Happily ever after

In Sweden, some locals feast on Risgrynsgrot, a special rice pudding made in a large batch. But, this particular pud is hiding a single almond in it. The person who finds it gets to make a wish, or is believed to get married the following year – depending which version of the tradition your family follows.

 The Running of the Santas

Trust our American friends to come up with this rowdy tradition. Named after St Fermin’s Running of the Bulls, the U.S. version is more festive pub-crawl than bullfighting scram. Each event sees hoards of merrymakers dressed as the Big Guy, schlepping between venues and tucking into some old-fashioned yuletide fizz. We suggest keeping things sensible so you can back it up for when the real guy in the red suit arrives the next morning.

 Put your feet up

On Christmas Eve in Norway, it’s customary to hide away all brooms and similar cleaning equipment from witches and evil spirits in the hopes of preventing them from riding the skies (and hence, clearing the traffic for Santa, Rudolph and co.). We’re taking this as an official invitation to put our feet up. Except for frequent trips to and from the kitchen for fruit mince pies (like these ones, available from Woolworths).

Bûche de Noël

Children throughout France place their shoes in front of the fireplace on Christmas Eve in the hopes that Père Noël (Father Christmas) will fill them with gifts. As the clock strikes 12, a midnight supper, called le Réveillon, is served followed by the sweet Bûche de Noël: a log-shaped chocolate sponge cake rolled up with whipped cream. In France, logs are symbolic of the festive season; some locals also pour wine over a log and set it on fire on this particular night, letting it burn slowly over the next few days for good luck.

 A feast under the stars

In Poland, Christmas Eve is known as Wigilia and it’s highlighted by a special vigil supper called Kolacja wigilijna. Traditionally, no food is eaten until the first star in the sky is spotted. Then, 12 dishes hit the table that are customarily meat-free, and they’re each meant to bestow good luck for the 12 months ahead. Some of these include barszcz (beetroot soup), and the hearty rokiety – bready pancakes with mushrooms or cabbage that are fried in butter.