12:18 AM 3/20/98
elizabeth falkner rfc

If you are looking for a few unusual Indian desserts, I found some
recipes for you from the Parsi cuisine.  I have read that in India,
sweets are almost always purchased from professionals and not made at
home.

CHAPAT 

              CHAPAT
              (Sweet pancakes)
              
              3 eggs
              3 tbs. sugar
              3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
              1 1/2 tbs. semolina (sooji)
              1/2 tbs. shortening
              1 cup milk
              3 tbs. chopped almonds
              1/2 tsp. vanilla essence
              Vegetable oil for frying
              
              In a pan add eggs and sugar and mix briskly with wooden
spoon till
              sugar has melted. Add flour and semolina and blend to a
smooth
              paste. Add melted shortening and blend well. Add milk
little by
              little mixing all the time till mixture resembles thick
pancake
              batter. Add almonds and vanilla essence and blend well.
              
              Keep mixture covered, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Heat griddle and
oil evenly.
              Pour 1 tbs. mixture over griddle and quickly tilt it till
it covers
              surface of pan. Keep on low heat till one side is golden
colored
              then flip over and cook other side. ~hen both sides are
cooked,
              remove pancake to a plate and fold in half then fold again
into
              quarter. Smear surface of griddle with oil and continue
making one
              pancake at a time till all the mixture has been used.
              
              Serve warm, plain or with honey or golden syrup, as a
dessert or
              snack.
              
              Serves 8 to 10.
              
              Variation: Top with apple sauce or any fruit topping or
jam, as
              desired.
              
              Contributor: Mehroo Patel
              Adapted from: 101 Parsi Recipes by Jeroo Mehta
              


         KHAJOOR-NI GHARI
              (Date turnovers)
              
              For date mixture:
              9 oz. dates, seeded
              1/2 tbs. shortening
              1/2 tbs. sugar
              tsp. cardamom and nutmeg powder
              1/2 tsp. vanilla essence
              
              For pastry:
              3/4 cup flour
              1/3 tsp. salt
              1/4 tsp. baking powder
              1/2 tbs. shortening
              vegetable oil for frying
              
              Date mixture:
              Pass dates through mincer . Heat shortening and add sugar.
When
              sugar has melted add dates and cook till dates are fried
and sticky
              and mixture is soft. Add cardamom and nutmeg powder and
vanilla
              essence. Blend well and allow mixture to cool.
              
              Pastry:
              Sift flour, salt and baking powder. Add shortening and
blend well.
              Add gradually about 4 tbs. water and make into a soft
dough,
              kneading for 15 minutes. (When pressed with finger dough
should
              spring back). Divide dough and date mixture each into 5
portions.
              Take one portion of dough and make into a small round
about 3
              inches in diameter. Place one portion of date mixture in
center of
              round and spread out to 1/2 inch from edge of round. Turn
the round
              into a ball pinching the edges together to seal in the
date
              mixture. Flatten ball gently and roll into thin round 4
1/2 inches in
              diameter. Do the same with remaining portions. Pour oil in
a
              frying pan to a depth of 3/4 inchs and heat to medium hot.
Place
              one ghari in it and fry gently till one side is golden
brown. Ladle
              oil over the top while it is frying. Turn over and fry
till second
              side is golden brown. Remove from pan and fry others
similarly.
              
              Serves 5.
              
              Variations: Try other pie fillings, minced meat, sweet
potato
              filling etc.
              
              Contributor: Mehroo Patel
              Adapted form 101 Parsi Recipes by Jeroo Mehta

KOPRA PAK

       KOPRA PAK
              (Coconut Fudge delight)
              
              1 fresh coconut, grated
              Sugar equal to l 1/2 times weight of grated coconut
              2 tbs. whipping cream
              1/2 tsp. nutmeg and cardamom powder
              Few drops red coloring
              1/2 to 1 tsp. vanilla essence
              1/2 tsp. butter
              
              Grease tray with butter. In a saucepan add grated coconut
and
              sugar and cook on medium heat. Blend well stirring
constantly with
              wooden spoon, 2 minutes. Add cream and blend well.
              
