Warning… You probably don’t want to read this with Christmas being just three days away. If you do, don’t blame me for ruining your Christmas dinner because I have in fairness warned you. I’ve totted up the calories in the average Christmas dinner in Ireland, and let’s just say it’s a tad more than your average poached salmon and brown rice.
The Calories In The Average Irish Christmas Dinner:
Turkey 2 slices (100g) – 110 calories
Ham 2 slices (100g) – 125 calories
3 medium roast potatoes – 489 calories
1 small roasted carrot – 21 calories
Bacon & Butter Fried Brussel sprouts – 176 calories
1/2 cup of stuffing – 110 calories
Gravy 100g – 79 calories
Cranberry sauce 100g – 151 calories
Plum pudding 100g – 330 calories
50ml cream – 194 calories
1 glass bubbly – 90 calories
2 175ml glasses of Red Wine – 266 calories
Total: 2,141
While 2,141 calories does seem more than excessive for one sitting, I actually thought it would be worse. I know this is excluding everything else people eat and drink on Christmas Day, but it is just one day out of 365 so there’s no point freaking out about it. I say enjoy the turkey and pudding while you can because before you know it all your friends, family and colleagues will be boring you with their new January fad diet. Also, it’s rare your parents spend the bones of a week preparing for a Thursday night feast, so just appreciate their hard work and the tasty fruits of their labours. Relax while you can, open the tin of roses and flick on the Hobbit. Christmas comes but once a year!