Festivals holds a lot of value for Indian families. Each festival brings with it love, laughter, celebration and of course food.Desserts play an important role in our food culture as we all look upto end the meal with something sweet on the plate. When you think of Indian dessert , the picture of Kheer, Halwa, Mithais comes to mind. These are part of our everyday meal as well as festive celebrations to satisfy our sweet tooth. An array of mouthwatering dishes are prepared and served to guests and family members on these occasions. Raksha Bandhan is one such festival which calls for celebration of relation between a brother and a sister and the family prepares the most amazing sweets for this occasion.No festival in India is complete without sweets .Here is a collection of some mouthwatering sweets which you can prepare for the upcoming festivals.
1. Khira: Khira is one of the signature Odia dessert that is offered as Mahaprasad to lord Jagannath in Puri. This delicious recipe with thickened milk and crumbled paneer creates a sensational sweet taste in your taste bud. This Khira recipe has been flavored with cardamom powder which gives a beautiful fragrance to the dish and addition of an exotic fruit like Sitaphal or Custard apple in this makes it more succulent. The fake bundles, be that as it may, don’t generally work, particularly for bigger requests. Simply a month ago, 500 phony ID cards were halted in Pennsylvania City by U.S. Customs and Outskirt Assurance Officials. A big part of the IDs were sent from Canada and the other half from China. The organization professes to have Top fake IDs were masked in adornments encloses and bundles of phony tea sets. CBP Officials were interested with regards to why many modest adornments boxes and tea sets were being transported to a school town, in this manner bringing about the bundles’ investigation.
2. Pumpkin Pudding Dessert( Pumpkin Halwa) : Found the house filled with the fragrance of festivity with this sweet and gooey dessert called Pumpkin Halwa. This one dessert I am sure is going to change your perception of Pumpkin, when you look into the color and texture of this dessert.
3. Chena Jhilli-Sweet Cheese Dumplings in cardamom flavour sugar syrup: Chena Jhilli is made from fresh chena or cottage cheese and then fried in ghee and soaked in light sugar syrup. When you put this sweet into your mouth, you can experience a burst of flavor from the sweetness of chena and the cardamom flavor sugar syrup.
4. Bhapa Sandesh/ Steamed Sandesh/ Steamed Cottage Cheese Fudge : ‘Bhapa Sandesh’ or steamed milk fudge need no introduction to any Bengali , for others it is a specific type of sweet or dessert created with chenna (Indian Cheese), sugar and are available in many types and shapes. Bhapa Sandesh is made by steaming home-made cottage cheese and that’s why the name is Steamed Sandesh. ‘Bhapa’ in Bengali means steamed. This steamed Sandesh is usually decorated with saffron streaks or dry fruits or rose petals.
5. SHAHI PHIRNI WITH PISTACHIOS AND FRUIT TOPPINGS : Who can resist chilled creamy Phirni, an absolute delight…and my all-time fav Indian Dessert! But making it the traditional way requires much of your time and attention…with constant supervision.
7. SITA BHOG: The Sitabhog of Burdwan has been exciting many a taste buds for more than 102 years now. An invention by sweet maker Bhairav Chandra Nag- who is also known for creating the iconic Mihidana – the Sitabhog is made of powdered rice and cottage cheese mixed in a proportion of 1:4 along with ghee, sugar water and saffron. The Gobindabhog rice – that grows solely in one patch of Burdwan district which is why it is also called the Rice Bowl of west Bengal– is said to give the sweet a distinctive flavour and taste to this iconic sweet dish. Sitabhog is made by frying tiny, oblong, rice-like bits of a dough made of chenna and powdered gobindabhog rice, which grows in Burdhwan alone, in ghee. It is then soaked in sugar syrup. It is served with nikuti, which is also made from milk powder, curd, ghee and baking soda. A myth about this dish is that it was the favourite dish of Mata Sita of Ramayana.
8. Apple Malpua with Apricot Rabri: Malpua and Rabri which is a sweet dish very popular to the region I belong. but I decided to give this recipe a twist and make it suitable for people to have it even during Navaratri fastings also.
9. Paan Ki Ladoo : Coconut Ladoos are one of the sweets that can very easily be made for any festival. These can be made using fresh coconut or desiccated coconut.I have given This simple coconut ladoo which can be made instantly with two ingredients only i,e, condensed milk and desiccated coconut has been given a wonderful twist with the addition of Paan in it. This can be made instantly and can be relished any time of the year.
