A chicken mince and pistachio stuffing makes roast turkey extra special at Courtyard by Marriott in Gurgaon; Pic by Rupinder Sharma

Last Christmas, a group of people, who, it was amply evident were non-Christians, came to the hotel. They wanted to know what the roasted turkey was served with and whether there would be chipolata sausages as accompaniment. And when the dish was served they were quick to point out that the cranberry sauce — that usually comes with the dish — was missing,” recalls a surprised chef Vishal Atreya, The Imperial, New Delhi.

Christmas, and the goodies that accompany it, are no longer exotic or foreign — to be read about in books or salivated over during a Nigella Lawson Christmas special. Turkey carving (and eating), the Yule Log and gingerbread men are now a part of the common lexicon. So, this festive season embark on a gastronomical journey that will delight all your senses — and not just your palate.

XMAS TABLE TALK

The Yule Log is amongst the fastest moving desserts at The Claridges, New Delhi

It is the main course that makes Christmas special and different from other festivals. And the best part is that following tradition, turkey, in fact, is the meat of choice on the day as opposed to chicken on others. Chef Sujan Mukherjee, executive chef, Taj Bengal, Calcutta, says: “People always expect a turkey at Christmas buffets and guests are surprised if it’s not on the menu and demand to know why it’s missing.”

And no, you cannot roast just any turkey for Christmas. Most hotels import the Butterball, a brand of turkey known for its tender meat, from the US. Soumya Goswami, executive chef, The Oberoi, New Delhi, is equally comfortable working with the Norlande turkey from France.

But across the board, all chefs favour the traditional method of infusing flavours in the turkey by soaking it in brine for an entire day before roasting it. And each has his or her own version of a mix in which the bird is marinated. Often it’s salt water into which herbs, spices, fresh oranges and orange juice are added which soften the turkey and make it succulent.

Neeraj Tyagi, executive chef, The Claridges, New Delhi, makes turkey even more flavourful with a few quick additions. He says: “Butter and herbs are put under the skin of the turkey to enhance the flavour.” The turkey, stuffed with chestnuts, cranberry and sage is roasted for about two hours. But it is the accompaniments which lift the turkey from good to great. Turkey’s essential accompaniments include glazed sweet potatoes, chipolata sausages, roast chestnuts, savoury marshmallows, giblets gravy (gravy made with neck, gizzard, heart and liver removed from the turkey) and cranberry sauce. But Bishan Negi, chef de cuisine, Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon, goes an extra mile. He says: “I also serve hot bacon pudding and croissant with the turkey which is stuffed with chicken mince and pistachio.”

And then there are others who adopt and adapt the turkey to Indian tastes. Says Sharad Dewan, area director, food production, The Park, Calcutta: “Besides the traditional version, there is the Twisted Turkey which is wrapped and marinated in Indian spices.” IntrSoduced last Xmas, guest response was so good that Dewan is serving it this year too.

However, if you wish to cook turkey at home but are not sure what should go in it, fret not. Pick up uncooked turkey and its accompaniments across the counter from the pastry shop of The Oberoi, New Delhi, for Rs 2,800 per kilo. Want to set it apart from the others? Deep Mohan Singh the pastry chef, The Oberoi, New Delhi will help you create unique flavours. He has on offer options like spicy apple chutney, sweet grape mostarda, Moroccan spicy chutney, fig and cinnamon mostarda, balsamic onions which have been handpicked to complement the turkey, depending on your taste.

But while turkey occupies pride of place, other Christmas staples too are finding their way to Christmas Eve dinners and Christmas brunches. You don’t have to look too hard for the suckling pig, foie gras, roast duck and pumpkin pies. The 1911 Brasserie at The Imperial for instance, has grilled Scottish salmon with malted blinis, gribiche sauce, sole fillet with roasted bell peppers and lots of good wine on its menu (Rs 3,750 plus taxes per person).

Sevilla, the Mediterranean restaurant at The Claridges, will offer a seven course meal including turkey roast, foie gras along with mulled wine for the Christmas dinner. And the prices for the dinner varies from Rs 2,250 plus taxes at The Hub, Taj Bengal to Rs 4,495 plus taxes for this seven course meal.

Eating a traditional buffet seems to be the thing to do on Christmas, says Tyagi. Goswami agrees: “Often, it’s schoolchildren who have read about turkey carving on Christmas and want to try it at the buffets. The high exposure is driving the demand.”

While most prefer to stick to tradition, there are others who try to do it differently. Saffron, the Indian restaurant at The Park for instance, uses meats like duck and turkey, which are traditionally served at Christmas, for its Indian dishes.

SWEET ENDINGS

Kookie Jar’s edible chocolate boxes make for the perfect Christmas pick;Pic by Rashbehari Das

It’s Christmas, so how can desserts be far behind? And of course plum cakes — the slightly sour, really dense, totally decadent, liquor-infused desserts — signify Christmas’ bounty. But if you thought you could turn these cakes out in a jiffy, think again. A whole load of advance planning is required — along with a dollop of patience.

Flurys, which sells about 35,000 plum cakes and puddings every year, soaks the dry fruit for the cakes and the puddings almost a year in advance.

Kamal Messman, owner of Theobroma, Mumbai, says: “Dry fruits for Christmas cakes are soaked in rum around June-July.” But others do the needful a little later. The Oberoi, New Delhi and the Taj Bengal, for instance, soak the fruits around October. The Imperial and The Claridges have an elaborate cake-mixing ceremony a month before the chefs start baking their Christmas cakes where guests are invited and encouraged to take part.

