The Profile Pick at Holiday Inn Kolkata Airport’s Recent Cake Mixing Ceremony –
As the Earth comes close to completing another revolution of 365 days around the Sun letting us know that it will soon be curtains down for the year, our hearts are invariably light and cheerful. December, the twelfth and final month in the calendar also happens to be the one when Yuletide (Christmastime) flags off in full glory with the young and old humming old Christmas classics and waiting for rich and moist plum cakes to make an appearance on the dining table.
Despite everything unfair and tough happening around us, we still give ourselves up to the wonderful Season of Joy reinforcing our belief in hope, peace, love, radiance, giving, and sharing. That’s the real meaning of Christmas, when you carve time out of your busy schedule to be with your loved, cherish old bonds, celebrate beautiful traditions, and focus on the true meaning of the wonderful festival.
The Cake Mixing Ceremony
A centuries-old tradition associated with Christmas, the cake mixing ceremony is believed to have its origins in England. Many researchers believe this wasn’t exactly exclusive to England but rather to western Europe as a whole. It started as a way to bring together the household and bond in a spirit of happiness while prepping for the season of joy and festivity. Everyone in the family – and extended family along with friends – chipped in to blend a whole lot of sweet spices, dried fruits, and candied orange peel in alcohol (usually either rum or brandy) weeks ahead of the big day and leave it to soak and blend naturally in the spirits. Then, this deliciously heady mixture was used to prepare plum pudding and plum cake that still hold a pivotal place in traditional Christmas celebrations.
The Profile Pick Was at the Ceremony at Holiday Inn Kolkata Airport
The occasion was the Cake Mixing Ceremony 2024. In November, with the temperature in the city all nice and pleasant, our trio spent an hour taking part in the festive ritual that has come to occupy a prominent place in most upper-end and premium hotels and bakeries in the city. The event was celebrated at the Holiday Inn Kolkata Airport with the usual fervour and festivity that accompanies this delightful ancient tradition. It was the 7th Anniversary and we were quite taken up by the general environment of cheer and goodwill that the staff exuded to invitees.
Mixing Ceremony, a pre-Christmas ceremony that is steeped in tradition worldwide. It is a harbinger of Christmas. My team has created some interesting items that will provide a twist to the culinary palate. What we have essentially done is rustle up innovative dishes that a blend of ingredients from all over the world and different regions of India. I am confident you will find them amazing.”
True to his words, we found an exotic combination of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes for the lavish high tea served to guests after the ceremony. We’ll list some of them here. The humble and easily-available khari biscuit (made of wheat flour to ensure a health boost) became the base for a delectable mix of mushroom and tomatoes in curried sauce and grated fresh coconut that sat on top of it and looked absolutely tempting. Bao, created with edible charcoal that imparted its distinctive dark colour, was married to delicious Lucknowi Tunde Kababs to create an unusual combination. There was a Fusion Burger and Christmas Very Berry. Pita bread, nice and crispy, was served with a perfectly-rotund beetroot tikki topped with a helping of sour cream and sprig of cress to form yet another interesting food innovation. Mousse Rasmalai – we certainly hadn’t heard of this one before – was a melt-in-the-mouth concoction of our very own ethnic Rasmalai with flavoured cream and just the right amount of sweetness. We sipped on Maska Shikanji created with tender coconut and recommended by Chef Sarkar himself.
Influencer Debanjali Mukherjee, part of Team TPP summed up the fare. “Amazing. Wow.” And, then, we proceeded to dig into the beautifully-plated, bite-sized foods served to us.
“You’re never too old to believe in the magic of Christmas,” said Jane Lee Logan. Let the magic begin!
The Profile Pick was represented by Antaripa Mukherjee, Neha Karmakar, and Debanjali Mukherjee at the event.
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