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As the festive season unfolds, the enchanting aroma of freshly baked rum cakes fills the air, heralding the arrival of Christmas joy. These delectable treats hold a special place in holiday traditions, symbolising the warmth and togetherness of the season. Christmas cakes, especially the renowned rum cakes and fruit cakes, are not just desserts; they embody the essence of celebration. Across the country, the making of Christmas cakes varies, reflecting unique regional flavours and culinary customs. Each variation tells a story of cultural heritage and festive merriment. Whether soaked in aged rum or adorned with aromatic spices, these cakes are a cherished tradition, connecting generations and spreading the magic of the holiday season.
As Christmas bells chime, the rich, moist, and spirited delight of these cakes becomes a delightful indulgence, bringing families together around the festive table. So, gather your loved ones and embark on a sweet adventure that will undoubtedly become a cherished part of your holiday traditions with these 10 famous Christmas cakes from across India. May your Christmas be merry, bright, and filled with the sweet essence of these spirited cakes from these iconic bakeries!
Rich Fruit Cake: Nahoum & Sons, Kolkata
Nahoum & Sons Kolkata, established in 1902, is a historic bakery renowned for its rich Plum Cakes, Jewish confections, and more. Located in New Market, this iconic bakery offers a taste of Kolkata’s culinary heritage. Affordable and charming, it’s a must-visit for locals and tourists alike. Year-end festivities cannot be complete without having a bite of Nahoum’s archetypal rich fruit cake. For its aroma and soft and succulent texture that melts in the mouth, this cake remains a hot favourite among every bon vivant. Among its other signature items are Easter eggs and plum cakes. Meanwhile, the city’s Jewish community also throng the outlet to get a taste of its authentic baklava cakes and cashew rings. Those who frequent Nahoum on a daily basis vouch for its high-quality bread and cookies. Unadulterated and original in taste, the macaroons, the popular Madeira cake and mouth-watering marzipan candies, along with their newer pals cheese samosas and garlic bread, make customers visit the place again and again.
Address: F20, Bertram St, New Market Area, Dharmatala, Taltala, Kolkata, West Bengal 700087
Timings: 9 AM - 8 PM. Closed on Saturday.
Price: INR 200
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Vivikam Cake: Auroville Bakery, Pondicherry
It goes without saying that Pondicherry is a multicultural city with a wide variety of cuisines. One of the well-known Christmas cakes made annually by the Christians of Pondicherry is the Vivikam cake. This cake is given out to neighbours and family on December 25th each year. This cake is unique in that the majority of the ingredients are made a little earlier than for a typical Christmas cake. Because this cake keeps nicely for several days, some people bake it much earlier. Every dish here is said to be amazing, including the ABC juice, muesli fruit salad, mushroom cheese omelette, chicken baguettes, coffee, and ginger lemon tea. The idli-dosa breakfast is only available until 10 AM, but the other items are available until late. In addition to being incredibly Instagrammable, the location is well-known for its delicious baked goods, including cakes, cookies, and biscuits.
Address: Kuilapalayam main road, Kuilapalayam, opposite to Gastronomica, Auroville, Tamil Nadu 605101
Timings: 7 AM - 5:30 PM. Sundays, 7 AM - 1 PM
Price: INR 300 - INR 800
Mattanchere Spiced Plum Cake: Pandha Cakeshop, Kochi
Few people are aware that the first Christmas cake in India was made in Thalassery, Kerala, back in 1883. Since then, Keralan cakes have had a significant influence on Indian Christmas celebrations. Mattanchere Spice Plum Cake has become one of the most popular and demanded Christmas cakes in the nation throughout the years. This cake honours the little town of Mattancherry in Kochi, which was formerly the historic centre of the nation's spice trade. This cake has been popular for many years due to the richness of the traditional Mathanchere spices and dry fruits. The cake's base is a fruit blend that includes dates, prunes, figs, dried Afghan black and white raisins, candied orange, ginger, and natural sweetness. After being cleaned, they are cooked in the Varpu, a huge, shallow cast-bronze cooking pot that has been used for generations in Ayurvedic cookery. This traditional method guarantees that the fruits cook uniformly and hold onto their nutrients, adding to the cake's unique, deep flavour. This mixture, together with a balance of nutmeg, cinnamon, and honey, gives an unmatched flavour.
