The cover was printed web offset with a special fifth colour Pantone ink by Wakefield-based Chantry, which arranged for Celloglas’s Leicester site to provide special finishing to enhance an image of a gingerbread house.

This included an overall gloss UV varnish, gold foil on the masthead and bottom of the cover, and a screen-applied copper glitter varnish.

The end product was the result of several months of talks between Chantry, Celloglas and Immediate Media, which publishes the magazine under contract from the BBC.

The Christmas issue also includes interactive elements. Readers can download the free Aurasma app then scan pages of the magazine to reveal a special Christmas message and practical tutorial videos, including how to carve a turkey and how to prepare citrus fruits for seasonal recipes.

The December issue of BBC Good Food went on general sale on 2 November.

BBC Good Food had an average monthly circulation of 267,164 copies in the period from January to June 2012, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.