Remixed Sweets: 2021 Festive Edition

Arushi Dusaj speaks to three chefs from across the country to bring to you some new-age recipes to tickle your sweet tooth!

The festive season is just around the corner! Be it Ganesh Chaturthi, Dussehra or Diwali, we are all gearing up to indulge in our favourite Indian desserts in the spirit of celebration. With homemade innovations on the rise, we have curated three easy to make yet scrumptious sweet dishes that you can try out from the comfort of your home. 

Ellu Urundai

Nandheetha Varadaraj, Lead Chef at Soklet, Coimbatore

To be honest, this is not your traditional version of the famous Coimbatore sweet dish. However, Manipal University graduate and Le Cordon Bleu alumni Nandheetha Varadaraj brings a chocolatey twist to this classic. By pairing her special love for chocolates and plated desserts with tradition, she aims to evoke a sense of nostalgia, tinged with a welcome surprise. This recipe makes for 20 to 25 pieces.

For the Coconut Ganache 

Ingredients

• Milk Chocolate 
• Cream 
• Desiccated Coconut 

Steps:

1. Heat the cream and pour partially over the melted chocolate.
2. Mix thoroughly and then add in the desiccated coconut.

For the Sesame Mix

Ingredients

• Sesame, white 
• Sesame, black
• Jaggery

Steps:

1. Toast the sesame seeds until they pop and turn light brown.
2. Grind them along with the jaggery to make a coarse powder.
3. Spread half of the mixture in a thin layer on a small pan or tray, making sure to pack it tightly. 
4. Put the remaining sesame mix on top, again making sure to pack it tight.
5. Let it set thoroughly, cutting small squares. 

Cupcake Barfis

Sarah Zia, @fluffinacup on Instagram

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This Kerela based home baker is well-known for her fusion sweet recipes. Armed with the knowledge of how to make over sixty different types of cupcake flavours, she teaches us how to refashion the good old barfi and gives it a completely new look. This dish is eggless. 

For the Eggless Cupcake

Ingredients:

• Butter – 115g
• Sugar – 200gms
• Vanilla – 1Tsp
• Baking Powder – 2Tsp
• Flour – 280gms
• Milk – 1 Cup
• Vinegar – 1 Tbsp
• Cardamom Powder – ½ Tsp
• Pistachios, crushed – 60 gms

Steps:

1. Start by beating sugar & butter. 
2. Mix milk and vinegar together and keep aside.
3. Mix the dry ingredients and keep them aside. 
4. Add vanilla to the butter mixture. Then gradually alternate between milk mixture and dry ingredients and make a smooth batter. Add cardamom in the end and fold in the pistachios.
5. Fill in 3/4^th of the liner. Eggless cupcakes crack sometimes but don’t worry about it. 

For the Barfi Buttercream 

Ingredients:

• Butter, unsalted – 100 gms
• Icing sugar (not powdered sugar) – 200 gms
• Cardamom Powder – ½ Tsp
• Milk Powder – 3-4 Tbsp

Steps:

1. Make sure your butter is not melted and your icing sugar is well sieved.
2. Start by creaming the butter and gradually adding sugar to it until you get a good thick consistency for frosting.
3. Add in the milk powder and cardamom in the end.

Puran Poli Modak

Girish Nayak, Chief Mithaiwala at Bombay Sweet Shop, Mumbai

“People usually eat various types of modaks during Ganesh Chaturthi. Apart from that, the signature sweets include mawa modak, ukadiche modak, karanji, puran poli, and motichoor ladoos,” says the seasoned confectioner. His recipe combines two traditional sweet treats for the price of one.

Ingredients:

• Malai peda – 200g
• Saffron – ¼ Tsp
• Bengal Gram Dal – 75g
• Black Jaggery – 1 
• Cardamom Powder – ¼ Tsp
• Pepper powder – ½ Tsp

Steps:

1. Wash the Bengal gram dal. Boil it in water till soft. Decant the water on top.
2. Add the jaggery to the cooked dal. Heat again, turn over constantly till it forms a lump.
3. Let this cool for a bit and grind them to a smooth paste without adding water. Add cardamom powder and pepper powder to it. Puran is ready. 
4. Make small balls of this and keep them aside in the fridge.
5. Powder the saffron using the mortar and pestle. Add this to the malai peda base and mix well.
6. Now, put some of the saffron peda into the modak mould. Create a cavity in the bottom of the mould and fill it with a puran. Close the cavity with some peda mix. Then  demould.
7. Make more and serve it at room temperature to your loved ones. 

Hope you enjoy these amazing recipes!