Table of Contents

Appetizers

Onigiri
Beef Dumplings
Pani Puri
Spinach Chaat
Mains

Chole Puri
Pesto Pasta
Fish Bharta (fish stick edition)
Murgh Makhni
Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage Sauce
Stir-fried Glutinous Ricecakes
Desserts

Oreo Cheesecake
Chocolate Molten Lava Cake
Gajar ka Halwa
Ras Malai
Croquembouche
Beignets
Bhapa Pitha

Onigiri
During the beginning of sixth grade, my mom and I started reading a new book. Growing up, her and I read many books together, like Moby Dick and Robin Hood. This time, we decided to read this book my uncle was raving about, Totto Chan. This book was a little hard for me to read, but my mom as usual made it much easier to understand. One of the main topics that my mom and I took away was the type of meals they ate. The book was set in Japan and was about a little girl who is going to school there and for every meal her school would try to provide “something from the ocean and something from the hills.”

Inspired by this, my mom and I tried to replicate it and delved into Japanese Cuisine. Out of everything we made and tried, we both loved the Japanese stuffed rice balls, Onigiri. We tried a bunch of different fillings: beef, chicken, tofu, and best of all tuna. I’m using tuna as the filling in this recipe not only because it is my personal favorite filling, but because in a sense, it keeps to the “something from the ocean and something from the hills” idea, with the tuna from the ocean and the rice from the hills.

Recipe: Tuna Onigiri

Ingredients:

3 cups sushi rice, cooked
50 grams rice seasoning (furikake)
Water
Salt
Nori sheets/seaweed sheets, cut into small rectangles
1 can of tuna
1.5 tablespoons mayo
2/3 tablespoon sriracha
1.5 tablespoons honey
Instructions:

Pop your cooked sushi rice into a large mixing bowl. Add the furikake rice seasoning and mix through evenly.
Inside mixture: add tuna, mayo, sriracha, and honey into a bowl and mix.
Separate the rice into equal portions, approximately one large handful for each onigiri.
Wet your hands with water and rub together with a pinch or two of salt. This stops the rice sticking to your hands and helps keep it fresher for longer.
Pick up one handful/portion of rice. Here is where you make an indent, place the tuna mixture inside and fold the rice over, then lightly press into a ball.
Using mainly your fingertips while resting the rice on your palm, start to press and squeeze the rice into a triangular shape, rotating as you go so it’s even. According to our Japanese friends, you want to end up with one face of the onigiri having a small indentation from your fingers.
Place a slice of nori on the bottom of the onigiri, rough side in towards the rice. Then fold it up towards to the middle of the onigiri.
Repeat for the remaining rice portions.

Beef Dumplings
For the past few years, a few of our good family friends have invited us to their Chinese New Year celebration each year. Almost every time we went there, they made some type of dumpling for us. On one visit a couple of years back, they invited us to experience making some of those dumplings, which was such a fun experience. Armed with this knowledge, my Mom, Sister, and I attempted to do the same at our own house.

The first couple of times we tried making dumplings it did not end up good at all; we spilled so much water and filling all over the table, making a huge mess. When it came time to boil/fry the dumplings, half of them ended up opening up when getting cooked. After multiple weeks and attempts, we finally got into the groove of it, pumping out an easy 150 dumplings. Now, it's a nice relaxing activity to do on Sunday mornings while watching TV or movies.

Recipe: Beef Dumplings

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1 cup finely chopped cabbage
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 pack dumpling wrappers
Water for sealing
Oil for frying (optional)
Instructions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, chopped cabbage, minced garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, grated ginger, and black pepper. Mix until well combined.
Place a small amount of filling in the center of each dumpling wrapper.
Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water, then fold the wrapper over the filling to create a half-moon shape. Press the edges together to seal.
If boiling, bring a pot of water to a boil. Add dumplings and cook until they float to the surface, about 3-4 minutes.
If frying, heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Add dumplings and cook until golden brown on the bottom, then flip and cook until golden brown on the other side.
Serve dumplings hot with dipping sauce.

Pani Puri

For almost any celebration, whether it be a birthday, holiday, or anniversary, at my Dadi and Dada’s house we had pani puri. My Dadi and Dada are my dad's parents, with my Dadi being what I call his mom, and Dada his dad. Up until last year, my grandparents worked a motel in the outskirts of Reading all by themselves. My family often visited that motel, and in that motel there was a pantry, full of the strongest-smelling spices. I remember that room always being very dry, it smelled dry too, if that makes sense. That dryness is key to one of the most common street foods in India, Pani Puri.