Address: Kaloor Kadavanthara Rd, Junction, near Fridge House, Kadavanthra, Kavalackal, Kochi, Kerala 682017
Timings: 8:30 AM - 10:30 PM
Price: INR 1,543
Image Credit: Pexels
Royal Plum Cake: Mambally Royal Biscuit Factory, Kannur
Behind its glass door, boxes of plum cakes whisper a legacy spanning over a century, and biscuits and cakes are carefully stacked on a glass shelf, competing for space. Mambally Bapu was a trader in Burma who supplied British soldiers in Egypt with bread, tea, and milk. According to Prakash Mambally, owner of Mambally's Royal Biscuit Factory, which currently makes 17 different types of Christmas plum cakes, Bapu had returned to Thalassery in 1880 and soon established a bakery of his own. Murdoch Brown, a British planter who was building a cinnamon plantation in neighbouring Ancharakandi, served as the inspiration. He urged Bapu to prepare another cake with the same flavour and shape after tasting a slice. Brown offered Bapu the ingredients and recommended using a French brandy from Mahe, but Bapu opted for a local liquor and even hired a blacksmith from Dharmadam to create the mould. On December 20, 1883, Brown requested a dozen extra plum cakes after tasting the finished product and declaring it to be the greatest he had ever had.
Address: Palissery, Thalassery, Kerala 670101
Timings: 10 AM - 7:30 PM
Price: INR 400
Allahabadi Cake: Bushy’s Bakery, Allahabad
The Anglo Indian community in Allahabad is where the Allahabadi Christmas Cake first appeared. Anglo-Indians were well-established in a number of Indian locations during the British era. The Allahabadi Christmas cake is unique for a number of reasons. Allahabad's Bushy's Bakery provides this distinctive Yuletide delight. The bakery was founded in 1963 by Mohammad Aslam and produced a cake at the request of an Anglo-Indian woman. For starters, it's made from candied ash gourd, or "petha." A significant quantity of our desi fat ghee, or clarified butter, is utilised in place of butter or margarine. There is marmalade in the cake as well. The Allahabadi Christmas cake may also contain dry fruits steeped in rum and spices, including ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, and mace.
Address: FR5M+55P, 10/12 Kanpur Road, Civil Lines, Mahatma Gandhi Marg, Canton, Civil Lines, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh 211001
Timings: 10 AM - 10 PM
Price: INR 1,000 - INR 1,500
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Betty Blickenstaff’s Fruit Cake: Landour Bake House, Landour
Nestled near the edge of the cliff with pines surrounding it like a hug, the Landour Bakehouse is barely three kilometres away from Mussoorie. The green nameboard is recognisable from afar. What makes it worth the travel is the mere fact that you get to savour delicious desserts (which is enough to convince us) while being transported back into history. Betty Blickenstaff's Fruit Cake and Chocolate Swiss Roll make you want to thank the creators for sharing their wonderful recipes with the world, unaware of how these sugary delights would continue to bring joy to future generations. So, the next time you take a leisure trip to Mussoorie, don't miss this gem. It might be packed with locals and tourists, but you will definitely find a spot for yourself and a dessert that speaks to your heart.
Address: Sisters Bazaar, Landour, Mussoorie, Uttarakhand 248179
Timings: 8 AM - 9 PM
Price: INR 600
Plum Cake: Jila Bakery, Goa
Jila is a unique bakery that was founded in 1972 at the household of Jose Inacio and Ludovina Antao, J-I-L-A. Nestled in the ancestral village of Loutolim, South Goa, Jila Bakery is somewhat hard to find and remote from the city centre. Get your hands on some luscious plum cake and freshly cooked caramel-butter cake that are on sale. In the end, you will also purchase some Geneva pastries and macarons. The Jila Bakery is the place to go if you enjoy classic Goan desserts. This famous bakery is well-known for its handcrafted plum cake and bebinca, a tiered Goan treat. Desserts are made even sweeter by the timeless charm of this family-run bakery. One of the strongest indicators of how good this bakery is is the fact that for all these years, they have done almost no marketing or advertising, yet every morning, the cakes and desserts are made fresh, and by mid-morning, they are mostly all sold out. Their most famous dessert, the custard-filled eclairs, are the most delicious you’ll ever taste. Remember that you should ideally call ahead and book your order. If not, there are high chances that there’ll be nothing left by the time you reach.
