Sabudana kheer (sago pudding) – an easy dessert idea for a party menu. It cooks quicker than rice kheer, needs the stove top only (no oven), and is vegetarian-friendly.
Dessert
Pua from Bihar: Thin, Crisp Holi Sweet
Each festival in Bihar has a signature sweet linked with it: thekua for chhatth, pidukiya for teej, tilkut for Makar Sankranti – and pua for Holi. But when the goodies are this good, why wait for an occasion to cook? Build your own reason for sweet celebration.
Mango Phirni: Classic Rice Dessert with Fruity Twist!
Mango phirni gives a seasonal twist to the classic rice phirni (creamy Indian rice pudding). This mango delicacy is a summertime favorite inspired by a recipe I saw on the TV show Turban Tadka.
Fresh Fruit Rabri (No Refined Sugar)
A simple fresh fruit preparation that you can serve as a snack or an after-meal dessert.
Traditional rabri can be pretty heavy with its high content of sugar and condensed milk. Its usual pairing with malpua and jalebi (while delicious!) doesn’t help either if you’re watching your weight. Enter my recipe of fresh fruit rabri – a dessert that satiates your sweet tooth even while keeping things light and healthy. No refined sugar, no tinned condensed milk – this rabri is sweetened only with natural nutrient-rich dates and apricots. No canned fruit either – only fresh seasonal produce.
The Easiest Homemade Orange Marmalade
This orange marmalade recipe is for those who want a small jar of it to eat up within a week or two, without the rigors of canning and bottling for preserving till eternity. No pectin, no fancy equipment, no complex sterilization of storage jars. Making orange marmalade at home doesn’t get easier than this!
Ever since I’ve started making marmalade in my own kitchen, I wonder that I ever bought it from the market. I get far superior stuff at a fraction of the cost, with hardly any effort. Plus the activity leaves the kitchen smelling wonderful for hours. The bittersweet bite of rind, the real fresh citrus taste, the golden-happy translucence of homemade orange marmalade – there is simply no match for it.
Meethe Chawal: Jaggery-Sweetened Rice
Every time I watch a rerun of Sooryavansham on TV (laugh if you will, I enjoy that film) I am struck by the scene in which Radha covers up for the lack of supplies in her kitchen by preparing meethe chawal. Celluloid can inspire us in unexpected ways, as this post is proof. My story may not be as dramatic as that of families reuniting tearfully after watching Sansar (a real effect of the film in the year of its release, I’m told), but it’s still worth telling for those in a culinary quandary similar to mine.