Parwal ke Meethey Paan

Just a few days back, my Instagram account (@swetabiswal) crossed the 1K mark . Nothing great about the numbers when compared to successful Instagrammers yet it is a personal milestone which i felt like celebrating. And going by the Indian way, we celebrate special occasions with something sweet . "Kuch meetha ho jaye" is what we say.Around the same time, I was running out of ideas to use up a big batch of 'parwal' that had arrived from Odisha. After exhausting all the savory dishes, I decided to make something sweet of out this summer vegetable.

Parwal ka meetha is a kind of sweet made from pointed gourd. Very popular in the Northern parts of India, it is something delightful and different. But not as daringly different as I like. When it comes to experimental cooking, I love to break all the rules. Hence, a further twist to this already different recipe.

Combining the desserts and meetha paan into one, the 'Parwal ke meethey paan' is not just a complete dessert in itself but so refreshingly different. Plus it is easy to prepare and stays good for almost a week. Tastes best when served chilled so make sure to prepare a big batch in advance before inviting guests to your home.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 30 mins

Ingredients -

• 10-12 Parwal/Potolo/Pointed Gourd

For stuffing -

• 100 gm mawa
• 1/2 cup mixed dry fruits 
• 3 tsp gulkand 
• 2 tsp mukhwas
• 2-3 tsp tutti-frutti

For the syrup -

• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup water
• 3-4 betel leaves
• few drops of edible green color

For final garnishing -

• 2 tsp mukhwas
• silver foil (optional)

Preparation - Peel the pointed gourd and make a slit along the length. Remove the pith.

Boil water in a saucepan. Once it gets to a full boil, dunk the pointed gourd and let it boil for 3 mins.

Around the same time, prepare the betel flavored sugar syrup. Take 3/4 cup water, 1 cup sugar, 4 betel leaves and the edible food color in a saucepan. Stir on a medium flame it the sugar is dissolved and the syrup thickens.

Strain the pointed gourd and add it to the flavored sugar syrup. Let it boil till soft. 

Remove from flame, strain the syrup and let the vegetables cool down. 

Put a non-stick pan on the burner. Add the crumbled mawa and keep stirring it constantly till it gets a brown hue.

Remove and mix in the rest of the ingredients (mentioned under stuffing).

Stuff a spoonful or so of the mixture into the parwal and garnish with mukhwas and/or silver foil.

Put in the fridge for an hour or two.

Serve chilled .

Green Papaya Laddoos (SugarFree recipe)

Mom is undoubtedly the dessert specialist at home. God forbid, if she takes to blogging, she could give a lot of folks a run for their money and have me running out of ideas which I generously borrow from her. At times it seems to me that she manages to concoct sweets out of thin air. And since she is hale and hearty (touch wood), she is least bothered with controlling her sugar intake and other such low priority things like counting calories and weight management that are always on top of my list. "For the current generation, everything is just about numbers ", she exclaims while dismissing my worries.

Anyways when she told me about these green papaya laddoos, I could not resist pulling her leg. "Mummy, why can't you go for cheaper options like besan and suji ? Veggies have become so costly these days !! If I start using them in desserts, what will I cook for the main course ?", I told her in jest. And pat comes the reply "But they taste so good. Why cook sabzi ? Have them with parathas or puris". Another oil/calorie guzzler is the last thing on earth that I would want to rendezvous with. So, I decided to keep my mouth shut and think of ways in which I could replicate the same but without copious amount of sugar. Will the laddoos bind correctly if I skip the sugar? I decided to increase the milk content and replace the sugar with Sugarfree Nature pellets which I always keep at hand as my MIL is a diabetic.

The recipe turned out to be just fine and the laddoos tasted delicious. Read on for this yummy recipe that will have you eating your laddoos without actually turning into one ( excuse the bad PJ ) -

Preparation Time - 45 mins

Ingredients -

• 1/2 kg green papaya
• 2 cups milk
• 1 tbsp ghee
• 15-16 sugarfree pellets
• 2 pinch saffron
• 2 pinch powdered cardamom
• 10 cashews

Preparation - Peel and grate the green papaya.

Soak the saffron in 2-3 tsp warm milk.

Cooking - Heat the ghee in a thick bottomed wok. Add the cashews and fry till they turn golden. remove from the wok and keep aside.

Add the grated papaya and fry for 8-9 mins on medium flame or till the moisture is almost gone.

Add the milk along with the sugarfree pellets. Rub the soaked saffron strands with your fingers and add it to the same wok. Cook on medium to low flame till all the moisture evaporates and the mixture starts to leaves the sides of the wok.

