Christmas for me is a lot about the family coming together to eat. We might not exchange gifts but we would probably exchange cookies and cakes and recent recipe discoveries. That’s our gift to one another. The Piano Man Bakery recently became one of these discoveries and a new favourite, especially for their Christmas goodies.
The Piano Man Bakery
The bakery is an extension of The Piano Man brand, a bunch of clubs with some really good Jazz music and wicked drinks.
It’s run by Chef Ruchira Hoon who has worked with multiple food brands, has been a food writer and blogger and …wait for it… is a SELF-TAUGHT BAKER! She learned everything from recipe books and cookery shows. Those of you reading recipes on Spoon and watching Bake-Offs and Masterchef like crazy, there’s hope for you yet.
The bakery, based in South Delhi, is born out of the urge to create something new! Instead of gigantic portions that you usually find in your bakeries, they create single portion food to reduce food waste.
#Spoontip: One of the best parts of this bakery is they are trying to replace your usual fine flour and processed sugar for much healthier substitutes which are also organically sourced. So, you can actually say that my Piano man muffin is healthier than yours.
Why Should You Care?
Besides the fact that they are selling absolutely delicious food, you should care because they are selling this good stuff for relatively cheaper prices than most bakeries out there.
They ensure better taste, healthier choices and substitutes without the prices that make you regret eating healthy.
They source a lot of their material from farms, regional suppliers and vendors instead of the multistore corporations, which is the trend at the moment. I see this as a major move of giving back to the community. Organic produce doesn’t have to be expensive if you source it right and buy it from the correct person, the farmer is your best option than a retail store.
Another cool thing? They cater specifically for people with Gluten allergies and sugar issues. They have some amazing bakes which use your normal ingredients (though they tend to replace fine flour i.e Maida a lot) but they create some brilliant bakes and dishes for people with food restrictions. Just call ahead. Diabetes won’t stop you from eating their baked goods.
#Spoontip: I recommend trying their sugar-free and gluten-free bakes even if you have no dietary restrictions. It’s tasty and healthier. Also, check out their amazing Instagram account
Their Christmas Box and goodies
Their Christmas goodie box which contains all of their introductions for the festival is your go-to goodie box.It contains everything for a good Christmas- Cakes, Cookies and Cake!
Their mulled wine cupcakes, featured in the picture above and in the previous section is made with whole wheat flour instead of fine flour. It is just the right amount of sweet with a hint of the wine, not too much, just the way I like it. The icing is sugary and looks as beautiful as on their Instagram pictures.
The Christmas cake is one of the best I have tasted. It’s everything from orange, chocolate, rum, coffee, almond flour, cranberry and more! It crumbles in your mouth and surprisingly the sugar icing doesn’t make it too sweet but balances the flavour (#Spoontip: If you aren’t fond of sugar icing though, you can just scrape it off, the cake is delicious anyway, though I prefer the sugar)
Finally, the cookies! They deserve a picture.
The cookies are made with whole wheat flour too and my and my little cousins’ favourite out of the box. Besides the instant sugar rush it promises, the cookie is baked well. It has the right thickness and I like the sugar work and icing on top. They are selling four of these cookies for a hundred rupees ( about $1.56) which when compared to other retailers is cheaper and tastes better without the fine flour.
Besides these, there is also their Spiked hot chocolate and White Pistachio fudge that I really want to try.
#Spoontip: Besides their other Christmas bakes they also have their churro bowls which I can’t wait to try and hence I recommend visiting the bakery in person. You can buy the box and try the churro bowls. The box is also a cool gifting option for Christmas and new year! I know I would be happy receiving it..