What #MakesChristmas for You? The Waitrose Christmas Party

Christmas is coming! Christmas is coming!

I don’t think I’ve ever found myself in the spirit of the season this early, but somehow 2015 seems to be having a massive impact.

The greatest way to start the holiday season? All. The. Food.

I was invited to attend the Waitrose Cookery School on a Monday night for their #MakesChristmas party. I’d suggest doing amazing things on Monday always by the way, it starts the week off in the best way. I was promptly ushered into an epic cocktail making class. Oh if you insist. 

We watched the experts shake it up, and then proceeded to make our own cranberry and orange margaritas. Yes please. They packed just the punch we needed to start the evening, mixing and mingling with old friends, I was lucky enough to catch up with this fabulous crew, Catherine, Katie, Ben and briefly chatted with the lovely Emma and Fiona while meeting some new faces too.

The lively Phillip Schoefield made an appearance as well as he is currently working with Waitrose wine. I’ve been a serious fan of Waitrose wine for a long time now, so I needed absolutely no convincing on their exceptional quality. (PS. If you have a myWaitrose card, sign up for their 20% Pick Your Own Offers, I’ve added one of my favourite wines to the list, which prices the bottle at £4.20. Yep, I’m sort of a fan…)

After quick meet and greets with Phillip, we took our places at the table, ready to tuck in.

We started with gravlax, beetroot and horseradish.

It was a light, refreshing dish that was a perfect starter to go with our glasses filled with bubbles. Of course, the wine was soon flowing throughout the table too, with white and red filled glasses toasting to Christmas. Cheer to great friends!

It wasn’t long before the main event arrived. As an American, we have slightly different Christmas traditions. Everyone does their own thing. My family typically have gammon (ham), I contribute with leafy salad, homemade applesauce and the occasional potatoes. Well, the UK hosts a very traditional feast and the Waitrose kitchen fully lived up to the hype. Organic roast turkey, thyme and port gravy, devils on horseback, truffle cauliflower cheese, caramelised red cabbage, sprouts, pancetta and cranberries, carrot and swede mash, roast onion with chestnut and leek stuffing, honey and mustard roast parsnips, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding. I even tried bread sauce, which I bravely tried and did not even mind.

A feast entirely fit for kings. And in the spirit of Christmas in the UK, I happily gobbled up as much as I could. It was an impressive display, but I barely scratched the surface. Waitrose certainly know how to host a Christmas party.

With our stomachs brimming you’d almost think we would avoid dessert.. but no. That doesn’t sound like a group of bloggers does it? We made our way into the Cookery School kitchen and set out to decorate these beautiful chocolate ferrero rocher cupcakes. Yes, a chocolate cupcake with a ferrero rocher inside. Yum.

I embarrassingly tried to decorate mine with frosting that I spilled all over the place, but considering these babies were headed home to be eaten (okay maybe on the train back), I wasn’t too concerned. For good measure, Katie let me snap up a photo of her excellent decorating skills.

Of course, these cupcakes weren’t for eating right now. Waitrose had a magnificent desserts display ready for us.

Sherry trifle, mince pies, cheese boards and biscuits, post-dinner drinks… anything and everything you could imagine.

After tucking into the trifle, I took a little tour around the Cookery School. It’s honestly such a gorgeous space.

I had such a wonderful evening with great friends and our phenomenal hosts, Waitrose. 

Like I said, I’ve always been a massive fan of the company so I’m thrilled to confidently say that this was one of the best events I’ve been to. Waitrose are all about what #MakesChristmas for you this year. And needless to say, they really are making Christmas special. So makes Christmas for me? It’s all about spending time with family and friends. And Christmas cookies, obviously.

Don’t forget to share what #MakesChristmas for you with @Waitrose on Twitter or Instagram. The grand prize is a Waitrose Christmas Dinner for 12 people with tableware, champagne, wine and more. Sounds great right?  They’re also offering little treats to customers throughout the holidays!

Kelly xoxo