              Cook, stirring constantly till mixture leaves sides of pan
and
              coats the spoon. Add vanilla essence and few drops red
coloring to
              give mixture a pale pink color. Mix well.
              
              Turn into 9xl2 tray, sprinkle nutmeg and cardamom powder
over
              surface and spread mixture evenly to 1/2 inch thickness.
Cool 15
              minutes, then mark into l 1/2 inches squares and allow to
cool
              completely.
              
              Break into pieces along marking lines. Store in airtight
              container, and enjoy.
              
              Contributor: Mehroo Patel
              Adapted from: 101 Parsi Recipes by Jeroo Mehta

Elizabeth
Been there, done that, ate too many jalebis, intend to see the Taj Mahal
at midnight THIS YEAR!
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

   Gulab Jamun (Rose Sweets)
Recipe By     :
Serving Size  : 6    Preparation Time :0:00
Categories    : Indian
  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
   8      Tb            Full cream milk powder
   3      Tb            Self-raising flour
     1/4  Teaspoon      Bicarbonate of soda
     1/4  Teaspoon      Ground cardamom
   1      Tb            Soft butter or ghee
   3      Tb            Water (approx.)
                        Ghee or oil for frying
                        SYRUP:
   2      C             White sugar
   4      C             Water
   5                    Bruised cardamom pods
   2      Tb            Rose water
                        or few drops rose Essence
  Sift milk powder, flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground
cardamom into   large bowl. Rob in butter or ghee, then add
enough water to give a firm   but pliable dough which can be
moulded into balls the size of large   marble, or into small
sausage shapes.
   Fry slowly in hot ghee until they turn the colour of
unblanched almonds. The frying must be done overgentle heat.
Drain on absorbent paper.  Have ready the syrup, made by
combining, sugar, water and cardamom pods   and heating
until sugar is dissolved. Put the fried gulab jamun into the
  syrup and soak until they are almost double in size, and
soft and spongy.   Add rose water when they have cooled
slightly. Allow to cool completely   and serve at room
temperature or slightly chilled.
  I. Chaudhary   Gold Coast-Oz
                   - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
  *  Exported from  MasterCook  *
                    Jelebi (Deep Fried Batter Sweets)
Recipe By     :
Serving Size  : 4    Preparation Time :0:00
Categories    : Indian
  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
                        BATTER:
   2      C             Plain flour
     1/2  C             Rice flour
   7      G             Fresh compressed yeast or
     1/2  Teaspoon      Dried yeast
     1/2  C             Lukewarm water
     1/4  Teaspoon      Saffron strands
   2      Tablespoons   Boling water
   1      Tablespoon    Yoghurt
                        Vegetable oil for frying
                        SYRUP:
   3      C             Sugar
   3      C             Water
   1      Tablespoon    Light corn syrup
                        Rose essence to flavour
   1 1/2  Teaspoons     Liquid orange food colouring

