Tired of the holiday table that always repeats the same menu? Do you want to surprise your guests with dishes and ingredients that are different from the usual? Or do you wish to accommodate the eating habits of even the pickiest guests? The companies exhibiting at TUTTOFOOD2023, at fieramilano from 8 to 11 May 2023 do not stop offering innovation even during the holidays, from appetizer to dessert.

"For the holidays, sottolio always takes center stage,"says Manuela Polli, Corporate Strategy & Development of Fratelli Polli Spa, for example. "In hors d'oeuvres, it goes well with any dish, so it is perfect for any need during holiday meals. We are also noticing a strong demand for our new UHT pestos and sauces, due to their special recipes:  this shows that even during the holidays, Italians want to combine sophisticated flavors with simplicity and practicality of use. Polli has always dutifully worked only with ingredients from the plant-based world, which makes our products perfect even for a vegetarian or vegan Christmas."

And, speaking of appetizers, among sliced meats bresaola definitely deserves the spotlight for the uniqueness of being beef-based. "We started as a family business in the 1980s, and for us, combining innovation and tradition is part of our spirit," says Emilio Mottolini, Sales Manager of the cold cuts shop by the same name. "At the time, bresaola was a fairly standardized product, made in Valtellina according to PGI specifications but almost always made from meat from South America. We soon began a path of enhancing the area culminating in 2015 in a project with Coldiretti to produce only from small local farmers whose names are given, so the consumer can also get to know them directly. Two other major projects involve the production of bresaola from small dedicated herds of only Piedmontese or Chianina breeds. Finally, in the spirit of circularity, we have in place a project whereby we produce bresaola from dairy cows, which can therefore still be used for quality production at the end of their milk cycle. Especially bresaolas from special breeds are very popular during the holidays, and this is so even abroad."  

And from outside Italy come recommendations not only for the courses but also for the desserts, beyond panettone. Here producers, facing less "heavy" traditions than ours, often feel free to experiment even at Christmas. "Ours is a historic family business that is rightfully part of the great French pastry tradition," says Julie Doudoux, Chef de Produit International at La Fournée Dorée, "but for several years now we have been aiming to reinterpret the great classics according to and new sustainable and health-conscious trends and without neglecting international cues. For the holidays, for example, we are offering the classic French croissant reinterpreted panettone style, as well as a round croissant in burger bun format for tasty sweet-savory recipes. In all products we use local and sustainable ingredients, prepared according to traditional French recipes."   

These and many other innovative Italian and international offers will be featured at TUTTOFOOD 2023. Find out here how to be featured as an exhibitor. To participate as a professional visitor, go to this page.