Diwali 2023: Celebrate Diwali with These 5 Homemade Dessert Recipes

As Diwali approaches, the excitement of the festive season is reaching its peak! In India, no celebration is truly whole without the delightful presence of sweets. What could be more wonderful than infusing your Diwali celebrations with a unique, personal touch by crafting delectable homemade sweets that you can savor with your dear ones?

This Diwali, trade the clamor of fireworks for the delightful symphony of chopping and infusing aromatic ghee into dry fruits as you create a range of irresistible sweets right in your own kitchen.

Rasmalai Coconut Cake by Chef Prashant Chipkar, Culinary Head, Masti Dubai Cocktails & Cuisine

For the Rasmalai Coconut Cake:

White Chocolate: 80 grams

Cooking Cream: 120 grams

Gelatin Sheets: 6 grams

Whipped Cream: 100 grams

Philadelphia Cheese: 80 grams

Coconut Milk Powder: 20 grams

22-karat Gold Dust: as required

For the Biscuit Base:

Valrhona’s 66% Dark Chocolate: 30 grams

Butter: 50 grams

Hazelnut Praline: 40 grams

French Biscuit: 50 grams

For the Chocolate Spray:

White Chocolate: 50 grams

Cocoa Butter: 50 grams

White Color: 3 grams

For the Cardamom Sponge:

White Chocolate: 25 grams

Egg yolk: 20 grams

Egg white: 30 grams

Flour: 50 grams

Cardamom Powder: 2 grams

Sugar: 45 grams

Method:

 FOR THE RASMALAI COCONUT CAKE:

1. Start by whisking the cooking cream & the coconut milk powder together.
2. Now transfer the cream into a heavy bottomed pan & heat it up till 60 degrees.
3. Once the temperature of cream reaches 60 degrees remove from the heat &add in the gelatin.
4. Cool the mixture to room temperature
5. Now fold in the cream cheese followed by the whipped cream.
6. The mixture is now ready to be poured into any desired silicone mold.
7. Pour the mixture into the mold and layer in the rasmalai in two layers. Set asideto refrigerate for 6 hours.
8. Now add the French biscuit base at the end of each mold, & let it set for another 2 hours.
9. Demold the coconut rasmalai arrange in an assembly to be sprayed with thewhite chocolate spray.
10. Finally Dredge with some 22-k gold powder & the rasmalai is ready to be served.

FOR THE BISCUIT BASE: 

1. Melt the chocolate in a microwave
2. Add in the softened butter.
3. Mix well and the add in the hazelnut praline.
4. Fold in the French biscuit and mix with a spatula.
5. Make a homogenous & pliable mixture and keep aside till use. 

FOR THE CHOCOLATE SPRAY:

1. Melt the Chocolate & the cocoa Butter together on a double boiler.
2. Once homogenized add in the white food coloring & mix well.
3. Strain the mixture and transfer it into the spraying device.

FOR THE CARDAMOM SPONGE:

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a blender. And mix till everything is well incorporated.
2. Now strain the mixture and transfer it to a siphon.
3. Charge the Siphon with two No2 Chargers Shake well. Let it rest for 10 minutes before use.
4. Prepare a paper cup by slitting its base, 2 small incisions should be enough
5. Now fill ¼ cup with the mixture and microwave it for 45 seconds on full power.
6. Once cool carefully take out using a spatula. The micro sponge is ready for use.

Ukad Nevrya by Chef Yogen Datta, Executive Chef ITC Maratha Mumbai & Area Executive Chef West Region ITC Hotels

Ingredients:

Warm water: 50 ml

Rice Flour: 100 gms

Jaggery powder: 20 gms

Fresh grated Coconut: 50 gms

Raisins: 10 ml

Nuts: 10 gms

Ghee: 30 ml

Poppy Seeds: 20 gms

Saffron: 1 gms

Silver Warq: 2 leaf

Salt as per taste

Cardamom powder to taste

Method:

Mixture:

In a pan, take ghee and heat on slow flame.

Add raisins & nuts and cook well, now add freshly grated coconut and saute until golden brown.

Add jaggery & cardamom powder, cook further until the mixture is soft & sticky.

Take the mixture off the flame and let it cool aside.

Dough:

Add warm water to the rice flour & mix well to dissolve the lumps.

Now add ghee & saffron to the mixture & knead the dough well.

Now make small dumplings and roll them flat on a surface, fill the coconut mixture and shape it into half-moon.

Ensure the sides are sealed well, and shaped & designed with the fork.

Now place all the karanji into a steamer and steam it well until cooked.

Once cooked plate them, garnish them with poppy seeds, saffron and warq.

And here the ukdiche karanji are ready.

Choco-Coconut Karanji by Chef Ranveer Brar

For Stuffing:

Handful of raisins

30 gm chopped nuts (pista, almonds, cashews)

HERSHEY’S Spreads Cocoa with Almond: 2 tbsp

4-5 dates cooked & pureed

Desiccated coconut: 5 tbsp

Milk powder: 1 tbsp

HERSHEY’S Chocolate Flavoured Syrup: 2 tbsp

For Outer Layer:

15-20 fresh dough sheets

Oil for deep frying

Method

For Stuffing:

In a pan, add ghee, raisins & nuts and fry for 30 secs.

Add in HERSHEY’S Spreads Cocoa with Almond, desiccated coconut & HERSHEY’S Chocolate Flavoured Syrup and cook for 2 mins. add milk powder.

