There’s no place like home when it comes to festive food and drink

The multinational supermarkets remain open but small shops and hospitality that rely on this time of year for a good chunk of their sales are closed.

Now more than ever we need to support small local businesses.

They mightn’t be physically open but many small artisan retailers have an online presence and would appreciate your custom.

Ballylisk is a dairy in County Armagh, run by Dean Wright, that uses milk from a single herd on the farm to make a triple cream Ballylisk cheese and a brie style called Rokeby.

During the last lockdown they did deliveries of their cheese and milk around the country.

They also supported other producers by delivering their products.

Much of the cheese they make goes to restaurants and high end hotels and because they’re still closed there’s a danger a lot of the cheese will be wasted.

Making cheese requires planning ahead – it isn’t an overnight process.

You can buy direct from the farm or support one of the great delicatessens we have in this country.

Alongside Zoom, social distancing and PPE, pivoting has become a buzzword associated with lockdown. Pivoting is a word normally intrinsic in ballet when a dancer is able to turn on their “pointe” shoes.

Businesses have had to change their strategies drastically in order to survive.

High end restaurants are now doing takeaway or cook at home packs, or making chutneys and jam to sell. Broighter Gold rapeseed oil is an oil company based outside Limavady run by the Kane family.

For the past six years Leona Kane has run a pop up Christmas shop at the family farm.

As well as selling her oils other local businesses bring their products.

There’s food, arts and crafts and hampers for sale. This year you can pop into the shop on the Broighter Road, between 9am and 2pm on Monday to Friday and on Saturdays from 10am to 2pm for some socially distanced shopping.

Usually if I’m home for Christmas I want to deviate away from the usual turkey and ham offfering.

This year though, there’s something comforting and nostalgic about a traditional Christmas dinner.

I’ve ordered my turkey and ham from Seaview Farms in Portrush. Shay O’Neill and Susan Chestnut have Berkshire rare breed pigs all year round but have introduced Bourbon Red turkeys for the festive season.

A truly free range bird will cost you a bit more but will be infinitely better in the flavour stakes than a cheaper supermarket variety.

Also you’ll be supporting young entrepreneurial farmers.

There are many farmers around the country who’ll supply turkeys and properly cured hams.

Contact your local butcher to find out where to source them.

Chocolate makers, bakers, fishmongers, confectioners, cheesemakers, butchers and all our artisan producers need our support and unlike the multinationals, it’s a matter of survival for them. There are also many small experience led businesses that have been impacted. Tourism Northern Ireland have launched an “Embrace a Giant Spirit” campaign to promote a collection of unique experiences here.

Many of them are focused on food and drink like cookery glasses, visits to distilleries, food tours and fishing trips. Go to tourismni.com for information. Rather than socks or perfume, your friends and family would love the gift of something exciting to do.

Woodlab Distillery is based in the village of Moy in County Tyrone.

Formed in 2016 by Dr Ulrich Dyer to distil gins, they recently added apple rum to their range.

They only released 500 200ml bottles and most of them have gone.

As someone who loves rum and apples this is the perfect drink.

The distillery is currently developing a gin school and visitor centre that will be open in the new year.

The rum is used in my recipe this week for a Tipsy cake with rum sauted apples.

You could substitute whiskey or brandy for the rum.