Platetrotter
Discovering the world one bite at a time
  • HOME
  • BLOG
  • COUNTRY GUIDES
  • GOURMET BREAKS
  • PRESS
  • ABOUT

It's Beginning to Taste A Lot Like Christmas

17/12/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
The sweet taste of Christmas in Goa
I still remember the first time I ever tasted a candy cane. I was about five and a great aunt who was in town for the holidays had, much to our great excitement, brought us a bag of the peppermint sweets from America. 

The stripy candies were hung on the tree, wrapped tightly in clingfilm, and we waited for what seemed like an eternity to eat them on Christmas day. They were magical - belonging to the land of Christmas story books, cartoons and snowy Christmas films from a land far, far away.

Because candy canes weren't something you would ever come across at Christmas time in Goa when I was little. No gingerbread houses, mince pies or sugar plums either. 
Picture
Gingerbread houses are a fairly recent addition to the festive dessert table
What you would find were trays of dodol, cocada, perad, doce, neureos, bebinca, cashewnut marzipan and my all-time favourite, kulkuls - a typically Goan selection of sweets, most of which were made only in December, so you had to wait an entire year to get a taste of them again.

Everyone made a  significant quantity of each different kind of sweet, enough to have an ongoing supply of them to serve anyone who dropped in during the holiday season and plenty more to pile into boxes or trays lined with flowery paper doilies to send across to all the neighbours on Christmas day. Christmas Eve to me still smells and tastes of sugary sweets being rapidly piled into boxes, labelled with "Seasons Greetings" and tied with big fat bows and - a uniquely Goan problem - balanced precariously on bowls placed in trays of water until delivery, to make sure the ants didn't get to them before our neighbours did!

Kulkuls are a favourite not just because they are the ultimate Christmas treat - light enough to be perfect for breakfast, tea or after dinner - but because of the evenings I'd spend as a kid watching my granny, mum and aunts make the little fried sweets in the run up to Christmas. 

The sweet cookie-like dough was rolled out across the dining table and cut into little squares that everyone would then shape into little shells (well, the adults would make shell shapes while the kids would make something that looked vaguely like shells). The well-formed kulkuls were deep fried, sugar-dusted and stored in large tins for guests while the badly-rolled versions were eaten hot from the pan almost immediately by us - there's nothing quite like sweet lumps of fried dough to get you in the Christmas mood.

Lucky for me, my parents have brought a load of kulkuls to Dubai - more than enough to see me through the holiday season. It's definitely beginning to taste like Christmas! Now all we need are groups of tuneless carolers to come a-singing at our door and it will be just like being back home :) 

Related Posts:
Picture
Dining by the light of the moon

Picture
Wake Up and Smell the Coffee - My Top 5 Breakfast Spots

3 Comments
Didi link
17/12/2013 02:36:41 am

I know how you feel! Xmas in the PH is definitely different from the one here in the US. I cannot relate to nights sitting by the fire, candy canes, eggnog, ugly sweater parties, real Christmas tree along with heirloom Christmas decors.

It is quiet here, and hoping to attempt to recreate Xmas treats (including Bibingka - sounds like bebinca - which is a sweet fluffly rice cake with white cheese, salted duck eggs, butter, sugar and fresh coconut shavings cooked on a banana leaf on charcoals. Eaten with a cup piping hot thick chocolate or ginger tea! YUM). But somehow almost impossible. :s

Happy Holidays my dear!

Reply
Platetrotter link
17/12/2013 01:51:34 pm

Happy holidays Didi! Think bebinca would be perfect for cold weather. Tasted Filipino bibingka once, it did taste a lot like Goan bebinca. Found a recipe online of how it's made back home http://www.goanfoodrecipes.com/2008/06/bibinca-goas-favorite-dessert.html You should give it a go :)

Reply
Athalia link
27/12/2016 07:39:08 pm

Party with wine and dishes must be warmful and incredible in this winter. Nice post!

Reply



Leave a Reply.


    Named Best Blog for Food & Travel
    Picture
    Top 10 UAE Food Blogs in UAE
    Picture
    Featured in
    Picture
    Picture
    ExpatsBlog.com - Where Expats Blog
    Picture
    Picture
    Contributor on
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Follow me on Instagram

    RSS Feed

    Countries

    All
    Austria
    Azerbaijan
    Bahrain
    Bosnia And Hercegovina
    Brazil
    Bulgaria
    Cambodia
    Chile
    Croatia
    Cuba
    Cyprus
    Ecuador
    Egypt
    England
    Finland
    Germany
    Hong Kong
    India
    Indonesia
    Ireland
    Italy
    Japan
    Jordan
    Kosovo
    Kyrgyzstan
    Lebanon
    Macedonia
    Malaysia
    Maldives
    Mexico
    Montenegro
    Mozambique
    Nepal
    Oman
    Peru
    Philippines
    Poland
    Portugal
    Romania
    Russia
    Scotland
    Seychelles
    Singapore
    South Africa
    Spain
    St Kitts & Nevis
    Switzerland
    Taiwan
    Tanzania
    Thailand
    Turkey
    Uae
    United Kingdom
    United States Of America
    Vietnam
    Wales

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • HOME
  • BLOG
  • COUNTRY GUIDES
  • GOURMET BREAKS
  • PRESS
  • ABOUT