always includes a small surprise: as well as all the small pieces of chopped almond, there is a whole almond hidden somewhere in the serving bowl. The person who gets this almond on their plate wins a small prize. How about one of our delicious RAWBITE bars?
In other Scandinavian countries this dessert is called Julegrød, which translates as Christmas porridge.
If you want some inspiration for a vegan Christmas meal, check out Asta Just Schack’s recipes for RAWBITE.
Pakkeleg – exchanging gifts the Danish way
And while we’re on the subject of gifts – a really popular game in the Christmas season is Pakkeleg. The idea is that everyone brings a small wrapped gift and places it in the middle of table. Everyone gets to throw the dice and, if they roll a six, they can pick a gift from the pile.
It is entirely up to you – and your creativity – what type or size of gift you contribute, but as it’s more about the fun of the game than the actual gift, people usually choose something small.
The rules may vary from household to household, but usually once all the gifts have been picked from the pile in the middle, the next rounds involve trying to roll a six to claim another person’s present.
To add some extra excitement to the game, there are other rules associated with different numbers: pass the gifts to the left, pass the gifts to the right, exchange all gifts with one person, exchange one gift with one person....
At the beginning of the game, one person sets a stopwatch which counts down the time until the end. As only this person knows how long the game will last, it adds an extra thrill because no one knows what’s in the gifts or how much time is left to try and get your hands on a particularly tempting looking present.
BTW, the bigger the wrapping around the gift, the more enticing and popular it usually is. So if you want to have a little fun, take a RAWBITE bar, wrap it up in a giant parcel – and look forward to the reaction when the lucky winner gets to unpack it 😊.
Top tip: Have a super sustainable gifting season by avoiding wrapping paper and using old newspapers instead. You’ll find more tips for a sustainable Christmas here .
Julestjerne – advent stars as DIY Christmas decorations
Hot, steaming tea, the glow of candles and a few hours of happy crafting making cheerful Christmas stars – what could be cosier in the festive season? These home-made stars are great as decorations, for wreaths and to hang on the Christmas tree. They’re also lovely presents and can be used as beautiful gift tags. Like origami, they’re folded, so no glue is required: all you need is four strips of paper the same width.
Glædelig jul from the RAWBITE Team!
Pure Taste. Pure Joy.
