Twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper Twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper A twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper is traditionally prepared in many Central European and Northern European cultures, especially those that were formerly part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, including Polish, Lithuanian, Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian. The meal (, , , or "wieczerza wigilijna", , ) consists of twelve meatless dishes representing the twelve months of the year. The tradition of the supper can be traced back to pre-Christian times and connected with remembrance of the souls of deceased ancestors. In some parts of Poland a similar tradition of thirteen meatless dishes on Christmas Eve is practiced. The specific
Christmas dinner with stuffing, gravy and sometimes forcemeat, pigs in blankets, cranberry sauce or redcurrant jelly, bread sauce, roast potatoes (sometimes also boiled or mashed), vegetables (usually boiled or steamed), particularly Brussels sprouts and carrots; dessert consists of Christmas pudding (or plum pudding), sometimes mince pies, Christmas cake or trifle, with brandy butter and/or cream. Italian regional traditions are varied. They are polarised in two areas: Northern Italy and Southern Italy (from Rome southwards). Moreover, often the Christmas Eve Supper is more important than the Christmas Dinner, because the Holy Mass is celebrated at midnight.<br> The primo is usually a kind of