Aloft at Whitefield recently did their Annual Christmas Cake Mixing.  It is one of the most fascinating events where every person part of Kitchen staff is involved, and hotels call stars for the same.  Even though the Christmas itself is many days later, the fruit cake is prepared in advance and shared with guests.  Keeping up with the Annual Tradition, Aloft setup the Cake Mixing activity more than a month in advance and I was invited as one of the guests.

Cake Mixing Ceremony

The origins of this activity came from Europe and has been around for centuries.  Initially it used to be a family affair post the harvest period.  Families would prepare their Christmas cake with newly harvested fruits, nuts and wine.  In the due course, it has been adopted by other countries.

Hotels and Resorts gear up for Cake Mixing Ceremony during October – November period.  The flavour, aroma and quality of the fruits contained are vital elements for fruit cakes.

Some of the dry-fruits used for mixing includes – Cashew nut, Almond, Pistachio, Tutti Fruiti Strawberry Peach, Apricot, Blueberry, Pineapple, Fig, Cherry, Plum and Orange peel.  They also add some spices like – Nutmeg, Cinnamon and Clove.  The mixture is blended with wine, rum, brandy and few other liquors.

During the cake mixing, the aroma emanates from the dry-fruits and when the wine & other liquors are poured, it become intoxicating.  Mix is then shifted to a container and preserved for 30-45 days.  The mixture is usually taken out in the first week of December. 

Event Details

The event was setup on the 5^th floor that has a swimming pool.  Before the start of the event, I could see large portion of dry-fruits kept covered and plenty of wine & other liquor bottle.  All of us were given Apron, Chef hat and the glows to be worn before mixing.  There was a lot of excitement in the air.

Soon after the event started, all us opened the covered portion of dry-fruits to make a stack of the mixture.  Then we poured fresh bottles of Wine, Rum (Old Monk) and Brandy into the mix.  The idea was to mix the liquor along with the dry-fruits for a while.  It was a great fun event which gets the people involved in mixing on high.

High Tea

A wonderful High Tea event was arranged next to the cake mixing area.  There were plenty of Pastries, Desserts, Salads, Fruits and Mocktails. They were all arranged perfectly in a very tempting manner.

I personally have a sweet tooth and ended up trying nearly 8-10 varieties.  Along with the food, I was given a special mocktail which was quite good.

Overall Experience

It was a wonderful opportunity to be part of such a beautiful event at Aloft Whitefield.  I enjoyed mixing of the dry-fruits and liquor.  High Tea was filled some great food and drinks.  A special thanks to Chef Hafeizulla Baig (Executive Chef) and Kishore (Sales & Marketing Head) for the warm invitation and the hospitality.  Hoping to get a portion of the fruit-cake that would be prepared out of the mixture for the Christmas Festival.

Pictures with Chef Hafeizulla Baig (Executive Chef), Kishore (Sales & Marketing Head) and Sneha Chandrashekar (Founder of Chef Post)