Indian Desserts

[whole milk]

If you've read my past posts you'll know that I've been getting deeper and deeper into Indian cooking -- and loving it. My favorite website, My Julia Child of the Near East, is Manjula. Anyway, I'm ready to tackle Indian style desserts and so I've been reading about sweets like Basen Ladoo and Mohan Thal and I'm fascinated by the differences in preparation. For example, with Ladoo, whatever flour is used, it always seems to be toasted. Has anyone ever tried toasting white or whole wheat flour for a cake or bread?

Anyway, I'm posting this to get some ideas of your favorite Indian desserts that I can try to make at home.

If you're interested in that website I mentioned earlier it's
Manjula's Kitchen | Indian Vegetarian Recipes

 

[ChefJune]

My friend, Chef Paul Silva, made these for the Mignardise course at a Celebrity Chef Scholarship Fundraising Dinner several years ago. They are heavenly!

Gulab Jamun

Recipe By : Paul Silva
Serving Size : 6

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon rose essence

1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon cardamom -- ground
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ghee -- melted
1 1/2 tablespoons plain yogurt
vegetable oil

For syrup - heat water and sugar to boiling point in small saucepan. Reduce heat to medium.

Cook uncovered for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in rose essence.

For rounds - mix milk powder, flour, ground cardamom and baking powder in small bowl.

Add butter (ghee). Rub mixture between palms of hands about 1 minute until mixture is coarse.

Add yogurt, 1 tsp. at a time, mixing by hand or spoon, until mixture starts to come together to form a slightly sticky dough. Knead in bowl about 1 minute or until smooth.

Shape dough into 6-inch log. Divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Set aside.

Heat oil in large pot or use deep fryer. Heat oil to 325 degrees F.

Fry balls 1-2 minutes, turning occasionally, until golden brown. Remove, drain and place in bowl.

Pour syrup over balls. Cover and let stand at room temperature at least 2 hours but no longer than 4 hours.

Cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Yield: "12 rounds"


Here is the site for the Indian cooking teacher I studied with: www.juliesahni.com

Other notable Indian chefs/teachers you might be interested to consult are: Madhur Jaffrey; Maya Kaimal; Raghavan Iyer.