    Sift the flour and rice flour into a large bowl.
Sprinkle yeast on the   warm water in a small bowl, leave to
soften for 5 minutes and stir to   dissolve. Put saffron
strands in a cup and pour the boiling water over.  Leave to
soak for 10 minutes.
    Pour dissolved yeast and saffron with its soaking water
into a measuring   jug. Add tepid water to make up 2 1/4
cups. Stirring with a wooden spoon,   add the measured
liquid to the flour and beat well until batter is very
smooth. Add yoghurt and beat again. Leave to rest for 1
hour. Batter will   start to become frothy. Beat vigorously
again before starting to fry   jelebis. (While batter stands
make syrup and leave it to become just   warm).
    Heat vegetable oil in a deep frying pan and when hot use
a funnel to pour   in the batter, making circles or figures
of eight. Frying, turning once,   until crisp and golden on
both sides. Lift out on a slotted spoon, let the   oil drain
for a fews seconds, then drop the hot jelebi into the syrup
and   soak it for a minute or two. Lift out of the syrup
(using another slotted   spoon) and put on a plate to drain.
    Syrup: Heat sugar and water over low heat, stirring
until sugar dissolves.  Raise heat and boil hard for 8
minutes; syrup should be just thick enough   to spin a
thread. Remove from heat, allow to cool until lukewarm,
flavour   with rose essence (about 1.2 tsp of good quality
essence is sufficient)   and colour a bright orange with
food colouring.
    *Jelebis are coils of crisply fried batter with a
rose-scented syrup   inside the coils. How the syrup gets
into the coils is a mystery unless   you do some research on
the subject.    This is a traditionally festive sweet.
(Moghul custom)   I. Chaudhary   Gold Coast-Oz
                   - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
How to make chhena
Chhena is a fine grain cheese that is used for making many Indian milk
sweets.
Its freshness is essential to the fine quality of sweets. It does not keep
well. Most
sweets made with chhena should be eaten within 48 hours.
(makes about 1 1/4 cups)
2 quarts milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
Heat the milk in a large heavy pot. As soon as it comes to a boil, turn off
the heat
and slowly pour in the lemon juice, stirring constantly with a plastic or
wooden
spoon. All the milk should curdle, blobs of chhena separating from the thin,
watery whey. ( On rare occasions, all the milk will not curdle. You will see
a few
blobs of chhena, but most of the liquid will remain milky. In that case,
bring to a
second boil, add another tablespoon of lemon juice and repeat the process.)
Leave the pot, covered, on a countertop for ten minutes.
Line a sieve or colander with a triple layer of cheesecloth. ( Put the sieve
in a
bowl if you wish to save the whey for cooking - use it instead of water.)
Pour the
curds and whey into the sieve. A lot of the whey will drain away. Lift the
cheesecloth by its four corners and tie the curd inside it into a loose
bundle using
a piece of twine. Suspend this bundle somewhere where it can drip for half
an
hour. ( I hang the bundle from the faucet of my kitchen sink.) After about
half an
hour, the chhena should have dripped some more and be cool enough to handle.
Squeeze out as much liquid with your hands as you can manage easily and
empty the chhena onto a clean, smooth surface like a Formica countertop. Now
knead the chhena by pressing and spreading it out with the palm and heel of
a
flattened hand, gathering it up, and then repeating the process again and
again.
This technique is not unlike the " fraisage" used to incorporate butter into
pastry
dough, though it is much more thorough. Knead for 15 to 20 minutes or until
the
chhena is of a very fine, slightly grainy, spongy consistancy, not unlike
whipped
cream cheese.
from Madhur Jaffrey's World-of-the-East Vegetarian Cooking

Coconut Burfi or 1234 Sweet
Source: Shama K. Pullabhotla (spulla@ctp.com)
Title: Coconut Burfi or 1234 Sweet
Serves:  unknown
Rating: Mouth-watering.
Type of Recipe: Dessert
************************************************************
Ingredients:
Ghee.......1 Cup (One can get ghee from any Indian grocery stores)
Fresh shreded coconut.....2 Cups
Sugar......3 Cups
Milk.......4 Cups

P.S. Now you know why I call it a 1234 Sweet :-)

Procedure:
 Add all the four above mentioned ingredients to a deep non stick vessel
 Allow the milk to boil on low flame stirring the contents occassionally
 Once the milk starts thickening, check if the mixture has attained
the required consistency
(A simple test is to wet your hand, put some mixture on the palm and see if
you can roll it up into a ball. If you cannot, then wait for some more time
before you can try it out again)
 Keep stirring the contents throughout the whole process
 Once the consistency is right, pour the mixture on to a greased tray
(greased with ghee or butter)
 Cut the mixture into squares and allow it to cool
http://www.site.gmu.edu/~sneelam/AP/recipe/recipes.html

