Joulupöytä

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Joulupöytä (translated "Yule table") is the name of the traditional food board served at Christmas in Finland, similar to the Swedish smörgåsbord. It contains many different dishes, most of them typical for the season. The main dish is usually a large Christmas ham, which is eaten with mustard or bread along with the other dishes. Fish is also served (often lutefisk and gravlax), and with the ham there are also so-called laatikkos, casseroles with liver and raisins or potatoes or rice and carrots. The traditional Christmas beverage is either alcoholic or non-alcoholic mulled wine (glögi in Finnish).

The traditional dishes of joulupöytä contain:

Christmas ham with mustard
Turkey
Boiled potatoes
Lutefisk and white sauce
Freshly salted salmon, (Gravlax), whitefish and pikeperch
Potato casserole (sweetened or not, depending on preference)
Carrot casserole
Liver casserole
Rutabaga casserole
Rosolli (salad from boiled beetroots, carrots, potatoes and pickled cucumber. If served with herring, it becomes sillisalaatti)
Mixed fruit soup or prune soup
Rice pudding or rice porridge with cinnamon, sugar and cold milk or with mixed fruit soup
Glogg or mulled wine
Pickled herring in various forms (tomato, mustard, matjes or onion sauces)
Mustard
Various sauces
Christmas beer
Prune jam pastries
Gingerbread

Beverages most often served are:

Vodka as appetizer
Mulled wine
Beer, usually special Christmas brands. Most Finnish breweries have seasonal beers for Christmas.
Milk
Wine is uncommon, but not rare

The usual desserts are:

Plum soup
Rice porridge
Ice cream with jelly
Confectioneries and other sweets, especially chocolate

Usually the rice porridge is served from a large, common kettle and an almond has been hidden in it. The one who gets the almond gets his or her Christmas presents first or gets a wish.