Get your Diwali Fix

Sweeten up your festivities with this assortment of delicacies that'll have your family and guests lining up for more

CHOCOLATE BARFI
Ingredients
. 3 tbsp milk
. 4 tbsp water
. 3-4 green cardamom seeds
. ½ cup almonds, blanched
. 2 tbsp butter
. 1 cup mawa
. 1 ¼ cup powdered sugar
. ½ cup chocolate
. 2 tbsp cream
. Almonds, sliced, to garnish, optional

Method
Boil milk and water with cardamom seeds in a microwave. Cover and
keep aside.
Powder the almonds in a blender.
Heat half the butter in a pan and roast mawa on low fire till very light pink. Add the almond powder and roast for 2-3 mins.
Remove cardamom seeds from the syrup, add sugar and mix with the roasted mixture. Stir continuously till it starts leaving the sides of the pan.
Remove and spread in a square tray to set. Once set, cut into squares.
Melt chocolate in a double boiler, and add cream slowly. Cool slightly and spread on top of the set barfi squares. Garnish with almond slices and serve.
MALAI PISTA KULFI


Ingredients
. ½ L double cream milk
. 1 tin evaporated milk
. 4 green cardamom
. 4 tbsp sugar
. 4-6 threads saffron
. 4 tbsp milk powder
. ½ tin condensed milk
. 2 tbsp pistachio, chopped

Method
Heat the double cream and evaporated milk in a heavy bottom pan with cardamom. Once it starts boiling, reduce the heat and simmer till it reduces by half; keep stirring. Add sugar, saffron and milk powder, and stir. Simmer for five more minutes, then discard the cardamom and cool.
Mix with condensed milk and blend with a hand blender. Add the chopped pistachios and pour the mixture into kulfi moulds; freeze till it sets (approx. 4 hours).
To remove the kulfi from the moulds before serving, stand the kulfi moulds in a bowl of lukewarm water for 10 seconds. Lift the moulds and invert them onto serving dishes. Top with more pistachios and serve.
THANDAI MOUSSE


Ingredients
. 1 ½ cup milk
. 2 ½ tbsp sugar
. 4-5 threads saffron, soaked in milk
. 2 tbsp china grass or agar-agar, powdered
. 1 cup cream
. ¼ cup thandai syrup
. 2 tbsp caramel syrup, optional
. Chocolate truffle, to garnish, optional

Method
Boil the milk with sugar, soaked saffron and china grass powder, and keep stirring.
When the sugar has dissolved completely, add cream and thandai syrup, and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Remove from heat and pass through a sieve. Pour immediately into serving glasses. Cool and keep in the fridge to chill.
Once it has set, pour a little caramel sauce, garnish with chocolate truffle and serve.
PANCH DHARI LADDU


Ingredients
. ½ cup semolina
. ½ cup besan
. ½ cup atta flour
. ½ cup moong dal flour
. ½ cups almonds and pistachios, chopped
. 1 tbsp cardamom powder
. ½ cup mawa (khoya)
. 2 cups ghee
. 2 cups brown sugar, powdered, plus 2 tbsp extra

Method
Heat a heavy bottom pan and add the ghee and semolina.
Roast for five minutes before adding the remaining flours, and stirring continuously till lightly golden brown and aromatic.
Add all the chopped nuts, cardamom powder and mawa, cook for 3-4 minutes and remove from the heat.
When the mixture has cooled slightly, add the powdered sugar.
Work the mixture with your hands and shape the laddu using your palms.
Roll the laddu in the powdered sugar and press one almond slice on top of each laddu. Serve.
KIWI HALWA


Ingredients
. 3 kiwis
. ½ cup clarified butter
. ½ cup semolina
. 1 tbsp almond flour
. ½ cup mawa
. 1 ½ cup water
. ½ cup sugar
. 1 tsp cardamom powder
. 1 drop of green food colour, optional
. 2 tbsp almond slices, to garnish

Method
Peel and roughly chop two kiwis.
Heat butter in a pan, add semolina and cook, stirring continuously. Add almond flour and stir till it turns golden brown. Add mawa and keep stirring.
Boil water, sugar, cardamom powder and food colouring in a separate pan. Mix with the roasted mixture and continue stirring constantly.
Add the kiwis and cook for 2-3 mins.
Keep stirring till all the moisture evaporates and the semolina has been cooked completely.
Garnish with almond and kiwi slices, and serve hot or cold.
GULAB JAMUN TOWER


Ingredients
. 4 boondi laddu, readymade
. Chopped nuts, to garnish
. Gulab jamun, quartered, to garnish
For the gulab jamun:
. ½ cup pancake mixture    
. 1 cup milk powder
. 2 tbsp cream
. 1 tbsp clarified butter, plus extra for frying
. 1 tsp green cardamom powder
For sugar syrup:
. 1 cup sugar
. ¾ cup water
. 1 tbsp rose water
For rabri:
. 4 cups double cream milk
. 100 gm sugar
. 1 tin evaporated milk, cardamom flavour
. 2 tbsp nuts, chopped (optional)
. 4-5 strands saffron, soaked in
hot water

Method
For the rabri, heat milk in the pan. Once it starts boiling, reduce the flame and simmer till it reduces by a third. Meanwhile, try to remove the skin of the milk with the back of a ladle and layer it along the sides of the pan.
Add sugar and evaporated milk. Cook for 5-7 mins more. Add nuts and saffron. Remove from the heat, and keep aside to cool. Chill for 30-40 mins once cool.
Mix all the ingredients for the sugar syrup in a separate pan. Boil for 3-4 mins. Set aside.
For the gulab jamun, mix pancake mixture, milk powder, cream, clarified butter and green cardamom powder till it becomes a soft dough. Add more milk, if required.
Heat clarified butter in a pan on low to medium heat.
Make small cherry tomato-sized balls with the dough, and fry in batches till lightly golden brown. While still hot, dip in the sugar syrup.
To construct, add half a laddu into each serving glass. Slice the prepared gulab jamun and layer on top of the laddus. Layer with the remaining laddu halves. Top with cooled rabri. Garnish with sliced nuts and gulab jamun quarters.
Serve immediately. 

• Food and Dining