christmas special

Jolly makers

Don’t have the time or the skill required to shape those perfect little marzipan flowers? There’s hope yet. From bowls of sorpotel to sinful rum-soaked cakes, Neha Sumitran tells you who to call to order the perfect Christmas feast. Just place your orders at least a week in advance. For the ultimate Christmas cake First things first; banish all thought of a low-calorie cake. It’s blasphemy and you will go to hell for even considering it. A Christmas cake is supposed to be an indulgence. It should be sticky, spongy and filled with fruits that have been seeped in brandy. It must be dense and sweet but in a dark, brown sugary way with the punch of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Most importantly, it must make you have many more slices than you intended. American Express Bakery Villa Sushma, Hill Road, Bandra (W) (2642-2857).`400 for 1 kg. Bombay Bakery Company JW Marriott Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Juhu Beach (6693-3399). `1,350 for 1kg. Candies O.N.G.C Complex, Bandra Reclamation, near Lilavati Hospital, Bandra (W) (2642-2324). Also at Union Park, Pali Hill, Bandra (W) (2604-5058). Tue-Sun 8.30am-10.30pm. `700 for 1 kg. La Patisserie Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel, Apollo Bunder, Colaba (6665-3366). `1,000 for 1 kg. Theobroma Cusrow Baug, Shop No 24, Colaba Causeway, Colaba (2287-3778). Also at Bandra, KFC Lane,off Linking Road, Bandra (W) (2646-9040). `475 for 700gms. For a small family lunch Anne Dias is half-Goan and half-Anglo Indian, and has been surrounded by Goan women in her husband’s family. From them, she’s learnt to make the perfect recheado, among the most popular of her catering business. Other hot sellers include vindaloo, pork assad, chicken and mutton xacuti, cafreal, fish ambotik, fish jeere mire, fish curry, dry crab, prawn chilli fry and calamari. 9A Maria Villa, College Lane, Dadar (W) (2422-7464). Minimum one week’s notice required. Minimum order 1 kilo. No home delivery. For a big fat feast for everybody Caterer and former Taj chef Alwyn Fernandes claims he makes the best prawn curry in the city. He also cooks cucumber salad in mustard and coconut, chicken cafreal, a vegetarian Goan curry with bhindi, beef chilli fry, and beef and pork roasts. Also as delectable is the food from Vinod Kaval’s catering company, which offers Goan fish curry, pork sorpotel, Goan sol kadi, Goan fish fry, spicy-tangy-sweet potato “song”, mugha ghati (a mung preparation with coconut paste and a little jaggery) and fruit saasam (soft fruits like mango and pineapple stirred with ground spices). Alwyn Fernandes Alpine No 6, off Caesar Road, Amboli, Andheri (W) (2679-1344). Week’s notice required. From `550 per head for groups of 30 people. Larger orders get discounts. Vinod Kaval 4 Andrea Apartments, off VM Ghanekar Marg, Vile Parle (E) (2618-2689). One week notice required. From `200 per head. Cuffe Parade to Virar and New Bombay. For the piece de resistance One of Bandra’s most renowned caterers, Kenny D’Souza, specialises in Christmas delicacies like suckling pig and roast chicken. Teaming up with his wife, who makes rum-soaked fruit cakes and plum bars, the D’Souzas fill orders for over 300 chickens on Christmas day. The pork comes in two versions: Indian-style with pig liver, peas, garlic, onions, cashew nuts, croutons and plums or Continental-style with a mixture of carrots, dry fruit, cold meats, apples, bacon, potatoes, seasoning, sauces and wine. For those who can’t polish off an entire pig, the D’Souzas also offer a leg of ham, which is cured, smoked and cooked in beer. Bandra store Santé’s butterball turkeys, legs of ham, salmon steaks, lamb chops, scallops, sea bass, asparagus, French bread and cheeses find plenty of takers among the local Bandra buggers Kenny D’Souza can be contacted at 97739-31269. From `3,000 for a leg of smoked ham. Santé 1, Shaheen Apartments, Pali Mala Road, Bandra (2640-2126/6450-1527). Turkey `5,000 for a 5kg bird. For traditional sweets Making sense of a Christmas sweet platter is no easy feat and there’s no way to go about it rather than taste them all. From Goan favourites like bebinca, dodol (a halwa made with coconut juice, rice flour and ghee), chona ki dosh (made with ground chana, coconut, jaggery and ghee), pinag (coarsely ground roasted rice mixed with black jaggery and syrup shaped into little sausages), araihna (slicedsemi-tender coconut cooked with sugar and ghee) and perrad (guava cheese), they’re all just as important a part of the X’mas feast. Anne Dias 9A Maria Villa, College Lane, Dadar (W) (2422-7464). Celine’s Cold Storage for bebinca, dodol, guava cheese, sweet marzipan and neuris. Alexandra Terrace Compound, Shop No 9, Sant Savata Marg, near Gloria Church, Byculla. (2375-1198). Daily 6.45am-12.30pm and 3.30-4pm. Yvette D’Souza for marzipan, milk cream and guava cheese. Call 98197-30494. Maria Fernandes for guava cheese, marzipan, walnut drops and more. Place your orders before Dec 19. Call 99693-45800. Mangalore General Store for cake, jujubes, marshmallow and rose de coque. Mohammed Eidu Manzil, Shop 8, opposite Paradise Cinema, LJ Road, Mahim (2445-7542). Daily 10am-7.30pm. Vailankanni Stores for bebinca, coconut cake, coconut sweet, dodol, guava cheese, milk cream and thali sweet. 223, Cawasji Hormusji Street, near Vienna restaurant, Marine Lines (2208-6619). 11am-1pm, 3-7pm. Prices vary according g to sweets. From `200 per kg. For bragging rights Want the pleasure of cooking a beautiful turkey in your own oven? Call for Luisa Rocha’s Farm Fresh products. Colaba’s – and possibly Mumbai’s – best quality ham comes from a little shop near Electric House. Rocha has been in the business for 117 years, offering pre-marinated whole roasted duck and turkey, smoked leg of ham, roast beef, pork chops, sorpotel, ox tongue and a range of cold cuts every Christmas. BEST Marg, near Red Shield House, Electric House, Colaba (2284-0335). Delivery around Colaba and CuffeParade. All orders to be placed at least three days in advance. From `900 per kg for smoked ham.

Source : Time Out Mumbai ISSUE 8 Friday, December 10, 2010