The puri is the part that requires that dryness, there are many different types of puri, but for this dish, we use these airy popped versions that are very thin and crispy with a hollow center. Just by lightly tapping the top of each puri, there's always a loud crack and the center becomes exposed. At that point, we add the fillings and most importantly we add Pani, the seasoned dark green water. I’m not sure which smells worse, the water in Pani Puri or Durian, but oh boy does the Pani smell bad. It’s ok though, because that water is what makes the dish delicious, it brings together all the various fillings.

Recipe: Pani Puri

Ingredients:

1 cup tamarind pulp
1/4 cup mint leaves
1/4 cup coriander leaves
2 green chilies
1-inch ginger
1 teaspoon chaat masala
1 teaspoon black salt
1/2 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
Salt to taste
20-25 puris
2 boiled potatoes, mashed
1 cup boiled chickpeas
1 onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup tamarind chutney
1/4 cup green chutney
Sev for garnishing
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Instructions:

Blend tamarind pulp, mint leaves, coriander leaves, green chilies, and ginger to a smooth paste.
Strain the mixture into a large bowl.
Add chaat masala, black salt, roasted cumin powder, and salt. Mix well.
Add cold water to adjust the consistency. The water should be tangy and spicy.
Make a hole in the center of each puri and fill with mashed potatoes and chickpeas.
Dip filled puris in the prepared tangy water.
Top with chopped onions, tamarind chutney, green chutney, sev, and coriander leaves.
Serve immediately and enjoy the burst of flavors.
Spinach Chaat

Whenever people ask me where I live, I always respond with “In the middle of nowhere.” This is not that far off from the truth, the nearest grocery to store to me is 20 minutes away and that store is a ShopRite. Unfortunately, ShopRite doesn’t have many of the ingredients that my family uses in cooking, so we have had to look elsewhere. Edison, New Jersey, has a huge Indian population, and with that, many restaurants and grocery stores.

My family used to go on trips every month to get groceries from Edison stores and then go out to eat for dinner. We frequently visited this one restaurant right around the corner from the produce store we went to and every time we went there, we ordered the same dish -- spinach chaat. Their spinach chaat is the best I have ever had, all the sauces encompass the dish, but yet the crispiness of the fried spinach is maintained. Although I could never find what recipe that restaurant used, my mom started making her version inspired by some other online recipes that come pretty close to the actual thing.

Recipe: Spinach Chaat

Ingredients:

2 cups spinach leaves
1/2 cup chickpea flour
1/4 cup rice flour
1 teaspoon carom seeds (ajwain)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
Salt to taste
Oil for frying
1/4 cup yogurt
2 tablespoons tamarind chutney
2 tablespoons green chutney
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
Chaat masala for sprinkling
Sev for garnishing
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Instructions:

Wash and pat dry the spinach leaves.
In a bowl, mix chickpea flour, rice flour, carom seeds, turmeric powder, red chili powder, and salt.
Add water gradually to make a smooth batter.
Heat oil in a pan for frying.
Dip each spinach leaf into the batter and fry until crisp. Drain excess oil on paper towels.
Arrange fried spinach leaves on a serving plate.
Drizzle yogurt, tamarind chutney, and green chutney over the spinach leaves.
Sprinkle chopped onions, tomatoes, chaat masala, sev, and coriander leaves.
Serve immediately and enjoy the crunchy goodness.

Mains:

Chole Puri

Chole Puri has always been a staple in my family, especially on my dad’s side. My dad’s whole family is Indian and one of the most commonly eaten dishes in Northern India is Chole Puri, also known as Chole Bhature. My dad loves this dish, he’s vegetarian so most of the food in our house is vegetarian food. Whenever my mom asks our family what we want for dinner, he almost always instantly responds with “Chole!”

This past summer I was struggling on what to get my dad for Father’s day, but then I came up with an idea: what if I had learned how to make Chole for my dad? So, a couple of days before Father’s Day, I asked my mom to teach my in secret how to make this dish. When the day came, my dad had arrived home from work to see all the Puris waiting for him and the Chole that I made. I was so happy seeing the delight on his face when he tore the first piece of the crispy Puri and ate it with the Chole. After he said it was delicious “as usual”，my mom made the big reveal that I had made everything that night.

