Once upon a table - Hindustan Times
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Once upon a table

Hindustan Times | BySwati Chaturvedi
Dec 25, 2020 09:58 PM IST

From decorations and holiday cookies to the dinner menu, everyone loves the sense of familiarity that comes with tradition. Of course, there’s always room for new holiday festivities, but that’s not to say that they can be filled with the same nostalgia for time gone by. It’s still the charm of classic dishes that make the traditional supper on Christmas memorable.

From hours of cooking the meat to the little touches of cranberry sauce, every aspect of the Christmas dinner is what makes the day so special. The season revolves around family, time-honoured traditions, and usually the kitchen. We can’t think about Christmas memories without landing on our favourite, extravagant meals and sweet treats that make appearances year after year—and are passed down generation to generation. 

Chef Prem K Pogakula, The Imperial, says “I believe the most important ingredient for one of the finest Christmas recipes is finding time with family and being together on this special occasion. Post that only the ingredients and techniques make for a recipe.”

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From decorations and holiday cookies to the dinner menu, everyone loves the sense of familiarity that comes with tradition. Of course, there’s always room for new holiday festivities, but that’s not to say that they can be filled with the same nostalgia for time gone by. It’s still the charm of classic dishes that make the traditional supper on Christmas memorable.

From black forest yule log, spice-roasted turkey served with rosemary jus and a side of winter vegetables and pudding, we bring you a Christmas feast that you can easily cook at home.

Mince pie
Mince pie

Mince pie by Chef Prem K Pogakula- Executive Chef The Imperial

Ingredients:

1 large jar mincemeat (about 600g), 2 orange segmented, 1 apple finely chopped, zest 1 lemon, icing sugar, for dusting 375g plain flour, 260g unsalted butter, softened 125g castor sugar, plus extra for sprinkling 1 large egg, plus 1 beaten egg for glazing

 Method

Place plain flour and softened unsalted butter in a bowl and rub together to a crumb consistency.
Add caster sugar and 1 large beaten egg, and mix together.
Lightly floured surface and fold until the pastry comes together, Wrap the pastry in cling film and chill for 10 mins.
Scoop the large jar of mincemeat into a bowl and add 2 segmented oranges 1 finely chopped apple and zest of 1 lemon. Heat oven to 220C/200C
Roll out the pastry to 3mm thick.Cut out 16 bases and place them into muffin trays. Put 1½ tbsp mincemeat mixture into each. Brush the edge of each pie with a little beaten egg.
Re-roll out the pastry to cut 7cm lids and press them on top to seal.
Glaze with the beaten egg, sprinkle with the extra castor sugar, then make a small cut in the tops.
Bake the mince pies for 15-20 mins until golden brown. Leave to cool before releasing them from the muffin trays and dusting with a little more icing sugar before serving.

 

Black Forest Yule Log
Black Forest Yule Log

Black Forest Yule Log by Chef Rishabh Anand, Executive Pastry Chef, The Leela Palace New Delhi

Ingredients
All purpose flour 125 gm, Eggs 3, Castor sugar 65 gm, Cocoa powder 20 gm, Sour cherry – quick frozen 50 gm, Butter 25 gm, whipped cream 250 ml, Dark chocolate 200 gm, regular cream 200 ml
Method:
Beat egg and sugar till it is fluffy. Fold in flour and cocoa powder and finally add melted butter.
Bake a thin sheet and then apply fresh whipped cream to the sponge along with sour cherry.
Soak the sponge with cherry syrup and make roulade
Finally coat the roulade with cream and apply lots of chocolate flakes and dust it with icing sugar.

