Anshu's Food Odyssey

Sondesh is one of the most popular Bengali sweets/ desserts made using fresh chhena (soft cottage cheese). It can be flavored with plain simple cardamom, saffron or even rose. Since its the summer season going on and mangoes are in abundance, I thought of flavoring it with these delicious stone fruits. Trust me these Mango Sondesh turned out absolutely heavenly and amazing. Do try the recipe once.  Mango Sondesh Recipe | Mango Sandesh Recipe INGREDIENTS Full fat milk - 1 liter White vinegar or lemon juice - 2 tbsp, diluted in 1/4 cup water Mango puree - 1 cup Fresh cream (I used Amul) - 1/4 cup Ghee - 1 tsp Sugar - 6 tbsp Mango Sondesh Recipe | Mango Sandesh Recipe Mango Sondesh Recipe | Mango Sandesh Recipe METHOD Line a strainer/ mesh with a cheese/ muslin cloth. Place a big bowl underneath the strainer. Bring the milk to a boil. Switch off the heat and let it cool down for 5 minutes. Start adding the diluted vinegar or lemon juice, whatever you are u...

Summers are here and for us, that means the kulfi season is full on. So, presenting to you my first kulfi of the season, the most easiest, simplest and creamiest Mawa Malai Matka Kulfi that needs just a handful of basic pantry ingredients! If you don't have the matkis, don't worry...just freeze them in any kulfi mould or a container that you may have and you are good to go....let's begin with the ingredients and then the recipe. Easiest and Creamiest Mawa Malai Matka Kulfi Easiest and Creamiest Mawa Malai Matka Kulfi INGREDIENTS Full fat milk - 1 liter Mawa (dried milk solids) - 1/4 cup Fresh cream - 2 tbsp Condensed milk - 200 grams or as per your sweet preference Elaichi (cardamom) powder - 1 tsp Almond and pistachio flakes, optional - for garnishing NOTE: You can flavour this basic kulfi mixture with any fruit pulp of your choice such as mango, chiku, sitaphal etc. Just make sure, you add the fruit puree once the mixture has cooled down to room tempe...

Mango Mastani happens to be one of the most popular street foods of Pune, Maharashtra . Come mango season and you will find this soul-soothing beverage at every ice-cream parlor and cold-drink joint across the city. Basically, a thick milkshake, made with fresh mango pulp, chilled milk and huge scoops of vanilla ice-cream topped with all those dried nuts, candied fruits and glazed cherries, it is definitely a treat to your taste buds and off-course, a huge respite from the blazing sun in hot Indian summers. It is said that Mastani, the beautiful warrior princess of Bundelkhand and the love interest of legendary Peshwa ruler, Bajirao, was an ardent lover of mangoes; and this drink was invented as a tribute to her culinary taste buds. If you happen to visit Pune, do not forget to try this wonderful drink at two of the city's most famous Mastani joints: Sujata Mastani and Gujjar Cold Drinks. BTW, in these pandemic times, till the time you ...

Sheer Khurma or Sheer Korma is a delicious traditional Mughlai dessert made on the festival of Eid . A creamy, thick pudding made with milk and roasted sewai (vermicelli) topped with whole lots of nuts and dry fruits, it surely makes for a palatable treat for all those with a sweet tooth. So, on my blog today, is indeed a detailed recipe on how to make Sheer Khurma at home... Sheer Khurma | Vermicelli Pudding | Sheer Khurma Recipe | How to Make Sheer Khurma Well, the term, Sheer Khurma comes from Persian language wherein 'Sheer' refers to 'Milk' and 'Khurma' refers to 'Dates', and hence Sheer Khurma can be deciphered to 'Milk cooked with Dates'. According to legends, Sheer Khurma came to India with the Turk and Mughal rulers, and in the beginning, it was just the thickened milk with dates that was consumed first thing in the morning to celebrate the joyous festival of Eid . However, with years passing, vermicelli and nuts beca...

Strawberry Phirni Strawberry Phirni Ingredients For Phirni Full fat milk - 1 litre Rice (washed and soaked in water) - 4 tbsp Sugar - 1/2 cup For Strawberry Sauce Chopped strawberries - 1 cup Cornflour - 1/2 tbsp Sugar - 4 tbsp Water - 2 to 3 tbsp Strawberry Phirni Strawberry Phirni Method In a heavy bottomed pan, add strawberries along with water, sugar and cornflour. Simmer until sugar is dissolved and strawberries are softened. Mash the strawberries with the back of spatula. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until sauce is thickened. Set aside for later use. Drain the water and grind rice to a coarse mixture. It should resemble the texture of fine rava or sooji. In a thick bottomed saucepan, bring milk to a boil. Simmer the flame and let the milk reduce to 2/3rd of its quantity. Keep stirring the milk occasionally so that it doesn't stick to bottom and burn. Once the milk reduces, add the ground rice an...

Rasgulla  or Roshogulla is one sweet delicacy which is synonymous to the Indian state of West Bengal. The soft and spongy cottage cheese dumplings cooked in sugary syrup, make for an ultimate delight for all those with a real sweet tooth. Though this palatable Bengali dessert is quite common and is easily available in every sweet shop throughout India, yet nothing can beat the satisfaction which you get making it with your own hands. But let me tell you, making this dessert demands a lot of patience and skill. I tried making the rasgullas couple of times, but every time the result was a disaster; either my rasgullas turned out to be flat, remained uncooked from inside or turned out to be hard with a thick sugar syrup coating. After about 5 to 6 tries and after seeing couple of recipes on the internet, finally I got what I was waiting for, the perfect spongy rasgullas with a juicy inner core. I flavored them with a little saffron that made them all the more delectable. One can...

Phirni is the classical dessert that finds its origin in the Indian state of Punjab. Thick, luscious and creamy dish made by thickening the milk along with coarsely ground rice, phirni is traditionally served in little earthen pots and you would mostly find it being served during festivals and weddings.  While phirni itself is quite a simple recipe, I have given it an interesting twist by adding mini gulab jamuns to the same. This delectable fusion dessert is sure to add to your list of traditional party recipes; serve it during your Diwali get-together , Holi lunch or any pooja ceremony at home. I guarantee it would be loved by your guests. Scroll down for the complete recipe. Click here if you want to know how to make homemade Angoori Gulab Jamuns . Gulab Jamun Phirni  Ingredients Full fat milk - 1 litre Rice (soaked in water) - 4 tbsp Sugar - 1/2 cup Green cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp Rose water (optional) - 1 to 2 tsp Saffron strands - a few Min...

Come summers and fruit markets are lined up with vendors selling a variety of mangoes. Emanating a strong aroma, just enough to captivate your senses, you certainly get tempted to buy some and arrive home with a bag full of them. Well! that is what exactly happened with my husband last week. He is so fond of mangoes that he could not resist himself and bought a huge basket of these sunshine fruits while returning from office. Besides relishing them as is, I invested some of them in this delicious, creamy and luscious " mango kulfi ". Imparted with a hint of cardamom and rose, it tasted simply divine, and not to mention explicitly, much much better than the store bought ones.    Creamy Mango Kulfi  Oh my my !! can you see the creaminess oozing from these kulfis in the picture above? That is exactly what we Indians love in our kulfis...don't we? In case you agree, I am sure you will love the recipe too which only requires three main ingredients. So, what are...