Recipe: Chole Puri

Ingredients:

For Chole (Chickpea Curry):

2 cups dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
2 onions, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, finely chopped
2 green chilies, slit
1-inch ginger, grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground coriander
Salt to taste
Fresh cilantro for garnish
2 tablespoons oil
For Puri (Fried Bread):

2 cups whole wheat flour
Water as needed
Oil for frying
Instructions:

For Chole:

Drain the soaked chickpeas and rinse them thoroughly. Set aside.
Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter.
Add chopped onions and sauté until they turn golden brown.
Add grated ginger, minced garlic, and slit green chilies. Sauté for a minute.
Add chopped tomatoes and cook until they turn mushy.
Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, ground coriander, and salt. Mix well.
Add soaked chickpeas and mix everything together.
Add enough water to cover the chickpeas. Close the pressure cooker and cook for about 15 minutes or until the chickpeas are soft and cooked.
Once cooked, add garam masala and mix well. Garnish with fresh cilantro.
For Puri:

In a large mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour with water to make a soft dough. Cover and let it rest for 15-20 minutes.
Divide the dough into small balls and roll them out into thin circles.
Heat oil in a deep frying pan. Once hot, carefully slide in the rolled out dough circles and fry until they puff up and turn golden brown on both sides.
Remove from oil and drain on paper towels.
Serve hot Chole with freshly fried Puri.

Pesto Pasta

Pesto Pasta - This dish is perhaps the most iconic in my families household. It is also without a doubt the dish I have eaten the most in my lifetime. Growing up, and even now, my sister and I both have always had busy schedules. Between Vee Arnis Jitsu (a Phillipino martial art that I did for 8 years) and Piano lessons stacked back to back on Tuesdays, Viola lessons on Wednesdays, orchestra rehearsal Thursday nights, and swim practice on Fridays, getting dinner was always a time crunch. Luckily, my mom had the ultimate weapon for our busy lives, pesto pasta.

This simple, yet delicious dish satisfied our hunger every week. Opening that hot glass container and smelling the basil and garlic released in the hot air from the food was such a nice break from that busy schedule. My mom would use the basil we grew in the garden and in the house to make the pesto itself. Eventually, my mom taught me the basic recipe for the sauce and I started to take the burden of making it sometimes for my family. After making this dish hundreds of times and experimenting with different types of basil, like Thai basil and sweet basil, I decided on this recipe.

Recipe: Pesto Pasta

Ingredients:

1 pound pasta (spaghetti, linguine, or your choice)
2 cups fresh basil leaves
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
⅓ cup pine nuts
3 cloves garlic
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.
In a food processor, combine basil, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts, and garlic. Pulse until finely chopped.
With the food processor running, slowly add olive oil until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
In a large skillet, heat the pesto sauce over medium heat. Add cooked pasta and toss to coat, adding reserved pasta water as needed to reach desired consistency.
Serve hot, garnished with additional Parmesan cheese if desired.

Fish Bharta

Fish Bharta is a Bengali Dish that many members of my mom's family makes. Typically, it is a light-tasting medley of herbs and fresh fish, but again to combat the time stress my family seemed to be in quite often growing up, my mom developed an augmentation on the traditional recipe. Although I love the way my grandmother and my aunt make it, in my mind, nothing comes close to the deliciousness of my mom's version. So what makes her recipe different from the original? The answers lie in what fish she uses, not just any type of fish… she uses fish sticks! A quick and easy way to make the fish for the Bharta. All you have to do is essentially add all the ingredients into a pan and let them mix and cook with each other. The best part of this dish is the classic relationship between fish and lemon. The lemon in this dish is what makes it so addicting to me, in addition to the extra bite that the breading from the fish sticks add.

Recipe: Fish Bharta

Ingredients:

1 pound fish sticks
2 onions, finely chopped
2 tomatoes, finely chopped
2 green chilies, slit
1-inch ginger, grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
Fresh cilantro for garnish
2 tablespoons oil
Instructions:

Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter.
Add chopped onions and sauté until they turn golden brown.
Add grated ginger, minced garlic, and slit green chilies. Sauté for a minute.
Add chopped tomatoes and cook until they turn mushy.
Add turmeric powder, red chili powder, and salt. Mix well.
Add fish sticks and lemon juice. Cook until the fish is cooked through and the flavors are well combined.
Sprinkle garam masala and garnish with fresh cilantro before serving.
Serve hot with rice or bread.

