There are some elements of unadulterated joy, childhood memories and nostalgia intertwined with this time of the year when there is a chill in the air. The schools have winter vacation and kids play around in the sun while parents love watching that. It’s Christmas in the air and a brand new year knocking on the door!
And again, when it comes to food that is related to this time of the year, only one thing comes to my mind and that has to be Christmas cake! During this season, I generally try to have several varieties of cakes from various bakeries scattered in my city, some of them are brand new ones and some are legendary like Nahoum’s in the New Market area. And yes, plum cake is surely a mandatory thing during the Christmas!
This year, I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered the awesome bakery which is part of the new superhero-themed café in town – Café HQ! This place surely produces one of the finest bakes in the town and I was seriously impressed with their products and the sheer good quality of the cakes!
As you might know by now, Café HQ is the newest and coolest superhero themed café in Kolkata located close to the Rabindra Sarobar metro station (Tollygunge Phari area) in a peaceful alley which is perfectly cut off from the buzzing rush of the city traffic. The place is filled in with superhero-themed elements, wall arts, posters, lamp shades, framed images and much more. Many in the city are now aware of this den of all the superheroes, but very few know about the amazing bakery that this place houses. I was seriously floored after I saw their bakery products and yes, they tasted equally good!
So, now it is that time of the year when the bakery is all buzzing and you have the air filled with aroma of freshly baked cakes! Few days back when I was here at this café, I made sure I tasted some of these amazing freshly baked products that will hit the market during the Christmas and New Year celebrations! So, let’s quickly glance through the products which I tried.
Black Forest – The Black Forest cake is one of my all-time favourites and Café HQ did complete justice with that age-old love of mine. The layer of whipped cream frosting with cherry topping and the super soft, fluffy layers of the chocolate cake made it just the perfect Black Forest cake that you can get in the city.
Dutch Truffle – This was probably the best of the lot and that intense gooey chocolaty thing can make you go weak at the knees! It was very rich, moist and looked absolutely stunning when it was presented before us – a treat to the eyes and definitely for your taste buds. The ganache glaze on top with that impeccable bittersweet filling loaded with chocolate chips in every layer made it stand out. It’s an indulgence that’s completely worth it.
Plum Cake – This is, of course, the classiest of the cakes, the iconic plum cake that you gotta try during the Christmas. It was fruity and nutty with all the goodness coming from the fry cherries, raisins, almonds and the dry fruits. It was pretty soft, rich and delicious to taste.
Dundee Cake – Often we buy Dundee cakes during the Christmas apart from plum cakes or the classy fruitcakes. Actually, Dundee cake is the Scottish fruit cake that has a top layer studded with concentric circles of almonds. The cake is made with currants, almonds, fruit peels, sultanas, etc. This is the perfect tea-time cake and the version available at Café HQ is just so authentic, soft, fresh and flavorful.
Fruit Cake – This is my favourite kind of tea-time cake and that’s a personal choice. The fruitcake at Café HQ was just so perfect. It was rich and loaded with dried fruits, spices and raisins. It was pretty soft, buttery and fluffy and had the perfect aroma and flavour, just the way I like it.
Red Velvet – Apart from Christmas, we find this cake mostly being served during the Valentine’s Day. It is a tad dramatic looking with those bright bold red, spongy, velvety layers of goodness trapped in those delicate crumbs and cream cheese frosting!
Tiramisu – I had already tried their Tiramisu previously. The Tiramisu was superbly presented with that chocolate dust making a bat symbol typical to Batman! It had those creamy and thick layers with rich chocolaty touch to it.
So, hopefully, these cakes have given you certain Christmas goals now! From my end, I surely know where to get my cakes this year. It’s at the newest address of the saviours of this planet! All the superheroes are waiting at their den with all these freshly baked items!! Hurry!
And I wish all my readers a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year! Stay happy and stay blessed.
Cheers!
foodiedada 