Landour
Contents |
Landour
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
{Landhaur). — Hill cantonment and sanitarium in Dehra Dun District, United Provinces, situated in 30° 27' N. and 78° 7' E. Population in the cold season (1901), 1,720. In September, 1900, the population was 3,711, of whom 1,516 were Christians. A con- valescent station for European soldiers was established in 1827, the year after the foundation of Mussoorie, which adjoins Landour. The cantonment contains a large school for Europeans and Eurasians, with college classes.
Uttarakhand
From the archives of "The Times of India" : 2008
Nestled 1,200 feet above the more popular Mussoorie, Landour is an oasis of tranquillity. Here’s how its pine-scented environs and churchspire-dotted panorama inspired author Aravind Adiga to write a stunning debut novel, which has landed him in the Man Booker Prize 2008 longlist!
— Aravind Adiga is the Man Booker longlisted author of The White Tiger.
Located in Uttaranchal in the Himalayan foothills, Landour is the popular Musoorie’s less-explored cousin!
Best time to visit: Throughout the year
Altitude: 2,500 m
Nearest Airport/Railway Station: Dehra Dun Must-Visits: Lal Tibba, author Ruskin Bond’s House (pic below), Kempty Falls, Tibetan Temple, Cloud’s End
Quick Getaways: Mussoorie, Nag Tibba, Dhanaulti, Dehra Dun, Tiger Falls, Chakrata
Cuisine
The Landour Bakehouse
Ganesh Saili, Dec 19, 2021: The Indian Express
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From: Ganesh Saili, Dec 19, 2021: The Indian Express
“Where’s the Bacon House?”
It does not matter where you happen to be. The aroma of their Christmas cake full of cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg, wafting in the air, will drag you to the Landour Bakehouse that visitors refer to as the Bakery, the Bacon House or even the Bread House.
To those of us to whom Landour is home, we see it as our revenge upon our symbiotic twin Mussoorie’s over-crowded Kempty Falls or the Mall Road.
“One cold winter’s evening five years ago, Rakesh, who had a ration shop, called Munshi Mull Radhey Lal General & Provision Store (estd.1872), visited us,” recalls entrepreneur Sanjay Narang, who along with his gifted sister Rachna, had once set up one of Asia’s biggest on-flight catering business. “Could you rent our ration shop?” asked Rakesh.
“What on earth will we do with ration shop?” wondered the brother and sister, exchanging glances. “We could start a bakery. But there’s a limit on how much flour, sugar, milk and baking powder one could sell!” Narang remembers thinking, and adds, with a laugh, “Or so I thought!” Rakesh agreed to lower the rent. In exchange, the siblings offered him a percentage of the profits.
“Who could have predicted what was waiting to happen?” reminisces Narang. Though restoration did take time, what with the ancient lime-coated hessian ceiling sagging under the weight of a hundred years of dust, cobwebs and rat-droppings, everything changed when Rachna waved her magic wand to create the Landour Bakehouse. The rest was a piece of cake.
Over a hundred years — from 1850 to 1950 — the missionary community in India loved the hills and enjoyed a great standard of living. They certainly did not undergo any culinary hardships, as anyone reading these recipes will realise. Landour had an incredible mix of military doctors, nursing sisters, Landour Language School students, and Woodstock School parents and staff, who met at the Landour Community Book Club and exchanged international recipes.
Who knew that their recipes when put together and spiral-bound would go on to bake Landour a better place? First published in 1930, the typescript of the recipes were updated, revised and published as The Landour Cookbook, through five editions.
Landour Bakehouse is a tribute to the ingenuity and effort of these pioneers. Many of its desserts and puddings have been borrowed from The Landour Cookbook . So what’s different? You might wonder. It’s the grandstand view of the Himalaya mixed with the scent of pine trees.
Landour’s milkmen have had a tradition of watering their milk. Norman Van Rooy, an old Woodstock alumnus, who grew up at Redburn Cottage in the 1960s, tells me: “My mother brought back a lactometer from America. The solid proof, shocked the milkmen though briefly. They soon learnt to add flour to increase the density of watered milk.” Nevertheless, we are grateful to our doodhwalas, for their milk of varying textures. Without their contribution, half these dishes would not have been possible.
Our local bakers were a common sight up until the 1970s, carrying tin-trunks full of breads and confectionery; fudge, stick jaw, marzipan and meringues, on their heads. Most of them came from Ghogas, a tiny village 40 miles from Tehri; their ancestors arrived in Garhwal with the refugee prince, Sulaiman Shikoh, Dara Shikoh’s son in the summer of 1658.
As I write, Abha, the lady-of-the-house, reminds me of the cookbook’s mysterious powers, especially its tips on baking: “For leavening with baking powder or soda at 6,500 feet, reduce from four tablespoons to one at sea level. Never reduce the sugar. Use the maximum amount of eggs and increase flour by one tablespoon for every increase of 1,500 feet.
Like me, you too will learn that if you are downie, eat a brownie! For life is too short! Eat all the cake you want and wash it down with the special coffee brewed at the Landour Bakehouse.
Tips for Landour’s Christmas Cake:
Ideally, the preparation for our traditional Christmas cakes start weeks before with cake mixing, where you soak plenty of finely-chopped dried fruits and spices in a variety of alcohol. For the less adventurous, you may substitute orange juice for a citrus flavour; pineapple for a tang of sunshine and apple juice for a tilt towards a neutral flavour. If you’re using fruit juice, you will have to microwave the soaked dried fruit. Remember to add a little diced orange peel rind to avoid a bland cake.
For a good batter, one must not use too much baking powder as a cake is no cake unless it’s fluffy.
To get that dark brown colour, use dark-brown sugar. For extra moistness, use both oil and butter. Beat it all up till it’s smooth.
Bake very slowly in a pre-heated oven. Usually, at 7,000 ft in the sky, this can take up to three-and-a half hours but the result is worth waiting for.
