Christmas dinner: Served straight from the farm

SERVE Christmas dinner straight from the farm with gourmet food and drink from fabulous Victorian producers.

Gourmet food and drink from Victorian producers. Picture: Andy Rogers.

SERVE Christmas dinner straight from the farm with gourmet food and drink from fabulous Victorian producers.

Locheilan Farmhouse Cheeses.

Dairy wheel

Treat guests to a tempting cheese board with Locheilan Farmhouse Cheese’s Wunghnu Soft Camembert style, $12, Triple Cream Brie, $13, English Style Cheshire, $32 a kilogram, Bruce’s Blue, $75 a kilogram.

Markets: Veg Out at St Kilda, Tallarook, Bendigo, Boroondara (Hawthorn), Lancefield, Nagambie

Otway Walnuts’ Old English Style pickled walnuts and Tallarook Meat Co’s alpaca ham.

Christmas crackers

Otway Walnuts’ Old English Style pickled walnuts are traditionally served as part of a cheese platter. For a more exciting seasonal experience, crack and eat walnuts straight from the shell. Pickled walnuts 300g, $15, fresh walnuts 1kg, $15.

Markets: Pako at Geelong, Kingston at Highett, Bonbeach

Spice things up

For smallgoods that are a breed apart, try Tallarook Meat Co’s alpaca ham and kabana, $40 a kilogram.

Markets: Woodend, Tallarook, Collingwood Children’s Farm, Euroa, Lancefield, Nagambie

Berry World’s Strawberry Relish and Schulz Organic Dairy’s Quark.

Relish the day

Berry World’s Strawberry Relish is sweet and tart – the perfect match for a sharp cheddar or a Boxing Day turkey sandwich, 250g, $10.

Available from Berry World farm cafe in Timboon. berryworld.com.au

Festive spread

Quark is a German fresh cheese and Schulz Organic Dairy’s version with herbs and spices is the ideal vegie dip – spread it on sourdough or top it with smoked salmon, 200g, $5.70.

For a healthy post-feast treat, pair fresh berries with Schulz Organic Dairy Natural Greek Yogurt, 500g, $4.75.

Markets: Veg Out at St Kilda, Collingwood Children’s Farm, Gasworks at Albert Park, Slow Food at Abbotsford Convent, Eltham, Fairfield

A Leadoux family turkey and Birthday Villa’s Gewurztraminer sparkling wine.

Main event

THE Leadoux family raises free-range turkeys at Bairnsdale, in East Gippsland, selling through butchers and farmers’ markets. Buy a bird directly from the family at a market near you, for about $100 a turkey, depending on size.

Markets: Veg Out at St Kilda, Collingwood Children’s Farm, Gasworks at Albert Park, Boroondara (Hawthorn), Bentleigh, Eltham

Bubble and fizz

Birthday Villa Gewurztraminer is a small-batch sparkling wine, made from fruit grown on the boutique vineyard at Malmsbury in the Macedon Ranges, $38.

Available at Birthday Villa’s cellar door or online. birthdayvilla.com.au

Celtic Bakery’s handmade shortbread and mince pies.

Bread winner

The Celtic Bakery’s handmade shortbread, gingerbread and mince pies will bring Christmas cheer to every table. Shortbread 10-pack, $8, gingerbread eight-pack, $8, mince pie four-pack, $10.

Markets: Slow Food at Abbotsford Convent, Flemington

Kookaberry Strawberry Farm’s dessert syrup.

Simple syrup

Kookaberry Strawberry Farm’s dessert syrups are made from fresh berries straight from the Yarra Valley farm. Available in raspberry, blackberry, loganberry, boysenberry or strawberry, $6.

Market: Yering Station

Sustainable wraps limited edition festive patterns.

That’s a wrap

Keep Christmas leftovers fresh with these beeswax-coated cotton food wraps – a waste-free alternative to plastic wrap. The environmentally friendly products are made by two sisters – a beekeeper and a fabric lover – who grew up on a Tasmanian farm. They have launched festive prints for Christmas, available at farmers’ markets. Three-pack, $32.

Markets: Collingwood, Gasworks, Mornington Twilight