PHIRNI with Chocolate Toppings

Phirni is an Indian rice pudding made by cooking ground rice with milk. It is a rice pudding made using rice and usually flavored with saffron and garnished with lots of nuts and saffron . Unlike normal "Payesh" which uses whole rice, phirni uses ground rice and therefore, it is quick to make. I have garnished the Phirni with some chocolate chips to give some extra twist. Here is my version of easy recipe.

Ingredients:

1. Milk - 1 litre (full cream milk)

2. Rice - 1/3 cup

3. Saffron - 1 pinch

4. Sugar - as per taste

5. Chocolate chips - for garnishing

Process:

1. Wash and soak rice for an hour. Drain the water and blend the rice in a blender to make a coarse powder.

2. In a heavy bottom pan, add milk and let the milk come to boil. Add the powdered rice and saffron to the milk. Keep stirring the phirni throughout while cooking, otherwise the rice will stick at the bottom of the pan.

3. Simmer the heat and cool till the milk is reduced to 1/2 and phirni has reached the desired consistency. (Note : the phirni will further thicken on cooling)

4. Add sugar and cook for a minute before switching off the heat. Let the phirni cool down in room temperature.

5. Transfer the phirni in earthen bowls (if not available, use regular bowls) and garnish with chocolate chips and let it chill for a few hours before serving. 

CHOCOLATE CHIA PUDDING

Chocolate chia pudding is an easy dessert to whip up. Low on calories, this can fix your cravings on days you want sugar, without being unhealthy. Quick and very simple with minimal ingredients and can be served as breakfast too. Chia seeds may be added to other foods as a toppings or put into smoothies, breakfast cereals, energy bars, granola bars etc. If you have a sweet tooth like me and you like eating sweet foods, especially sweets and chocolate, then you are surely going to love this. Do try this easy recipe and share your views.

Ingredients

1. Milk - 1.5 cups
2. White chia seeds - 5 tsp (for serving 3)
3. Cocoa powder - 1 tsp
4. Honey or Maple syrup - 4-5 tsp (you can use sugar also)
5. Almond - 4-5 pieces to garnish
6. Choco chips - for garnishing

Process

1. In a large bowl, add milk. Add honey or maple syrup to the milk and mix well with a spoon. 

2. Now add chia seeds to this mixture and mix till everything is well combined.

3. Pour this mixture into serving glassed / bowls and refrigerate overnight or minimum 5-6 hours. When ready to eat, take out of the refrigerator, top with chopped almonds and choco chips and serve immediately.

CHOCOLATE CHIA SEED PUDDING

Upon discovering you could use chia seeds to make creamy, dreamy pudding for your breakfast, I am just in love with it, and became my favorite breakfast during this Covid-19 pandemic. Anyone can make this easy breakfast, plus its so healthy. Make this at night for breakfast or a mid-day meal, or prepare it in the morning for a simple desert. You can make chocolate chia pudding in many ways, below are two of them I tried out with.

Ingredients:

1. Chia seeds - 1/2 cup

2. Maple syrup or honey - 3-5 tsp

3. Milk - 1 cup

4. Cocoa powder 1/4 cup

Process 1 :

In a mixing bowl add chia seeds, maple syrup or honey, milk and whisk until a paste forms. Divide the mixture in two bowl. One bowl you can cover and refrigerate overnight. In the other bowl add cocoa powder and whisk properly. Now cover and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, you can present these two different mixtures by layering in a single glass and decorate with some crashed chocolates or any desired toppings like fruits of your choice or whipped cream.

Process 2 :

In a mixing bowl add cocoa powder and maple syrup or honey and whisk to combine. Then add milk and whisk until a paste forms. Add chia seeds and whisk until smooth. Then over and refrigerate overnight until its achieved a pudding like consistency. Before serving, add your desired toppings,you can use any fruits of your choice, nuts, choco chips, crushed cudbury or freshly whipped cream.

CHOCOLATE CAKE - EGGLESS

This is my all time favorite cake. I love chocolate cake. Tried for the first time to bake an egg-less chocolate cake at home, in kadhai. This recipe has sugar moist crumb yet light texture. Once you try and get to eat such a nice cake at home, this will soon be your favorite too. You can also prepare chocolate layer cake, once your chocolate cake is baked, you can cut the cake into layers, pour more chocolate sauce one after one, and finally cover the whole cake with chocolate cream or chocolate sauce. Mine one is not a layered cake, its a simple and easy chocolate cake.

Ingredients:

1. Supar - 1 cup

2. Maida - 1 and half cup

3. Cocoa powder - 3/4 cup

4. Baking powder - 1 tsp

5. Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp

6. Curd - 1 cup (you can also use eggs, if you want to)

7. Milk - 1/2 cup

8. Vegetable oil - 1/2 cup

9. Vanilla extract - 1 tsp (optional)

10. Water - Lukewarm 1 cup

Process:

1. Grease the cake tray, Dust with flour evenly and set aside.

2. Add all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and gently mix until everything is combined well. Add lukewarm water if the batter is very thick.

3. Once the batter is ready, pour this in the cake tray.

4. Heat the heavy bottom kadhai for 10 minutes and then place a steel stand (optional) inside the kadhai and place the cake tray. If you do not have a steel stand, you can directly place the cake tray in the kadhai. If you want to add fry fruits, sprinkle them at the top of the cake and cover with a lid.

5. Let it cook for 15-20 minutes, after 15 minutes you can check by putting a knife inside the cake, if the knife comes out clean, means the cake is done, else you can cook for another 5 minutes and re-check.

Your home made chocolate cake is ready to serve. You can garnish it as you like. Also you can do plating with chocolate sauce and some colorful fruit pieces of your choice and if available at home.

Do share your experience after baking this cake.

Happy Baking.

CHOCO BISCOTI

Choco Biscoti is a dessert that I came up with during my school days. This is a unique combination of simple ingredients which will be an instant hit among kids and adults will love it too.

Ingredients: 

Marie Gold Biscuits - 12 or more 

Fresh Milk - 1 cup

Butter - 200g

Cocoa Powder - 4 tsp

Sugar - 1 cup

Process: 

1.  Take two bowls. Add sugar and butter in one bowl. Next, add sugar, butter and          cocoa powder in another. Mix them well and keep aside.

2.  Now we dip one biscuit in the milk. Be careful not to dip it for too long.

 3.  Next, we spread the chocolate mixture in one side of the biscuit.

4.  Keep another biscuit above the mixture as shown in the picture.

5.  Now we spread the butter mixture on top of this biscuit.

6.  Put another biscuit on top of this biscuit as shown in the picture.

 7.  We repeat the same process and create layers of chocolate mix and butter mix 
     one after the other.

      

 8. Now spread the rest of the chocolate mix thoroughly over the biscuit roll as shown     in the picture.

  9. When its done, wrap the roll in aluminium foil.

  10. Refrigerate for 40-45 min.

  11. Take it out of the refrigerator and unwrap the foil.

  12. Slice them and spread on a plate.

  13.  Sprinkle some sugar or castor sugar to garnish and serve chilled. Enjoy!