10. Kiwifruit Sandesh: Sandesh being an inherent part of Bengali culture and festivity, became a ‘messenger’ of auspicious news creating anatmosphereof celebration and jubilation in Bengali households.Sandeshis a very popular Bengali sweet made with fresh homemade paneer or chenna. The traditional sandesh is made with plain chenna and some cardamom and pistachios are added to the base. But to give the traditional recipe a twist, I made a filling of kiwi fruit in it. The recipe is fairly easy to make and the end product is a delicious, melt-in-your-mouth Kiwifruit Sandesh.
11. CHHENA PODA: If cheesecakes were the domain of the western world ……. Well, let me to introduce to you the quintessential Odia dessert called Chhenapoda – the only well known Indian dessert derives its flavor primarily from caramelized sugar.
12. CHOCOLATE KHEER: This recipe of mine “CHOCOLATE KHEER” or “CHOCOLATE RICE PUDDING”is a rendition of classic Indian dessert- Rice kheer. There is no better ingredient than chocolate when you want to have a different flavor in your rice pudding. The chocolate flavor achieved by adding chocolate chips complements its smooth texture.
13. MAGAJA LADOO ( ATTA LADOOS) : Out of Shree Jagannath’s 56 bhog……comes this sweet specialty called Magaja ladoo. An all-time child hood favorite recipe, which melts in the mouth and you crave for more and more….this simple dish is made of Wheat flour, ghee, cloves, cardamom and Sugar. This recipe is very easy to make….and since this is offered as a bhog to Lord Jagannath, makes it all the more special. If kept in an airtight jar, it can stay upto one month.
14. RASABALIS : Rasabali is a sweet dish from Odisha offered to Baladevjew, and originated in the Baladevjew Temple of Kendrapara. It is one of the Chapana bhoga of Jagannath temple also. I had fallen in love with this recipe in my first visit to Kendrapada after marriage and since then it has remained my all time favourite. Though the Rasabalis available in Kendrapada has it’s unique taste but with practice I have manged to replicate the dish to near perfection.
15. RICE KHEER :
16. Gajar Halwa : Carrot Halwa or Gajar Ka Halwa is a sweet dessert associated with the people in northern India. It is made with grated carrot, milk and sugar.It is a simple recipe with shredded carrots. It does not require much ghee or frying, so one can really indulge in this sweet without feeling guilty. You can add some more nuts like Almonds or Pistachios, condensed milk or khoya .
17. RASMALAI: Rasmalai , thesoft and spongy cottage cheese balls in dry fruit laced saffron flavored creamy milk rabri is the most preferred sweets out of all other sweets. Though it is known as a Bengali sweet, Ras Malai is a dessert is believed to have originated in Odisha and it is one of the most famous dessert of our state.
18. RASAGOLLA : Rasagola which have now become popular throughout India and other parts of South Asia actually originated in the Indian state of Odisha. These are made from balls ofChhena(an Indian cottage cheese) and semolina dough, cooked in a sugar syrup. In Odisha, Rasagola,also known by its original name,Khira Mohanahas been a traditional Odia dish for centuries. The inventors of Rasagola are thought to be theKar brothers, the descendants of a local confectioner,Bikalananda Kar, in the town of Salepur, near Cuttack. Even today theseRasgollasfamously named asBikali Kar Rasgolla,are sold all over Odisha.
19. Poka Mithoi:
20. Oats & Dryfruits Cigar : Oats Dry fruit Cigars are delicious and very festive is one of the sweet which makes everyone happy in my family as it is mildly sweet and full of flavor. Since these are made with sugarfree Natura, everyone can indulge in this sweet temptation called Oats Dry fruits Cigar.
One of the most popular among Indian sweets is the humble Kalakand- the rich milk cake. This is purely made with milk, chenna or Indian Cheese and sugar. You could also call use ready cottage cheese in this recipe also. You could also use Condense Milk in place of sugar and can add milk powder to thicken the milk also. The most important characteristics of this sweet is the grainy texture. This rich and traditional Indian Mithai is a must for occasions like Holi, Diwali, rakhi and other festivals. I have given this traditional Mithai a fruity twist by adding Sitaphal flavour into this.
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