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A spread for Christmas

Impress your family and guests with these scrumptious dishes

CELEBRATORY Gingerbread Christmas Pudding

There is more to Christmas lunches than turkey, roast chicken and cakes. Arzooman Irani, Executive Chef of Taj Green Cove Resort, Kovalam, comes up with some different recipes that can be made a few days earlier and refrigerated.

Try them out to make your Christmas lunch a gastronomic experience.

Smoked Fish Spread

(Makes about four cups)

Ingredients

Smoked fish fillets (the skin should be removed) - 300 gm

Unsalted butter, softened - 1 cup
Shallots (chopped fine) - one-third cup
Fresh dill (chopped fine) - quarter cup
Lemon juice (fresh) - 1 tbsp
Spicy sauce like Tabasco - Half cup
Black pepper - quarter cup
Whole-grain crackers
Cold water - 1 cup

Flake fish and transfer two cups to a food processor, then blend with butter, shallot, dill, lemon juice, hot sauce, and pepper until smooth. Puree the fish with a blender and gradually keep adding the water until the water is absorbed. It should take about a minute.

Transfer to a bowl and fold in the rest of the fish, then pack the mixture into a glass bowl or ceramic mould.

Cover it with a wax paper, then tightly cover with cling film and chill at least six hours. Bring spread to room temperature before serving. This will take one to two hours. Spread can be chilled up to five days.

Pickled Crisp Vegetables

(Makes about 12 cups)

Ingredients

Fennel bulb - 1
Cauliflower -1
Mixed bell peppers (red, orange, and yellow) - 3
Carrots - 300 gm
White vinegar - 3 cups
Sugar - one and three-quarters cup
Salt - 1 tablespoon plus half tsp
Water - 2 cups
Dried hot red pepper flakes - tsp
Garlic cloves (halved) - 4
Fennel seeds, slightly crushed - 1 tsp

Method

The stalks of the fennel bulb must be cut off and discarded and the bulb sliced lengthwise into half-inch thick and half-inch wide strips. Cut the cauliflower into 1-inch wide florets (four to six cups).

The bell peppers must be cut into quarter-inch wide strips and carrots into 3-inch long strips (quarter-inch thick).

Add fennel, cauliflower, bell peppers, and carrots to a pot of unsalted boiling water, immediately turn off heat and let it stand uncovered for two minutes.

Drain vegetables in a colander and spread out on a kitchen towel to cool to room temperature.

Bring remaining ingredients to a boil in a saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Transfer the pickling liquid to a bowl and cool to room temperature (about 30 minutes). Discard garlic (don't be alarmed if it has turned blue in reaction to the vinegar) and add vegetables to pickling liquid.

Weigh down the vegetables with a plate to keep them submerged in liquid if necessary. Chill, covered, at least one week. It can be kept chilled for one month, if needed.

Gingerbread Christmas Pudding

(Makes 8 to 10 servings)

Ingredients

For sauce
Unsalted butter (room temperature) - half cup
Powdered sugar - One-and-a-half cup
Grated orange peel - 1 tsp
Brandy - 2 tbsp
For pudding

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
Flour - One and one-fourths cup
Ground ginger - 1 tbsp
Ground cinnamon - 2 tsp
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Salt - half tsp
Baking soda - half tsp
Ground cloves - quarter tsp
Unsalted butter (room temperature) - 6 tbsp
Sugar - three-fourths cup
Orange marmalade - half cup
Eggs - 3 large
Mild-flavoured (light) molasses - quarter cup
Grated orange peel - 1 tsp
Method

Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl; stir to blend well. The sauce can be made four days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before serving.

For pudding

Coat inside and centre tube of six-cup or eight-cup pudding mould or Bundt cake pan with oil, then generously with butter. Sift flour and next six ingredients into medium bowl. Using a electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then marmalade, molasses and orange peel.

Add flour mixture and beat just until blended. Transfer batter to prepared mould. Cover mould tightly with foil. Place steamer rack in a large pot.

Place pudding mould on rack. Fill pot with enough water to come halfway up the sides of the mould. Bring water to boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cover pot and steam pudding until it is cooked.

To see if it is cooked, insert a tester inserted near the centre, if it comes out clean the pudding has be cooked.

Add more boiling water to maintain level of water till the pudding is cooked. It takes about 75 minutes.

Using oven mitts, remove the mould from the pot. Uncover and let stand for 10 minutes.

Cut around the top centre and sides of the pudding to loosen it from the mould. Turn the pudding out on to a rack and cool for 20 minutes. The pudding can be made a day ahead. Cool completely. Return to mould; cover and chill.

Resteam 45 minutes to heat through, then turn out of mould. Transfer pudding to platter.

Cut pudding into wedges; serve with sauce.

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