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During the Christmas holidays, which usually end on January 6 with the anniversary of the Epiphany, the true local tradition manifests itself in the kitchen.

In fact, the Christmas holidays are the occasion during which the most traditional dishes are cooked such as lasagne, roasts and typical desserts such as Pandoro and Panettone.The latter, to tell the truth, are hardly prepared at home anymore but given to friends and relatives as a gift of good luck and good wishes.

Pandoro and Panettone are the most traditional desserts of Italian Christmas together with nougat, whose consistency and recipe varies from region to region.

Pandoro and Panettone, on the other hand, faithfully follow the traditional recipes that come from Sicily and Lombardy.

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Epiphany and other Italian Christmas traditions

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Epiphany and other Italian Christmas traditions

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Among the most famous Italian traditions there is certainly that of the Epiphany which, as we often hear, "all parties take away".

The epiphany is celebrated with the symbol of the Befana, an elderly lady who travels astride a broom, dressed in rags and covered in soot as she passes through chimneys.

During the night, the Befana leaves sweets for good children and coal for those who have been "bad" inside stockings hanging in the house or on the fireplace. This feast symbolizes the arrival of the Three Kings in Bethlehem with gifts for the newborn: gold, frankincense and myrrh.

In addition to these Italian Christmas traditions, there are many others of regional origin and which vary significantly from municipality to municipality.

It is practically impossible to list them all since there are so many.

For example, it is traditional to meet friends and relatives to play cards, organize dinners to exchange gifts and dress up with small red details during the dinner.

There are families who strictly meet at home and others who opt for the restaurant. What never changes is the sense of union and celebration that reigns during the Christmas holidays and that is destined to last forever, at least in our beautiful country.

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Many children receive the Advent Calendar during the Christmas holidays.

It's a calendar that starts on December 1 and has 24 boxes, as many as the days until Christmas.

Each pocket hides a small gift for children as objects and small games.

The cities are decorated and light up and so, in the squares, the Christmas markets are depopulated. These are originally from Bolzano and are mostly a German tradition even if they gradually conquered the whole country.

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Italian Christmas traditions: good food together with the dearest loved ones

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Italian Christmas traditions: good food together with the dearest loved ones

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There are significant differences between the typical recipes for the Christmas dinner and the way to celebrate this holiday at the table.

For example, in some regions Christmas Eve is celebrated with a hearty fish-based dinner while in others, at midnight, people go to church and then exchange greetings with mulled wine and Christmas carols.

Lunch on December 25th is the moment in which a considerable quantity of dishes based on meat, cheese and dried fruit are brought to the table.

The table is decorated with red, white, gold and silver Christmas decorations.

The dishes vary from region to region because, for example, in Sicily the Sfincione is eaten while the regions of Central Italy delight in Lasagne and Timballi.

Some regions also celebrate Boxing Day, which has become a public holiday since 1949. Usually on this occasion, leftovers from the previous days are eaten or tasty soups are cooked.

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The Christmas tree, a symbol of family and love

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The Christmas tree, a symbol of family and love

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The iconic symbol of Christmas, however, is the decorated tree.

It is a symbol of conviviality, family and love because it brings together the family who spend time together to decorate the tree with lights and balls.

These are bought or created by hand and each family decorates it according to their own taste.

The balls come from various legends. The most popular one recalls the fate of a juggler who lived in Bethlehem and who witnessed the birth of Jesus.

He was very poor and could not bring any gift to the newborn, so he decided to pay homage to him with a juggling show, snatching a smile from the little one.

The tip of the tree is decorated with a comet star which symbolizes the one that illuminated Bethlehem at the birth of the son of God.

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What would Christmas be without the expected gifts? It is customary to give and receive gifts from relatives, friends, work colleagues and from one's own company.

Small, large, important, little thoughts, expensive and cheap, the important thing is to exchange gifts, packets and packets are now an authentic Christmas tradition to be carried out possibly close to midnight between 24 and 25 December.Gastronomic Christmas baskets are now also part of this custom, one of the most appreciated gifts by anyone and more and more often, the most popular among companies that give them to their employees and deserving customers.

Instead of wondering which object to give, running the risk of giving away something useless that might not be liked, in fact, there is a tendency to compose independently or to buy already beautiful and ready Christmas baskets, full of typical gastronomic products of excellence.

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Christmas is a worldwide holiday in which all Christians symbolically honor the birth of Jesus Christ and, as we all know, falls on December 25th.

The main theme of Christmas, as the word suggests, is the Christian Nativity and it is one of the most important celebrations in our country.

For this reason, countless traditions have come and gone over the years which, with small variations from region to region, are celebrated every year.

Today we will retrace precisely this set of symbols and practices linked to Christmas and to the tradition of our country and, perhaps, you will discover some of which you were not yet aware of.

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The first great Christmas tradition in our country concerns a precise date on which most families celebrate the anniversary of the Immaculate Conception.

On this day, in fact, people usually decorate the Christmas tree and place the nativity scene, or the re-enactment of the Nativity.

The Nativity scene is decorated in various ways so that there are those who limit themselves to arranging the figures of Mary, Joseph and Jesus and those who create real scenographies with the Three Kings and the characters who witnessed the birth in Bethlehem.

So the Crib is a great tradition that sees its greatest popularity above all in Naples.

Those of Bologna and Genoa are also famous and in some regions there are small municipalities such as Greccio that organize the living nativity scene, made up of real people who stage the nativity.

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The Nativity scene and the Christmas tree are invariably connected to the anxious expectation of Santa Claus by the children.

This character derives from the Legend of Saint Nicholas and comes down to our days as a big man with a white beard capable of delivering Christmas presents to all the children of the world on the night of December 25th.

There are some regions, especially in the north, which anticipate this date to December 6th and therefore the gifts are received on the night when the saint is celebrated.

Bergamo and Verona, for example, celebrate this anniversary on December 13 in honor of Santa Lucia.

Children usually write a letter addressed to the Saint in which they admit that they have been good and obedient and, therefore, ask for little gifts for their commendable behavior.

To thank the Saint, the children leave a bowl of flour for the donkey of Saint Lucia and a cup of coffee with bread and biscuits for the Saint.

The same happens for Santa Claus to whom many children write a letter and confidently await the arrival of their much desired gifts.