Creamy Pumpkin and Marsala soup
Creamy Pumpkin and Marsala soup

Creamy Pumpkin and marsala soup by Chef Sushant Parab, Executive Sous Chef, SAHARA STAR

Ingredients

Pumpkin - 400 gm, garlic - 2 cloves, onion - 1 no, cinnamon - a pinch, Marsala - 100 ml, Cream - 100 ml, Salt - To taste, Pepper - Pinch, Thyme - 1 spring, Oil - 20 ml, butter - 1 Tbsp

Method

Peel cut and roast pumpkin in the oven with thyme and oil.
Chop onion and garlic, sauté in butter.
Puree the roasted pumpkin in the blender smoothly.
Add this puree to the pan in which adjust the seasoning and finish with cream and marsala.

Roast Turkey
Roast Turkey

ROAST TURKEY by Executive Chef Abhijeet Thakre, Taj City Centre Gurugram

Ingredients

Turkey 1 no., Lemon 1, pepper 1 tbsp, salt as desired, quartered onion 1, celery 1 bunch, chopped carrots 2, parsley 1 bunch, chopped rosemary, a few sprigs, Melted butter ¼ cup

Method

Rinse the turkey inside and out with water. Pat with a kitchen towel to dry.
Mix lemon juice, carrots, onions, rosemary and seasoning in a bowl.
Marinate the turkey well and set aside for 3 hrs in the refrigerator.
Stuff the turkey with onion, parsley, carrots and celery and tie using a kitchen string. Place the turkey in a baking pan and cover with foil
Cover with aluminium foil.
Cook the turkey on medium in a preheated oven for about 2 hrs at 350 degrees. Reduce the heat to 300 degrees and cook for another 30 mins. Once cooked, remove the foil and cook for 15 mins at 500 degrees.
Baste the turkey with its own fat during this time. Allow the turkey to rest for an hour. Scrape off the drippings from the baking pan and put them into a saute pan. Adjust seasoning, blend it inside a blender, strain & serve hot with turkey.

Christmas pudding
Christmas pudding

Christmas Pudding

Ingredients

Rum 170g, Black Currants 240g, Black Raisins 185g, Sultanas 185g, Prunes 150g, Figs 200g, Brown Sugar 50g, Red Cherries 150g, Butter 250g, Brown Sugar 300g, Chocolate 72% 100g, Vanilla Extract 10g, Chopped Dates 150g, Flour 320g, Cocoa Powder 20g, Eggs 180g, Baking Powder 2g, Cinnamon Powder 2.5g, Garam Masala 2.5g, Cardamom Powder 3g

Method

Combine the black currants, black raisins, Sultanas, prunes, figs, brown sugar and rum in a mixing bowl. Stir well to mix, cover and leave for 24 hours to soak.
After 24 hours, mix the flour, dates, cocoa powder, baking powder, butter, spices and eggs along with the soaked fruit mixture in a large mixing bowl. Grease pudding mould with butter.
Pour the pudding mixture into the moulds. Bake in a double boiler at 140 degrees for 60 minutes. Once the pudding is cooked, remove from the pan and set aside to cool. Cover with cling wrap to keep it soft.

Brownies
Brownies

Brownies (Brownies stack with strawberries) by baker Zeena Bedi

Ingredients

2 eggs, 100 gms salted butter (melted), 100 gms powdered sugar, 50 gms maida, 2 tablespoons cocoa powder,
100 gms cooking chocolate (melted), Choco chips or walnuts for topping

Method
In a bowl, whisk together butter and sugar. When completely mixed, add maida and cocoa powder (seive together both the ingredients).
Now add eggs 1 by 1 till mixed. Now finally pour in melted chocolate and mix.
Tap it with your favourite choco chips or chopped walnuts.
Bake in a preheated oven at 160°c for 20-25 minutes or till done.
Now cut into square pieces and drizzle with melted chocolate and stack them up with strawberries and enjoy.

Boneless Pork Chops with Christmas Spirit and spice by Meatigo

Add some oil on a non-stick pan/grill cook the Pork Chops for 2 Mins each side.
Then lower heat, add 30ml water and cook for 1 more minutes each sides.
Roast in an oven at 225°C for 4 minutes. Turn over and roast for 4 more minutes.

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