Miss Thrifty's Christmas supermarket picks
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Who needs Delia, Darina and Corrigan when you've got Marks, Tesco and Aldi ?
This week, in the name of research, I trawled the aisles of Ireland looking for the best Christmas produce and some choice table picks - here is a selection that I hope will bring good cheer:
Some picks for Christmas Eve :
I always keep Christmas Eve light. Given the tirade ahead it's the sensible option. A few choice meats, a cocktail stick or two and a few readymade pastry bases being the limits of my expertise, some sun dried tomatoes and melted mozerella are perfect. If you have a spare corner on the table Tesco have an excellent Chinese Selection Pack - six mini prawn toasts, six chicken wan-tons and six spring rolls for €4.
For charcuterie try Aldi Prosciutto Di Parma (€2.99) or their Spanish Serrano (€1.49). If there are a few of you, the M&S Continental Connoisseur platter (€10.99) is excellent, and of course, no deli being complete without olives, Tesco Feta stuffed Olives (€3.11) and Aldi Specially selected Kalamata Olives (€1.99) are worth a mention. Assuming you're not eating too late, finish with Aldi specially selected Irish Brie de Meaux (€2.99).
For sweet treats M&S luxury mini mince pies (€4.79) were rich but not too much so, and being only a mouthful you won't peak too early on the mince-pie front. Team with Tesco's rich Luxardo vanilla liqueur cream (€2.07) and, no Christmas being complete without the shortbreads, the Aldi Luxury Butter Shortbread Selection (€2.99) were good for both the pocket and the palette.
Christmas table items:
I'm not a fan of prawn cocktail, so when it comes to starters I prefer a platter, for which the M&S seafood selection (€20) will work quite nicely if the numbers are right. Juicy langoustines, crab meat and garlic prawns are excellent for the price. For a salmon course M&S Cassidys Whiskey and Honey smoked salmon has a rich flavour (€4.99), although another option may be the Aldi Organic Irish Salmon (€3.99) teamed with Ballymore sliced wheaten Bread (89c).
For Christmas dinner I found a wonderful Cranberry Sauce with Port at M&S (€2.99), a very decent Phillippe Michel Sparkling Chardonnay (10.99) at Aldi, and for pudding you could do far worse than M&S Classic Pudding (€6.99), serve with Tesco pouring creme with Courvoisier Cognac (€1.37).
I'm not sure how you do this. Does the cheese come before sweets and coffee, or is it the other way around ? I'll go with the cheese, and of the assortment I tried, two stand out. The first being the smooth and full-bodied Ashley Chase Mature Truckle (€6.99 M&S) and the second being the mature Tipperary Blue (€2.99). Honourable companions to the above would be Aldi Oakwood smoked cheddar - very reasonably priced ( €2.99 ) and the Beacon Blue Goats Cheese (M&S €10.99). On the Stilton and Port front, M&S Stilton Jar (€8.99) will make for an excellent reserve gift in the event that someone unexpected pops by and since you're already there try the Reserve Port (€10.99) which, while being full-bodied, won't leave your cheeks too flushed.
Coffee and chocolates:
Aldi Java Roast (€2.49) are made for a rich enough brew while the M&S Belgian Truffles (€6.99) are absolutely divine. I'm not sure what all the foodies will make of this, but I'm going to finish with my favourite deal of the festive season, After Eights for €1.50 at Tesco - minty ... yes, chocolatey .... of course and cheesy .... sort of. Merry Christmas.
Sinead Van Kampen is the editor of The Savvy Shopper . For a rundown on fashion and food bargains plus regular insider tips visit TheSavvyShopper.ie website.
- Sinead Van Kampen
