Arts
Dreaming of a sweet Christmas?
With Christmas only a little more than a week away, everyone’s probably busy rushing around buying gifts and planning out their Christmas meals. To help you out with the latter, this week Bite size is featuring four bakers that make Christmas fare with a modern twist.
Schakasz
The Schakasz Dessert Bar located in Stratford Avenue, Kirulapona, was opened up by two best friends Kasuni Silva and Chanika Rodrigo, in 2015. Known for their indulgent desserts , their Christmas fare is no different.
Their cakes are visually stunning, especially their ‘White Christmas’ cake which looks to emulate a snowy village scene.The tall white chocolate cake has layers of forest fruit compote, cream cheese frosting and swiss meringue swirls incorporated into it, and is decorated with gingerbread houses which are placed atop it. And though not traditional their chocolate ganache tart too catches the eye , when dressed up with fondant and fruits to depict winter scenery.
If you want something more traditional they do offer a Yule log. The three log cake consists of layers of chocolate cake and cream and is infused with Baileys. The carved exterior together with the festive decor make it quite visually appealing. They also offer a traditional bundt cake with an eggnog drizzle, incorporating as many Christmas flavours as possible, from cinnamon to rum. Though densely packed the bundt cake is surprisingly soft and its sweetness is well countered by the cinnamon.
’Tis the season for giving, and to facilitate that they do offer hampers as well. Coming in a decorated wicker basket, it’ll include madeleines, which are small French sponge cakes, chocolate chip and nutella cookies, as well as hot chocolate jars, among others. Hampers can also be customized to your preference.
Usually requiring a day or two notice for most of the Christmas items, customers can either pick up their orders from the store, or have it delivered for a fee. The last pick up this season is the morning of December 24.
Pix by Sameera Weerasekera
Address: : No. 56, Stratford Avenue, Colombo 06
Operating Hours: 11.30am -9.30pm ( Tue- Thur, Sun)
11.30 a.m. – 11p.m. ( Fri & Sat)
Contact : 0767477588 (Call/SMS/Whatsapp)
Social Media:
Facebook : Schakasz
Instagram : @schakaszdessert
Advance : Most items readily available. Special orders – 2 days, delivery /Pick up available up until December 24 10 a.m.
Sams Sweetstache
If you are looking for something that tastes of Christmas, but want to stray away from the typical fare we suggest you try Sams Sweetstache, run by Home Baker Alvin Van Gramberg. Alvin offers both traditional items like Eggnog and Yule log, as well as his own original creations inspired by all that’s Christmas.
Most notable is his beef braided bread, which consists of a well spiced minced beef filling baked into a braided bread. The bread itself is deliciously soft and buttery, while the filling spiced with cardamon and star anise exudes Christmassy scents. Another of his originals, is the Giant Cinnamon Scroll. A twist on the classic cinnamon roll, the nine inch scroll is infused with nutmeg and cinnamon and drizzled with Lindt chili orange chocolate. Eaten like cake, the scroll serves up to twelve people. He’s also taken the classic mince fruit pie filling and created it into a spread, to be eaten with a slice of breudher or bread, so that you have a little bite of Christmas with every slice.
Using a traditional Dutch family recipe, his eggnog, is deliciously spiced with nutmeg and cinnamon, with the cognac giving it that extra kick. The yule log too is traditional, with rustic exterior giving it a homely feel. But the rich chocolate ganache on top makes it a little decadent.
Alvin who started Sams Sweetstache when he was in Papua New Guinea back in 2011, loves to incorporate a rustic look to his creations, while ensuring that only the best of ingredients are used. This, he admits, makes his fare a tad expensive but he believes it’s worth it as it ensures quality.Though currently also working in event management, Alvin only requires between one to three days for most orders. Items can either be picked up from Wattala, or delivery can be arranged for a fee.
Contact no : +61404664530 (Whatsapp) 0770615342 ( Call)
Pix by Priyantha Wickramaarachchi
samsweetstach@yahoo.com( Email)
Social Media:
Facebook : – Facebook: Sams SweetStache
Instagram : @sams_sweetstache
Advance : 1 – 3 days Delivery /Pick up ( Wattala) available
The Bake Cottage
Run by home baker Amandi Eliyapura , together with Eran Alahakone, the Bake Cottage sprang up from a love for baking. A lawyer by profession, young Amandi who started this part time business just one and a half years ago, wants to make it a full-time occupation. Their Christmas fare isn’t traditional except for the Christmas cake.
Their Christmas gift box at Rs. 4000, is perfect for gifting and for trying out their selection. The box includes four pieces of rustic wrapped Christmas cake; three cake jars in flavours of vanilla, chocolate ganache and gingerbread with creamcheese and salted caramel frosting; a pack of sugar cookies, and is decorated with baubles and Christmas tags. We especially recommend the gingerbread jar, which is the perfect mix of sugar and spice, with the creaminess of the frosting perfectly juxtaposing the spiced ginger cake.
The Yule log, which isn’t a traditional one, is extremely decadent. Looking more like a stump than a log, its chocolate ganache exterior is decorated with meringue mushrooms and fondant snowman. Made up of layers of brownie, chocolate cake, dark chocolate and white chocolate mousse, with cherries to boot, the three kilo cake makes the phrase‘ death by chocolate’ much more believable.
We also do recommend their sugar cookies, which are large in size and come in a variety of shapes including that of candy canes and Christmas trees. The fondant used to decorate it is surprisingly delicious with a hint of peppermint and a chewy texture to it.
The Bake Cottage requires between two to four days notice for orders and offers both a pick up option from Rajagiriya, as well as charged delivery.
Contact no : 0778898599( Call/ Whatsapp/SMS)
Pix by Amila Gamage
Social Media:
Facebook : The Bake Cottage
Instagram : @thebakecottage
Advance : 2- 4 days,Delivery / Pick up ( Rajagiriya)
available
Angel Cupcakes
Angel Cupcakes, run by professional chef Amani Jayawardena, has been operating in Pelawatte for three years now, and recently opened up its second outlet on Flower Road, Colombo 7. This Christmas, the bakery will be offering an extensive menu of goodies, including Breudhers, mince pies, Brandy butter jars and Christmas cake.
Based on a family recipe, we found their love cake to be moist, with generous amounts of nuts incorporated into it. Though sweet, it wasn’t overpoweringly so.The same could be said about their fairly large brandy butter jars, which were deliciously subtle in their sweetness and infusion of brandy. Their sugar cookies which came in the shape of stars, too had a well balanced sweetness.
The cookies which are more crunchy than soft are decorated with fondant and come in the Christmas colours of green, red and white.
They also offer a Christmas Hamper for Rs. 7500, containing 8 items. This includes their love cake, Christmas cake, meringues, sugar cookies, mince pies, Christmas cake jar, salted caramel jar and brandy butter jar.
Most items on the menu are readily available at the store, with the exception of breudhers and mince pies, which require pre-ordering. They also do offer delivery for a fee based on distance.
Address: : No. 56, New Parliament Road, Pelawatte, Battaramulla No. 47, Flower Road, Colombo 07
Operating Hours: 9 a.m. -6.p.m. ( Monday – Saturday)
Contact : Contact : 0775735819 (Call/SMS/Whatsapp)
Social Media:
Facebook : Angel Cupcakes
Instagram : @angel_cupcakes_sl
Advance : Most items readily available.
Special orders -2 days
Delivery /Pick up ( Pelawatte / Colombo 7) available
