Did You Know India's First Christmas Cake Came From Thalassery?

Thalassery has its own rich cultural heritage, cuisine, and language. Thalassery Christmas Cake is one of Thalassery's most iconic dishes that are popular among locals and tourists who visit this city. But did you know it also has a less talked about the claim to fame in the form of birthing India’s first-ever Christmas cake? Thalassery Christmas Cake is made using local spices, dried fruits, sugar and cashew apple liquor. It has a spongy texture with a soft crumb that is infused with a unique flavour from the spices. The Thalassery Christmas Cake is an absolute must-try for any foodie visiting Thalassery or anyone who appreciates traditional Indian desserts!

The history of how it came into existence dates back to 1883 when one man, Mambally Bapu, the owner of a bakery selling over 40 different types of biscuits and one of a long line of bakers in the city. As the story goes, it was a few days before Christmas when a British plantation owner from Anjarakkandy, Murdoch Brown, came to Mambally with a new request. He handed Mambally a rich plum cake he had brought with him from England and asked the baker to replicate it. 

Mambally took up the challenge, and after a quick tutorial from Murdoch where he handed and a pantry of ingredients including dates, raisins, a French Brandy from Mahe as well as cocoa powder, Mambally started on his reverse engineering adventure. But Mambally was a maverick and had his own ideas about what should go into this Christmas cake. He sourced a mould from Dharmadam, some choice spices from farms up and down the Malabar coast and instead of brandy, he used a local brew made from cashew apples plus some kadalipazham bananas to boot.

This twist was a real surprise to Murdoch who returned 10 days later to collect his commissioned cake and found something quite unexpected. Although it wasn’t quite like the original plum cake he had been hoping for, he fell in love with Mambally’s creation and happily accepted the creation and that was the beginning of a long attachment for the people in the area who started to swear by Mambally’s signature cake every Christmas. 

Even today, the walls of the bakery are adorned with pictures depicting that iconic moment when Basu handed over the cake to Brown and made history with India’s first and most unique Christmas cake.