Add the cardamom powder and mix in.

Allow it to cool down till it is bearable to touch.

Divide into 10-12 portions. Rub ghee on palms and shape each one portion into a laddoo. Press one cashew into each one.

Allow to cool down completely before serving.

Jalebi with Rabdi

Sometime back I tried my hands at making Jalebi. Now I always had an idea that it would be very tough to prepare it . But it was quite easy and I was surprised at the results. Though I struggled a bit to get the shapes right, the taste was awesome.

I paired it with rabdi or 'thickened milk' which is a classic combination in North India. The creamy chilled rabdi goes very well with the crunchy hot jalebis. Though it takes a bit of time to get both ready, one can make the rabdi a day or two in advance to save oneself from too much trouble within the span of a single day.

Actually was planning to make some 'jalebis' today for my son. That's when I remembered that the post is long pending. Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 1 hour 20 mins (approx)

Ingredients -

For the Jalebi -

• 2/3 cup all purpose flour (maida)
• 1/3 cup gram flour (besan)
• 4 tsp cornflour 
• 3/4 cup yogurt 
• 1/5 tsp baking powder 
• a pinch of saffron
• 1 1/2 tbsp warm milk
• 1 1/2 tsp rice bran oil
• oil for deep frying

For the Sugar syrup -

• 1 1/3 cup water
• 1 cup sugar
• a pinch of saffron
• 2-3 drops orange food color

For the Rabdi -

2 1/2 cup full cream milk
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
sugar as per taste
2 tsp finely chopped nuts
a pinch of saffron
a pinch of cardamom powder


Preparation - Soak the saffron strands in warm milk for 20 mins. Rub with you fingers. Add to a mixing bowl along with the rest of the ingredients ( except baking powder ) listed under 'For the jalebi'. Add a little water at a time and mix using a hand blender. The consistency should be thick .

Allow to ferment overnight or still more in a cold climate . The baking powder goes in 20 mins before the jalebis are made.

Cooking - Heat the water and sugar in a saucepan for making the sugar syrup. Boil for 8-10 mins or till 1 string consistency is reached. Add the food color and saffron. Keep aside and ensure that it stays warm to touch.

Heat oil in a shallow vessel. Take the jalebi batter in a piping bag or a cloth with a small hole in the center.
Holding the tip just above the oil, pipe out into circular shapes starting from center, make 2-3 circles (or more if you can manage) and close the end at the last circle. Apply uniform pressure while piping the batter.

Fry on medium heat on both sides till golden and crisp. Transfer from the hot oil straight to the warm sugar syrup. Allow to soak for 1-2 mins before removing it to a plate.

Heat the milk in a thick bottomed saucepan for making the rabdi. Bring to boil on low to medium heat and allow to reduce to 1/3. Stir in the condensed milk and sugar and remove from flame after 2-3 mins. Add the saffron, cardamom powder and toasted nuts. Keep aside till it comes to room temperature. Then pop it in the fridge (not freezer) for 1 hour. ( This rabdi is not very thick

Pour out the chilled rabdi into pint sized glasses and place the warm jalebis over it. Garnish with a few saffron strands and nuts if desired. Serve immediately.

Paan Kulfi

A must try for all those who love their 'Meetha Paan', this one is a sheer delight for the senses. Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 15 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup khoya
• 5-6 tbsp condensed milk
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp Gulkand
• 1/3 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 pinch cardamom
• 1 big betel leaf (sweet/mild variety)
• 1/2 tsp cornflour + 2 tbsp cold milk (optional)

Preparation - Grind the betel leaf and fennel seeds with a little milk. Do not make a very fine paste.

Dissolve the cornflour in cold milk and keep aside.

Cooking - Bring the milk to boil in a thick bottomed saucepan. Dissolve the sugar in it.

Add the khoya and condensed milk. Keep stirring till khoya completely dissolves.

Check if the milk has thickened sufficiently. If not add the cornflour slurry. Stir continuously on a medium flame till the mixture has thickened. Switch off the burner.

Add the gulkand and the betel leaf-fennel mixture into it. Mix well.

Strain the mixture to remove any coarse particles. (Though this is optional, I wanted this kulfi to have a melt-in-the-mouth texture)

Allow to cool down and them pour into kulfi molds.

Screw on the tops and then put in the fridge for 6-7 hours.

Remove from the fridge and dip in water. Now rub the mold between your palms and take off the lid. Turn it over a plate and tap gently to remove the kulfi fom the mold. (If it is not coming out, use a sharp object to ease it out)

Serve immediately.

Note: Immerse the molds in water before pouring in the kulfi. This will help to remove it easily.