Christmas in Brazil

When most people picture Christmas, they imagine frosted windows and wool socks. But Brazil celebrates in midsummer, where December means heat, bright colors, and holidays lived outdoors. For this year’s “Christmas Around the World” stop, we stepped out of Minnesota’s snowdrifts and into a Rio-inspired celebration—complete with tropical fruit, samba rhythms, Carnival colors, and a fully transformed basement that looked like Christmas had collided with the Amazon rainforest. With streamers radiating from the ceiling, a “Jungle Bells” backdrop on the wall, and the kids wrapped in boas and beads, the house took on the playful chaos of a warm-weather Christmas morning.

We began the day with panettone—a staple of Brazilian holiday breakfasts, even though it started its life in Italy. Our loaf was enormous and beautifully airy, sliced into wedges alongside Amazonian fruit smoothies of açaí, cupuaçu, and guaraná. While Minnesota snow piled up outside, breakfast tasted like tropical sunshine. After eating, the kids dove into Carnival crafts—vine bracelets, paper feathers, and rainforest animal cutouts that soon found their way onto every wall of the house.

Music carried the theme forward: first Bossa Nova Christmas tunes, then the Pope’s broadcast for a moment of quiet grounding—the same tradition many Brazilian families keep before the holiday celebrations ramp up. The kids helped with the “basement flip,” turning their familiar playroom into Rio: palm leaves tucked behind lamps, crates stacked like a marketplace, a fern “Christmas tree,” and a vivid Rio de Janeiro backdrop that looked like it belonged in a parade float.

Lunch was salpicão, Brazil’s chilled chicken salad with raisins and vegetables—a perfect nod to their summer heat and a surprisingly big hit with the twins. We changed into bright shirts, a fedora, Carnival boas, and a “Who Needs Snow?” tee, then cranked up the samba playlist. What followed was pure joy: a full-family Jungle Bells dance party. The kids spun, jumped, wiggled, stomped, and fought over boas, while you danced in a patterned tropical shirt like an off-duty Carnival bandleader. The room felt alive.

For afternoon treats, we set up a “snow cone” bar—Brazilian snow, of course—which in our case was coconut-white shaved ice. Then came brigadeiros, the Christmas classic: fudgy chocolate truffles rolled lovingly (and stickily) by little hands. Miles and Edison proudly presented them like prized gems, and every photo from that moment radiates their excitement.

The games rolled naturally from one to another. We played Find the Sock, a Brazilian children’s tradition where a hidden stocking becomes the day’s great treasure hunt. Then Amigo Secreto, their version of Secret Santa, gave everyone a chance to choose gifts under silly aliases. The kids especially loved Brown Pom-Pom Brigadeiro Scoop, racing across the room to grab fuzzy “truffle” balls as fast as possible. And in one of the funniest moments of the entire date sequence, we reenacted The Shepherdess Play—the Brazilian folk tale where a mischievous shepherdess tries to steal Baby Jesus. Your family’s performance of this—complete with laughter, improvised costumes, and a boldly committed “thief”—belongs in a Christmas memory hall of fame.

As the afternoon faded, the house calmed for baths, and dinner shifted into a more traditional Brazilian ceia spread. We fried rabanada for the kids—Brazilian French toast dusted in cinnamon sugar—before settling into our own feast later: bacalhau (salt cod with potatoes and onions), a roasted Chester chicken (the unmistakable holiday bird of Brazil), and arroz com passas, the raisin-studded rice dish that only appears at this time of year. A chilled bottle of vinho espumante sat in a metal bucket on the table, giving the whole meal the feeling of a warm-weather Christmas toast.

We closed the evening with a mix of Brazilian and kid-friendly viewing: Dora: A Present for Santa and Dora’s Christmas Carol Adventure, followed by exploring our Brazil scratch-off map and sipping caipirinhas, clericot, and eventually a cup of quentão—Brazil’s spiced mulled wine. After a day spent blending cultures, flavors, and traditions, the contrast between Minnesota snow outside and Rio’s warmth inside felt magical.

In the end, this date wasn’t about pretending to be somewhere else—it was about understanding how Christmas changes shape around the world while still carrying the same heart. Brazil’s holiday spirit blends Catholic traditions, European foodways, African influences, and Indigenous colors into something exuberant and joyful. And for one day, our home did the same. Through samba songs, tropical fruit, goofy shepherdess skits, and a table covered in brigadeiros and salted cod, we experienced a Christmas that was both entirely new and entirely familiar—warm, layered, colorful, and full of family joy.

Activities Recap

• Bossa Nova Christmas Playlist

• Vincent (Our Kia Carnival) Decoration Crafts

• Basement Flip & Rio/Jungle Bells Backdrop Reveal

• Samba Playlist + Carnival Dress-Up

• Coconut Snow Cone Bar

• Find the Sock Game

• Jungle Bell Bracelet Vine Craft

• Shepherdess Game (“Steal Baby Jesus”)

• Brown Pom-Pom Brigadeiro / Snowball Scoop Game

• Pannetone Bread Starter

• Watch How It’s Made: Panettone

• Dora Christmas Episodes

• Read 5-Minute Christmas Stories

Menu Recap

• Panettone

• Amazonian Fruit Smoothies (Açaí, Cupuaçu, Guaraná)

• Salpicão (Brazilian Chicken Salad)

• Coconut Snow Cones

• Brigadeiros (Chocolate Fudge Truffles)

• Rabanada (Brazilian French Toast)

• Bacalhau (Salted Cod w/ Potatoes)

• Chester Assado (Roasted Chicken)

• Arroz com Passas (Rice with Raisins)

• Caipirinha

• Champagne / Vinho Espumante