What comes to your mind when you think of Christmas?
Christmas conjures up images of Santa Claus, gifts, cakes, chocolates, and a host of other culinary delights.
Christmas is generally associated with spending time with family and friends and an occasion to indulge in revelry and merry making.
In India every festival is associated with some delicious food, similarly Christmas is marked by indulging in food and diet that are otherwise frowned upon or restricted during other part of the year.
Let’s try some easy and traditional Christmas recipes.
1) Christmas cake:
240 gms flour,100 ml rum, 200 gms sugar, 50 gms walnuts,4 eggs, 120 gm butter, 1tsp baking powder, 360 gms raisins, 150 gms lemon peel, 20 gms crystallized cherries.
Method:
- Grease the cake tin and sprinkle a little flour on the surface.
- Cut the cherries, walnuts and lemon peel into small pieces and immerse them along with the raisin in the rum.
- Cream the butter and sugar along with the vanilla essence.
- Add the eggs gradually and keep mixing
- Fold in the flour and baking powder well
- Mix in the rum, stirring all the while along with the soaked ingredients
- Preheat the oven
- Pour the cake batter in the greased tin and bake at 160 degree C for 15- 20 minutes.
Well Known Nutritionist, Sweta from DENMAC says “Christmas cake is high in calories and fats. All health conscious individuals should limit the portion sizes.”
2) Chocolate Walnut fudge:
400 gms condensed milk, 200 gms milk, 100 gms butter, 1 cup cocoa, 1 cup dark chocolate chips, 1 cup chopped walnuts
Method:
- Put all the ingredients except the walnuts in a heavy bottom pan and keep in on low flame.
- Sit continuously till the mixture becomes thick and begins to leave the sides of the pan. Turn off the fire.
- Add walnuts and mix well.
- Grease a plate and pour the mixture. Spread into a thick layer.
- Allow it to cool for a while and then cut inti medium sized squares.
- When completely cooled store in airtight containers.
Sweta says “Walnuts are good source of omega 3 fatty acids and can be given to growing children.”
3) Guava cheese
1 kg soft guavas and sugar
Method:
- Deseed the guavas and cut into small pieces.
- Add water to the seeds and sieve the guava extract from the seeds
- Blend the guavas pieces to make a smooth pulp
- Measure the cups of the guava pulp and add it to a flat, heavy bottomed dish on a medium flame.
- Add sugar (approximately 1 cup less than the guava pulp. For instance if you have 4 cups of guava pulp add 3 cups sugar.)
- Stir continuously till the mixture becomes hard to stir and begins to leave the sides of the pan. Turn off the fire
- Grease a plate and pour the mixture. Spread into a thick layer
- Allow it to cool for a while and cut into diamond shapes when still warm.
- When completely cooled store in airtight containers.
Sweta says “Guava is a good source of Vitamin C and is rich in antioxidants and fiber. A healthy sweet can be prepared using sugar substitutes and can be enjoyed even by the weight watchers and health conscious individuals.”
