The festive season is all about delicious food and while it may be daunting to cook a full feast, Christmas is also about the delicious sweets that are shared with friends, family and neighbours. Craving a delicious plum cake, kulkuls, guava cheese, milk cream, navries, rose cookies or even the chewy marzipans is a highlight of the celebrations.

At such times, Catholic friends often come to the rescue, armed with platters filled with these delicacies. But for those who are away from loved ones or want to savour such seasonal delights round the year, learning how to make some of them is a great idea.

Mid-day.com asked city chefs to share relatively simple recipes of Christmas delicacies that are made in their own homes. These include not only sweets but also popular savoury specialities that are made by the community during the festival.

Milk Cream by Chef Paul Kinny, St Regis Mumbai, Lower Parel

One of the many popular treats eaten during Christmas celebrations, milk cream is a bite-sized sweet made with powdered cashew and milk. Pic/St. regis

Ingredients (Makes 500 gms):
Milk - 1 litre, cashew nuts (broken) - 200 gms, icing sugar - 200 gms, vanilla essence - 1 tsp, butter - 20 gms