MM: Indian Rice Pudding (Kheer)
---------- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.03
      Title: Indian Rice Pudding (Kheer)
 Categories: Miamiherald, Desserts, Ethnic, Indian
      Yield: 8 Servings
      2 c  Water
      1 c  Rice
      5 c  Coconut milk
  1 1/4 c  Sugar
    1/2 ts To 1 ts ground cardamom
        pn Salt
      1 ts Vanilla extract
   Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan.  Add
  the rice, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer until
  the liquid is absorbed, about 18 minutes.
   Add the coconut milk, sugar, cardamom and salt.
  Simmer, uncovered and stirring frequently, over medium
  heat until thickened, about 20 minutes. Remove from
  heat and stir in vanilla.  Pour the pudding into
  individual bowls.  Serve warm or chilled.
  Per serving: 725 cal; 7g pro, 76g carb, 48g fat(75%),
  76mg sodium
  Source: Miami Herald, 9/5/96
  formatted by Lisa Crawford

Shemai - Sweet Vermicilli (Bangladesh)
Recipe from Dalbir Chadda:
This has been my all time favorite dessert.  Ever since I was very
little, I can remember asking for seconds and thirds.  What makes this
dessert unusual is that it is not as sweet as most subcontinental desserts.
It
is fairly simple to make.  Make sure that the vermicelli is very fine
(angel hair pasta is ok but the very fine vermicelli that can be bought
at chinese stores is the best).
Ingredients:
1 stick      Butter
2 handfuls   Very fine vermicelli
4 cups       Milk
1 pint       Whipping cream
1 handful    Raisins
3 tblsp      Sugar
4            Almonds (optional) peeled and thinly sliced
Melt butter in a 4 qt pot.  Break vermicelli into 3" pieces.  Over low
heat stir vermicelli into butter until it turns light brown.  Pour in
the milk and stir over medium heat until it boils.  Put in the raisins,
almonds and sugar.
Continue to cook under low heat for 10 minutes.  Add whipping cream and
continue to cook for a couple of minutes.  Remove from heat and, when
cool, chill in the refrigerator before serving
 http://www.asel.udel.edu/~kazi/bangladesh/bdfruits.html

MM: BULGAR SWEET (LAPSI)
---------- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.05
      Title: BULGAR SWEET (LAPSI)
 Categories: Indian, Desserts
      Yield: 10 Servings
      1 oz Corn oil margarine
  1 1/4 c  Coarsely ground wheat
           -(bulgar)
      1 tb Fennel seeds
    1/4 c  Golden raisins, seedless
  2 1/4 c  Nonfat milk
    1/4 c  Nonfat dry milk powder
    1/2 c  Sugar (reduce if preferred)
      1 pn Saffron
    1/4 ts Yellow food color
    1/2 ts Cardamoms, crushed
    1/2 ts Nutmeg, grated
      2 tb Almonds, finely sliced
  1.  In a saucepan, heat margarine and saute wheat and
  fellen seeds, stirring frequently, until the wheat is
  light golden brown; about 10 to 15 minutes.  Add
  raisins and cook until the raisins are swollen. Remove
  saucepan from heat.
  2.  Carefully add nonfat milk, nonfat milk powder,
  sugar, saffron, and yellow food color.  Stir well, and
  bring to boil.
  3.  Reduce heat slightly, cover and cook until almost
  all the liquid has been absorbed.
  4.  Add cardamoms, nutmeg, and fold in.  Cover and
  cook on a very low heat for 20 minutes or until the
  wheat is cooked but still moist. (Ass a little water
  if too dry.)
  5.  Garnish with almonds and serve.
  (Can be used as a first course, as a cereal, or as
  dessert)
  Nutrient Analysis (per serving): 181 calories 5.7 g
  protein 31.1 g carbohydrates 4.3 g total fat 0.7 g
  saturated fat 1.5 mg cholesterol 75.0 mg sodium
  From:  INDIAN RECIPES FOR A HEALTHY HEART - From the
  Kitchen of Mrs. Lakhani.  Fahil Publ. Company, Los
  Angeles. 1991. ISBN 0-9630235-0-0 Shared by:  Karin
  Brewer, Cooking Echo, 8/93
-----
-----

Chikoo Mousse
Mousse is a cold dessert consisting of a fruit puree and a milk custard
lightened with cream and/ or eggs and set with gelatine.