Address: church Ambora, near Our Lady of Candelaria, P.O., Camorlim, Loutolim, Goa 403718
Timings: 8 AM - 1 PM and 2:30 PM - 6 PM
Price: INR 200 - INR 400
Image Credit: Pixabay
Yule Cake: Glenary’s, Darjeeling
Glenary's Bakery & Cafe, that’s also known as the Glenary's Cake Shop, is located on the busy street Nehru Road, a stone's throw from Mall Road of Darjeeling, at the ground floor of an old heritage two-storied white colonial building. As you walk past the street, the big board of the shop will catch your attention as the name is prominently displayed. This diner/ bakery, which has been there since British colonial days, today happens to be an important landmark of Darjeeling. A seasonal attraction is their liquor-marinated Yule plum cake, which is steeped for two months. The festive counter is completed with fruit cake, almond sponge cake, currant loaf, marzipan, and chocolates. Ask for the balcony seats for the best view in town while sipping your coffee or hot chocolate, while gorging on your favourite pastry or savoury.
Address: Nehru Rd, near Clock Tower, Chauk Bazaar, Darjeeling, West Bengal 734101
Timings: 6 AM - 10:30 PM
Price: INR 390
Maida Coconut Christmas Cake: Hussney Bakery, Pune
Husseny Bakery has been around for eight decades, having been founded in 1932. This shop is a world unto itself, offering you an abundance of baked goods such as bread, butter, Irani naan, biscuits, cakes, jam rolls, plum cakes, croissants, and more. Without a doubt, their Brun Pavs are the greatest in the city. Treat your palate and savour the taste of heritage here at Husseny Bakery. Every day at five in the morning, the wood-fired oven at the famous location in Pune Camp comes to life. However, the light that gradually accumulates in the room at this time of year is distinct; it resembles the warmth of Christmas, the season of giving. Freshly shredded coconut melts into maida, sugar, and ghee to form a dense, comforting crumb in the maida-coconut cake, a soft, aromatic loaf that is a quiet heirloom in Pune's Christmas scene. Families have been bringing their own hand-mixed mixes, frequently scrawled from grandmothers' notebooks, to be cooked in Husseny's wood-fired ovens for decades. This has given the cake a flavour that is as much about memory as it is about ingredients. It's a traditional festive baked good that smells like home long before it leaves the bakery. It's warm, slightly sweet, and studded with cashews or almonds, depending on the customs of each household.
Address: 662, Taboot St, Opp. Cakes 'n' Coffee, Camp, Pune, Maharashtra 411001
Timings: 6 AM - 11:30 PM
Price: INR 200
Image Credit: Pixabay
Eggless Fruit Cake: Samanbha Bakery, Shillong
The dense, sensitive texture of Samanbha Bakery's eggless fruit cake, which combines soaking fruits, candied peels, cashews, and toasty spices into a batter that is surprisingly light for an eggless cake, embodies the distinct warmth of Shillong's winters. The top develops a caramel-brown crust that locals love to tap before cutting in, the fruits unleash little bursts of sweetness, and the crumb holds a soft crunch. The cake, which is baked in small amounts throughout the season, strikes a balance between practicality and nostalgia; it doesn't include eggs for people who don't like them, but it doesn't sacrifice richness or aroma. This simple fruit cake is one of Shillong's most beloved winter customs; in the peaceful alleys of Nongrim Hills, residents claim you can smell the cake before you see the bakery—a buttery, fruity perfume wafting from Samanbha's ovens.
Address: CC-013, Central Nongrim Hills, Shillong, Meghalaya 793003
Timings: 9 AM - 12 midnight
Price: INR 200
