I was able to buy a Christmas goose for not too much at a market in Moscow around 25 years ago. I forget exactly how much I paid for it, but I can tell you the ones in Canada cost a lot more. The one I bought here in 2017 set me back $90 CAD.
One thing about geese that I like is the huge volume of fat you get by roasting them. Be sure you save it for things like frying potatoes. It’s true liquid gold!
LFor something unique to a season, over here it must be Christmas Pudding. I don’t know of anyone eating it at any other time.
For other foods traditional to, but not exclusively, a specific season, I’d have said hot cross buns for Easter, but these days they’re in supermarkets all year round. And there are pancakes on Shrove Tuesday (and sometimes with pancake races). Some people still make simnel cakes, but they’re not a widely commercialised thing in the way Christmas puddings are.
Not really. There are a lot of common ingredients, but Christmas pudding is a steamed suet pudding including things like treacle, molasses and alcohol, traditionally flamed in brandy as it is served, with custard and/or cream and/or rum or brandy butter. There is sometimes a coin or token hidden in there, for luck (like the French “roi des fêves” tradition).
Christmas cake is a standard baked fruitcake (we have it with outer layers of marzipan and icing and whatever fanciful decorations you feel like).
There are too many to list for India, I’ll try to list for a few states and their festivals / occasions and pick one food that I find interesting
Northern State of India : Gond ke laddu. → Post Partum for Women and Winter festivals like Diwali → Frankincense mixed with dried fruits / nuts and made into a ball. This goes back thousands of years and the gum in frankincense is believed to heal internal injuries. Many Indians also believe that Casper (one of the wise men) took frankincense for Mother Mary when she gave birth to Jesus for the same reason.
Southern State - Tamilnadu specifically → Pongal (festival) celebrated at the end of the Winter Solstice / Harvest festival. Rice Pudding made using rice, milk and molasses.
Eastern State - West Bengal specifically → Poush Sankranti (Different name for the same festival as Pongal) . Crepes made with fillings made of coconut and palm syrup. Palm syrup is made just like maple syrup from a species of palm tree by placing cuts on the trunk just like maple trees.
Wester State - Rajasthan specifically → Festival of Rakshabandhan when a Sister ties a thread on her brother’s wrist as a symbol of reinforcing their love to each other → Ghevar , a disc shaped sweet cake made of flour, sugar and ghee (clarified butter). It has toppings of dried fruits and nuts.
Oh, cool. I bet that’s true! Or rather, I don’t believe that wise men gave gifts to the baby Jesus at all, but I bet the origin of the story is tied to the belief that frankincense is good for postpartum mothers.
Yeah, many also believe that Casper was from India, Melchior was from Persia (Zoroastrians lived in Persia before Islamic invasion. Freddie Mercury was born a Zoroastrian and many successful Industrialists from India are Zoroastrian). Balthazar, the third black Magi was from Africa. Bottomline : there was quite a diversity of humans at the first Christmas.
Now I understand that many branches of Christianity believe that the “Wise men” are fictional, and I mean no offense to them.
Similar ingredients but not quite the same, Christmas pud is softer, wetter - you steam it and eat it hot, served with hot custard, cream or brandy butter. You also set it alight with flaming brandy or rum. We have fruitcake too, and eat it at various special occasions - Christmas, weddings, christenings, easter… presumably because the ingredients make it expensive hence saved for ‘best’.