Cake-mixing ceremony at GRT Grand marks the onset of Christmas season

As November rolls in, the Christmas spirit begins to fill the city. The air at GRT Grand, Madurai, was thick with the fragrance of dry fruits as guests and chefs came together for the hotel’s annual cake-mixing ceremony — a time-honoured tradition that marks the beginning of the festive season.

This year, the event was made extra special as GRT Grand invited 50 guests and 40 underprivileged children to join the celebration. As the countdown began, the children joined the hotel staff and guests in lighting up the grand Christmas tree, its twinkling lights reflecting the joy on their faces. The presence of men dressed as reindeer and clowns, along with cheerful carol singing, added to the festive mood and left the young guests beaming with excitement.

A tray brimming with 80 kilograms of dry fruits — including raisins, almonds, cashews and candied peel — gleamed under the warm lights. As upbeat music played in the background, participants donned gloves and aprons and poured in generous measures of liquor, soaking the rich mix that would soon become the hotel’s signature Christmas plum cake.

“Elango Rajendran, Senior Cluster Manager of GRT Grand, said, “Every year we celebrate this ceremony, but this year, we have chosen a sustainability theme by using a real Christmas tree instead of a temporary plastic one.”

Explaining the process, Chef Ganesh said, “This fruit-mixing ceremony is held a month before Christmas. Once mixed, the fruits are soaked in liquor and preserved at room temperature until baking time.” He added that this year, the soaked fruits would be used not only for plum cakes but also for pudding cakes, which are being introduced for the season.