Every Diwali, I experimented with traditional flavours and I loved doing it so much that I started developing different confections for different festivals. Rachel Goenka’s Adventures with Mithai is the product of seven years of experimentation, toil and quirk. The inspiration is simple – elevating mithai in a fun way by taking our favourites and jazzing them up! Mithai is amazing on its own, but there is so much more that you can do with it.

The savoury biscuit base of this jar dessert cuts through the intense sweetness of the laddoos to create a perfect flavour and textural balance.

Ingredients

For Pudding

  • 4 pieces Motichoor laddoos
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 100 gm salted biscuits, powdered (I use Monaco)
  • 25 gm unsalted butter, softened
  • 200 ml heavy cream
  • 14 ml water, warm
  • 5 tbsp castor sugar
  • 1/2 tsp gelatin
  • 1/2 tsp cardamom powder

For Garnish

  • 2 tbsp almond flakes 

Preparation

  1. Mix the powdered biscuits and butter and divide equally in the 4 jars. Press down lightly to form the base of the mousse and chill for an hour or until it sets.
  2. Whip the cream to soft peaks and refrigerate.
  3. Soak the gelatin in warm water.
  4. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar over a double boiler until light and foamy.
  5. Add the gelatin liquid to the egg yolk and sugar mixture and whisk. Add the cardamom powder.
  6. Fold the whipped cream into the egg yolks, gently, to make a cardamom mousse.
  7. Pour 1/3 cup of the mousse over the biscuit base in the chilled jars. Chill for 30 minutes.
  8. Crush the motichoor laddoos and layer it over the mousse. Garnish with almond flakes and serve chilled.
  9. The recipes featured are from Rachel Goenka’s Adventures with Mithai, published by HarperCollins India.

Excerpted with permission from Rachel Goenka’s Adventures with Mithai, Rachel Goenka, HarperCollins.

Written by

Rachel Goenka

Rachel Goenka is the Founder and CEO of The Chocolate Spoon Company, which owns and operates award-winning restaurants across Mumbai and Pune, including The Sassy Spoon, House of Mandarin, Wicked China and Baraza Bars & Bites. She is also the talent behind Sassy Teaspoon, a chain of quaint bakeries & patisseries. Declared ‘Young Restaurateur of the Year’ at the Restaurant India Awards in 2018, Rachel was named one of the ‘30 Women Entrepreneurs to Watch in India’ by The CEO Magazine in 2018. A graduate of Journalism and English from the Pennsylvania State University, Rachel attended Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland, where she trained under celebrity chef Rachel Allen. She then moved to Le Cordon Bleu in London to specialize in patisserie. Rachel Goenka’s Adventures with Mithai is her debut as an author.

See more by Rachel Goenka