And the quantities of ingredients that they soak are industrial. Says Atreya of Imperial: “This year we mixed 120kg of fruit with 30 litres of wine. This is enough for 400 cakes of 600gm each.” These are priced at about Rs 800. The cakes at Theobroma can be bought at Rs 700 for 750gm, but if you want those encased in royal icing and marzipan, the price goes up to Rs 1,000.

There are others like Singh who have given the traditional Xmas plum pudding a twist. Singh says: “I will wrap the plum pudding in cranberry that will impart a tangy taste and a red colour to it.”

A MIXED BAG OF XMAS GOODIES

Treat yourself to wonderfully light meringues from Bee the Baker in Gurgaon;Pic by Jagan Negi

But for those who aren’t fans of cakes or puddings, there’s a blitzkrieg of other desserts. Stollen, the fruit cake with marzipan and dried fruits, is also a hit on Xmas. Says Messman: “A German speciality, the stollen is a cross between cake and bread and lined with homemade almond marzipan, rum-soaked raisins, spices and nuts.” Theobroma’s stollen retails at Rs 500 for 500gm.

The desserts at Kookie Jar come in shapes associated with Christmas. Says its owner Lovey Burman: “There are chocolates and cookies in the shape of Christmas trees and Santa. The cupcakes are in the likeness of Santa and snowmen while the truffle cake is shaped like Santa’s face.”

There are other surprises up Burman’s sleeve. You can actually eat the box you serve the chocolates in. Made of nougatine coated with chocolate and filled with an assortment of white and dark chocolate truffles, almond rock, mint and coffee chocolates, it is priced at Rs 5,000. A bright red poinsettia flower made of icing sugar gives it that Christmas look.

And there’s no getting away from the intricate Yule Log or Bûche de Noë, which is one of the fastest moving desserts in chef Tyagi’s repertoire at The Claridges. And it is no longer confined to the traditional black forest or chocolate flavour. Executive chef Thomas Blanchard, L’Opéra Patisserie Boulangerie, Delhi, says: “The Bûche de Noë or the Yule Log at L’Opéra is available in four flavours. The chocolate trio bûche is for cocoa addicts, the black forest bûche (for those who prefer the traditional fare), the raspberry bûche (with a pistachio heart), and the Himalaya bûche (with mangoes, passion fruit and a pistachio biscuit base) for the Asian touch.”

Or how about walking into the gingerbread house at the Ye Old Bakery at The Claridges in Delhi to pick up Christmas goodies? But no you are not welcome to take some bits off the house to taste.

The ubiquitous gingerbread house is also attracting guests to the lobbies of many hotels. The Leela Palace New Delhi has one made with 3,000 bricks of fresh-baked gingerbread on the outside, 900 larger gingerbread tiles on the inside, and some one metric ton of royal icing! At The Imperial, the gingerbread house is complete with an electric train running in and out of it. Since you can’t carry these home, pick the gingerbread men from La Baguette, the pastry shop at The Imperial — which are always a hit with children.

Mince pies, which contain a mixture of sweet, sticky dried fruits, sugar and spices, too are a hot favourite. Sprinkled with icing sugar, these pies represent white Christmas. Like the plum cake, the mince pies at The

Oberoi too come with a twist. These are pepped up with orange and lemon juice and cranberries to give it a kick.

And for those who prefer to tread the path less taken (rather eaten), you can pop in the slightly sweet and light meringues. Bayiravi Mani, who runs Bee the Baker, in Gurgaon, says: “Made with egg whites and sugar, the meringue, though not very common in India, is the ideal dessert to munch on.”

She retails these bite-sized sweets priced at Rs 600 for four dozen. Mani is the baker for December for Bake Box. The company operates on the concept of subscription, and customers who pay Rs 850 every month receive a box of freshly baked cakes from different home bakers. Or perhaps, you would prefer the dessert that has found favour with children and adults alike — the colourful macaroon that’s made with egg whites, icing sugar, almond powder and filled with ganache. Says Singh of The Oberoi: “For Christmas, the macaroons are infused with flavours of sweet spices — cinnamon, cloves and cardamom.”

So what are you waiting for? Go ahead indulge…for, it’s the season.

Traditional Christmas Plum CakeKamal Messman (Theobroma) To make one 9” cake

Ingredients:

175gm chopped candied peel of orange 175gm glazed cherries, quartered 500gm each of sultanas and currants 350gm raisins 125gm almonds, blanched and chopped 300gm flour 300gm butter 300gm soft brown sugar 1 orange, rind, grated 1 tsp golden syrup 6 eggs, beaten ½ tsp each salt, mixed spice and grated nutmeg 6 tsp brandy

Method:

In a large bowl, coat all the fruits and nuts with a tablespoon of the flour. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in the grated orange rind and the golden syrup. Beat with a wooden spoon, gradually add the beaten eggs, and sprinkle some flour to stop the mixture from curdling. Stir in the remaining flour that has been sifted with the salt and spices. Add the brandy followed by the fruits and nuts.

Pour in the batter into a deep cake tin, 9” in diameter, well-greased and lined with greaseproof paper. Cover the top of the tin with greaseproof paper.

Put the cake into the oven preheated at 170°C for 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 150°C and bake for a further 40 minutes, then reduce the heat to 140°C and bake for four more hours. It’s done when a warm skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let the cake cool for an hour before turning it out.