The tree’s been up for a while now, carollers have done the rounds, the whole city is bedecked in red and green, and the air is still saturated with the delightful aroma of Christmas baking, which might have started over the weekend. However, today is perhaps when indulging in scrumptious Christmas goodies reaches its zenith!
Indian variation
While Christmas and rich plum cakes go hand-in-hand, we Indians have our own variations and adaptations of Christmas goodies. However, given our ever-evolving world of food, although rose cookies, kulkuls, murukkus and karjikais still hold sway, this time around, many bakers and confectioners in the country are treading the traditional path with authentic Christmas goodies and not the ‘Indianised’ versions.
According to Lisha Jacob, a home baker, “People are baking traditional goodies not because the Indian ones have lost their charm, but simply because creativity and experimentation have become the order of the day.”
Nowadays, popular bakeries across the country and even home bakers do not shy away from authentic yuletide treats that include the Yule Log / Bûche de Noël (European log-shaped Christmas cake associated with Winter Solstice), plum pudding and cakes, Dresden Stollen (a traditional German fruit cake containing dried fruit and often marzipan and covered with sugar), mince pies, gingerbread houses, pannetone (a sweet bread loaf from Milan) and various types of conventional Christmas cookies.
Getting better
Namrata Ann, who lovers to bake at home, says: “I’m a cookies fan. So this Christmas, I’ve made five kinds of authentic Christmas cookies that include gingerbread, Krumkake, Pepparkakor, Sandbakelse and, of course, sugar cookies. With people travelling the globe and with innumerable cooking shows, celebrity chef blogs and recipe banks available on the Internet, more and more Indians want to bring that element of authenticity to their celebrations.”
Confectioners in the city too offer special Christmas hampers. They include an assortment of brownies, cookies, gingerbread, pies, cupcakes, and more. Says confectioner Nithya Susan, “People are now more exposed to food cultures from around the world.
They look for confectionery that has visual appeal and tastes good. Traditional Indian Christmas sweets don’t provide a platform for such presentation. This year has seen a lot of change in Christmas sweets — from kulkuls and plum cakes there’s a shift to cupcakes, macaroons, truffles and cookies in all shapes, sizes and colours.”
Conventional delicacies or modern delights, now that Christmas is here, we say, take the plunge!
