Eat & drink your Christmas tree | Lowlander launches unique cookbook
Lowlander Beer - Eet & drink je kerstboom
Lowlander Beer - Winter I.P.A.
Sfeerbeelden van het boek 'Eet en Drink je kerstboom'
Sfeerbeelden van het boek 'Eet en Drink je kerstboom'
Did you know that the needles of your Christmas tree are packed with flavour and character? In Scandinavia, people have been cooking with spruce needles for decades; a valuable botanical ingredient. With their cookbook ‘Eat & Drink your Christmas tree’, botanical brewer Lowlander, together with chefs Joris Bijdendijk and Samuel Levie, provides more than 20 delicious vegetarian recipes to eat and drink your Christmas tree. The book is written in Dutch but it might be inspiration for other chefs!
2 minutes read
Eat & drink your Christmas tree cookbook
From simple recipes like spruce needle butter and jam to festive starters and main courses, sweet desserts and the tastiest drinks. Enjoy roasted beetroot with Jerusalem artichoke and beurreboom, or taste celeriac steaks Wellington with spruce needle hollandaise sauce. From spritzers to scroppino; your Christmas tree never tasted so good! With handy tips on which Christmas trees are edible and how to pick and prepare spruce needles for use in recipes.
The ‘Eat & drink your Christmas tree’ cookbook is written in Dutch and is the perfect gift for the holidays in the Netherlands and available this autumn at De Bijenkorf, selected retailers and Lowlander’s webshop, among others.
The problem of Christmas trees
Every year, some 3 million real trees in the Netherlands bring Christmas spirit into our homes. Most end up in the chipper, by the side of the road or in a bonfire after the turn of the year. And this is despite the fact that the average lifespan of a tree is up to 400 years and absorbs an average of 22 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). To create more awareness about this problem, Lowlander wants everyone – beer drinker or not – to experience the flavour in this so-called ‘waste’ through this cookbook. Chief Botanical Officer Frederik Kampman: “I see in Christmas trees a valuable botanical ingredient with a flavorful and fresh character of citrus notes, with which you can cook easily. This way, while enjoying delicious dishes, you get even more out of your Christmas tree. As a botanical brewer, we are constantly looking for ways to collaborate with nature in the right balance, without taking too much and giving back where possible.” To enjoy nature for as long as possible, Lowlander’s ambition is to become ‘Nature Positive’ by 2030. Reducing waste is one of the pillars the beer brand is focusing on to achieve that goal.
Winter I.P.A. | A beer containing Christmas trees
This is not the first time Lowlander has encouraged doing something with natural waste streams. There’s the 0.00% Wit brewed with leftover citrus peels from the on-trade, the Pumpkin Weizen brewed from rescued pumpkins, and earlier this year they launched the world’s most sustainable gin, the Lowlander gin. 2019 saw the launch of the Winter I.P.A., a beer brewed with reclaimed spruce needles sourced from Christmas trees. Lowlander has since collected as many discarded Christmas trees as possible every year, carefully removing the needles from the branches and preserving the flavorful character. Together with juniper, the needle extract forms a light and refreshing beer for cold winter days that goes well with roasted vegetables, for example. A nature-positive beer with the wonderful taste of Christmas, available again this year in a 5% alcohol variant and for the first time in a non-alcoholic variant.
Lowlander Winter I.P.A.:
– Brewed with spruce needles from collected Christmas trees and juniper
– Fresh and fruity aroma with the taste of winter
– 5% alcohol and now also in a non-alcoholic variant
– Is vegan and gets more out of your discarded Christmas tree
Website: Lowlander Beer
