Sweet treats for Diwali

Beetroot halwa

Serves: 2 | Prep time: 10mins

Cooking time: 40mins | Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

Method

1. Heat two tbsp ghee in a heavy-based pan. Add chopped cashewnuts and sauté until they turn light brown. Transfer them to a plate.

2. Add grated beetroot in the same pan, sauté for 10-15 minutes over medium flame until they are tender.

3. Add milk to beetroot, cook over medium flame for at least 10-15 minutes or until milk thickens. Stir occasionally to prevent it from sticking to the pan.

4. Add sugar and cook for another 5-7 minutes or till you get a thick consistency.

5. Add the remaining ghee, cardmom powder and roasted cashewnuts to the halwa before serving.

—Recipe courtesy of Purani Dilli at Four Points by Sheraton, Shaikh Zayed Road

Quinoa malpua

Serves: 2 | Prep time: 10mins

Cooking time: 40mins | Difficulty: medium

Ingredients

For the sugar syrup

For the malpuas

Method

1. Combine sugar, water and cardamom in a high-sided saucepan to make the syrup for malpuas. Bring the mixture to boil over medium heat. Stir constantly and turn the flame to low. Wait for the sugar to dissolve completely in water. Simmer for 10-15 minutes in low flame or until the syrup thickens.

2. For the malpuas, first heat up the milk, add quinoa to it. Let it cook for about five minutes or until the quinoa is soft.

3. Add grated mawa, flour, sugar and cardamom powder to milk. Stir well and let the batter stand for at least 15 mins so that it thickens. Mix well and add baking powder to it before you start frying malpuas.

4. On a pan, heat little oil. Gently pour 2-3 spoonfuls of batter onto the pan to make a pancake of around 2-3 inches in diametre. You can make 7-8 pancakes with the batter.

5. Soak the pancakes in sugar syrup for at least five minutes. Garnish with pistachio nuts and serve.

— Recipe courtesy of India Gate

Saffron rice kheer with mango and mint compote

Serves: 4-5 | Prep time: 5 mins

Cooking time: 35 mins | Difficulty: Medium

Ingredients

Method

1. Heat milk in a heavy bottomed pan and bring it to boil.

2. Add saffron to the milk, and boil for another five minutes.

3. Add rice and boil them on medium-low heat till the kheer is creamy and the rice is cooked well. Keep stirring the kheer to ensure it does not burn or get stuck at the bottom of the pan.

4. Add sugar and cook on low heat for five minutes.

5. Add cardamom powder, raisins, pistachios and almonds and cook on low heat for a couple of minutes.

6. Remove from the heat and allow the dessert to cool.

6. Drizzle rose water and mix well.

7. Mix mango, mint leaves and lime juice in a bowl. Pour it over the pudding only when it is cold.

— Recipe courtesy of Le Meridien Dubai Hotel & Cenference Centre

Elaneer Payasam, pickling spice and appalam

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 2-3 mins

Cooking time: 15-20 mins | Difficulty: Medium

Ingredients

For the coconut payasam

For pickling spice

Method

1. To make the payasam, boil milk on medium-high for 10 minutes. Add coconut and sugar. Cook for another five minutes or until you get a thick consistency. Add ghee and finish with the cardamom powder.

2. To make the pickling spice, reduce pineapple and mango purée together until you get a semi-thick liquid. Temper oil, mustard seeds, ginger and curry leaves in a pan and add to the mixture.

3. Microwave appalams on high for 15 seconds to make them crispy.

4. To serve, fluff the thin slices of pineapple with the payasam mixture and fold them into semi circles. Plate it with pickling spice and roasted appalam.

— Recipe courtesy of Trèsind