Ingredients
Gelatine 1 tbsp
Eggs* 3, separated
Sugar 1 cup, coarsely powdered
Milk 3/4 cup
Corn flour 2 tsp
Vanilla essence 1/2 tsp
Chikoo (Sapota) pulp 1 cup
Fresh cream 1/4 kg
Chikoo 1, sliced
Method
Soak gelatine in two tablespoons of water.. Beat the yokes with 3/4 cup of
sugar till light and creamy. Mix corn flour with milk and pour over the egg
yolks. Mix well and cook, stirring on a low flame till the custard begins to
boil. Dissolve the gelatine over a low flame (avoid boiling) and add to the
custard. Add essence and allow to cool. Mix with the chikoo pulp. Whip the
cream over a bowl of ice till thick. Keep aside a little cream for topping
and gently mix the rest with the fruity custard. Beat the egg whites till
stiff. Add the remaining sugar, little at a time, beating well after each
addition. Gently fold into the above mixture. Pour in a pudding bowl and
leave in the refrigerator to set. Serve decorated with the remaining cream
and chikoo slices.
* For eggless chikoo mousse, make a custard with milk and four teaspoons of
corn flour (instead of two tsp in the above recipe) and all the sugar. Then
proceed as per the above recipe.
The Hindu
http://www.webpage.com/hindu/daily/970209/09/0909031e.htm
* * * * *

Paneer Lemon Cheesecake - Clawson
Recipe By     : Long Clawson Dairy Ltd, Melton Mowbray, Leicester, England
Serving Size  : 4    Preparation Time :0:00
Categories    : Cheesecake                       Desserts
  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
   9      ounces        paneer -- blended until smooth
   1      can           condensed milk, sweetened
     1/2  pint          double cream
   2                    lemons
   8      ounces        digestive biscuits -- crushed
   3      ounces        butter
An old favorite to enjoy in a new way.
Melt the butter over a low heat and stir in the biscuit crumbs. Press into
a large loose-bottomed flan tin and refrigeate. Blend paneer until smooth,

*  Exported from  MasterCook  *
                                 Shrikand
Recipe By     : Andrew M. Harding
Serving Size  : 4    Preparation Time :0:00
Categories    : Dessert/Cake/Bread               Egg/Dairy
                Indian
  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
   1      pinch         saffron threads -- ground
  16      ounces        yogurt
   8      ounces        icing sugar
   2      teaspoons     cardamom -- ground
  16      ounces        cream cheese
   2      whole         kiwi fruit -- sliced
Blend ingredients, except for kiwi fruit, and refrigerate.
Serve with kiwi fruit as a garnish.
                   - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

durian@pop.jaring.my (King Durian) wrote:
Ladies & Gentlemans, grab this once in a life time opportunity to take
down this well guarded secret of my family recipy for Sri Lankas
popular dessert of Muslims curtesy my mom. No wedding house and no
Islamic festivals are complete without this.
Watalappam.
--------------------
10 eggs
1/2 Kilo Kitul Juggery (quality stuff only else don't insult my mom)
1 cup thick coconut milk
1/2 cut suger
1 tea spoon vanilla
1/4 pc nutmeg grounded
100gms Cashew nut
50gms  Plums
Beat eggs in a fairly big bowl until soft, add juggery and suger keep
stirring until dissolved. Add milk and vanilla stir well, keep the
mixture for a while. Strain the mixture into a suitable bowl and steam
until done. Leave it cool off and then decorate with chopped cashew
nuts and plum. Ready to serve.
Ps. note for non-Sri lankans, Kitul juggery is thick dark brown sugar
like syrup, hardened - extracted from a tree known as Kitul. Similar
stuff is also available made from coconut,  reddish. In South Asia it
is called SHAKKAR and in east asia it is known as GULA MELAKA.

Jared Danziger wrote in message <6esgff$9te@bgtnsc03.worldnet.att.net>...
>I am looking for someone to correspond with about Indian (E) sweets.
>Please e-mail me at j.e.d@worldnet.att.net
>
>Thank you.
>
>-Jared
>