Remove it into a bowl so that it cools faster

Mix well and set the stuffing aside

For Outer layer:

Take 15-20 ready-made fresh dough sheets

Hold one of the circles in hand and place a ½ tsp of stuffing at the center and seal the ends with water to give it a karanji shape

Use a fork to give it a unique design at the edges

Repeat this process with the remaining dough. Make a batch of karanjis and keep them ready

For Frying:

Heat oil for deep frying.

Drop in the karanjis and deep fry until golden

Rest the fried karanjis on a wire rack and allow to cool completely

Drizzle some HERSHEY’S Chocolate Flavoured Syrup on top

Serve them any time of the day

Hershey’s Nuts Barfi by Chef Ranveer Brar

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons ghee

1 cup cashew powder

1/2 cup sesame seeds powder (white sesame seeds toasted and ground)

1/2 cup Hershey’s Strawberry flavoured syrup

1½ tablespoons chopped almond

1½ tablespoons chopped pistachios

1½ tablespoons chopped cashew nuts

Equipment Needed:

1 heavy bottom pan

1 spatula

1 barfi dish/plate

Method

In a heavy bottom pan, add ghee and heat it up.

To the ghee, add cashew powder, sesame paste and chopped nuts.

Cook this together till the moisture evaporates. Do not brown the mixture.

Add HERSHEY’S Strawberry Flavored SYRUP and cook till the mixture is combined and semi dry.

Add the mixture to a barfi tray or any plate to set. Set it aside at room temperature for 2 – 3 hours.

Tip

To garnish, sprinkle the top of the barfi with chopped pista and serve.

Rasmalai recipe by Chef Aditya Sahu

To make Chenna:

1¼ liter milk or 5 cups full fat milk for chenna

1 to 2 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar (mix with 2 to 3 tbsp water) or 4 to 6 tbsp curd

1 litre ice water or ice cubes

For Sugar Syrup:

1 cup refined white sugar

3½ cups water

¼ tsp cardamom powder or elaichi powder

To make Rabri (Thickened Milk):

¾ liter milk (3 cups full fat)

½ cup sugar for rabri

Pinch saffron or kesar (optional)

2 tbsp pista or almonds sliced

Method

Make Rabri (Thickened Milk)

Pour 3 cups milk to a heavy bottom pot and boil.

Add saffron and sugar when the milk comes to a boil.

Reduce the flame to medium. Stir every 2 to 3 minutes to prevent the milk from scorching at the bottom.

When a layer of cream forms, just move it aside.

Boil until the milk thickens and reduces to half the quantity. Set this aside to cool.

Cool half of this and chill in the fridge. Keep the other half warm.

Make chenna

Bring 5 cups milk to a boil in a pot.  Turn off the stove.

Pour lemon juice and keep stirring until the milk has curdled completely.

If it doesn’t curdle then add some more and stir.

Next if it fails to curdle then turn on the stove & regulate to a low flame. Stir until it curdles.

Turn off the stove. Pour ice water or add ice cubes to the pot and set aside for 2 mins.

Drain to a muslin cloth lined over a colander.

Pour fresh water over the chena and rinse well. You can also do it under running water for the sour taste to vanish.

Wrap the chena in the cloth. Squeeze off excess whey and make a knot.

Next hang it for about 45 minutes to 1 hour for the excess whey to drain off.

Chena should not have any excess dripping whey & should not be completely dry. It must be moist and grainy but not very sticky or dry. Please check the images above the recipe card.

Kneading chena

Transfer the chenna to a plate. At this stage chenna should not have any excess whey in it.

Knead well for about 3 to 5 minutes until smooth. Chenna should not be grainy but must be smooth. Do not go by the time but focus on the texture – smooth, non grainy and non-sticky texture is required.

Make 12 equal balls and flatten them to make discs.

If the discs are slightly cracked on the sides, roll the sides gently. Set these aside.

Sugar syrup

Bring 3½ cups of water to a boil with 1 cup sugar.

Stir until the sugar dissolves completely. Then add cardamom powder.

When the sugar syrup begins to boil rapidly, then add the discs gently.

Cook covered for about 9 to 10 minutes on a moderately high flame.

Turn off the stove. Remove the pot from the stove to avoid cooking further.

Keep the lid closed for the next 20 mins to avoid them turning flat or shrinking.

When done they will sink in the syrup.

How to Make Rasmalai

Take off the discs to a plate and cool them.

Squeeze them gently in between your palms to remove sugar syrup.

Add these to the half of the warm thickened milk or rabri.

Rest them for 3 to 4 hours. Pour the other half of the chilled rabri to this just before serving.

Garnish rasmalai with chopped nuts.

Nutella Coconut Ladoo by Chef Vikas Khanna

Serves – 5 (2 per person)

Ingredients

2 cups desiccated coconut

3/4 cup condensed milk

8 almonds, finely crushed

5g of Nutella (7.5g per ladoo)

Silver leaf (optional)

Method

In a heavy-bottomed pan, add the desiccated coconut and condensed milk

Mix well and keep stirring as you cook it on a low flame for 4-5 minutes or until the mixture comes together or starts leaving the sides of the pan. Do not overcook.

Transfer the mixture into a bowl and let it cool at room temperature

Divide the mixture into 10 pieces. Flatten each piece in your palm, add 7.5g of Nutella and gently wrap it on all sides.

Garnish with crushed almonds and silver leaf (optional)

Serve at room temperature.