Murgh Makhani

Perhaps one of the most well-known Indian foods in the world: is Murgh Makhani aka Butter Chicken. People make this differently all over India, just because so many different regions and cuisines make up India. If we break up the name, we get two main ingredients: chicken and butter. The version of this dish you usually see in restaurants is an orange color and has some sort of cream in it. My mom makes her version with respect to the name exactly, not using cream or tomatoes like most restaurants do.

My mom's version of Murgh Makhni is one of the dishes I eat the most currently. Since her version has no extra cream or ground-up cashews for a sauce base, it is a great lower-calorie and high-protein food. The reason I care about this is that recipes like this are one of the main reasons I was able to lose over 50 pounds from my sophomore to junior to escape obesity and save both my physical and mental health.

Recipe: Murgh Makhani

Ingredients:

500g chicken, boneless and cubed
2 tablespoons ghee or butter
1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
Salt to taste
1 cup plain yogurt
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Fresh cilantro for garnish
Instructions:

Heat ghee or butter in a pan over medium heat. Add ginger-garlic paste and sauté until fragrant.
Add chicken cubes and cook until browned on all sides.
Stir in chili powder, garam masala, turmeric, and salt. Cook for another minute.
Add yogurt and tomato paste. Mix well and simmer for 15-20 minutes until chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve hot with rice or naan.
Butternut Squash Ravioli with brown butter sage sauce

Towards the end of the lockdown and the beginning of my freshman year, I started trying to make dishes the most homemade I could. Unfortunately, I didn’t have access to a flour mill or chickens, at least in my house. I live in a super rural area, surrounded by miles and miles of farms, these farms grow various types of crops, but the main ones are corn, wheat, and pumpkins. In addition to these crops, many of the farms also produce livestock, one popular one being chickens. So armed with my bike and some money from my parents, I set out to make my first pasta from scratch.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to bike for too long because the same farm sold fresh flour and eggs, but the fifteen-minute hill-filled ride to the farm was treacherous. After many steep heels and curvy roads, I made it back home with my eggs and flour. It was convenient that my mom had bought pumpkins from one of the farms that are within a 10-minute drive from my house. When I got to making this dish, I remember it being so much fun cleaning the countertop and then dumping a bunch of the freshly milled flour onto it, which is when I made the dough for the pasta and filled it with the pumpkin filling. The most memorable part of this experience was making the brown butter sage sauce, the nutty and herby aroma that arose was incredible.

Recipe: Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage Sauce

Ingredients:

For the pasta dough:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
Pinch of salt
For the filling:

2 cups cooked butternut squash, mashed
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
For the sauce:

1/2 cup unsalted butter
10-12 fresh sage leaves
Salt to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese for garnish
Instructions:

To make the pasta dough, mound the flour on a clean surface and make a well in the center. Crack the eggs into the well and add a pinch of salt. Using a fork, gradually incorporate the flour into the eggs until a dough forms. Knead the dough until smooth, then wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling by mixing together the mashed butternut squash, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
Roll out the pasta dough into thin sheets using a pasta machine or rolling pin. Place small spoonfuls of the filling onto one sheet of pasta, leaving space between each spoonful. Brush water around the filling, then place another sheet of pasta on top. Press down around the filling to seal the ravioli, then use a pasta cutter or knife to cut them into individual pieces.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the ravioli in batches for 2-3 minutes, or until they float to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
In a separate skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the sage leaves and cook until the butter begins to brown and the sage leaves crisp up, about 3-4 minutes.
Add the cooked ravioli to the skillet and toss to coat in the brown butter sauce. Season with salt to taste.
Serve the ravioli hot, garnished with grated Parmesan cheese.
Stir-fried Glutinous Ricecakes

The most recent hit in my family household is these stir--fried glutinous rice cakes. Remember how I previously mentioned that my family used to go to Edison in New Jersey a lot? For the past few years, we have stayed consistent with our trips to New Jersey, except not to Edison, now we frequent H-Mart for most of our grocery needs. H-Mart has so many different food items that my family isn’t very familiar with, one used to be these glutinous rice cakes, whose chewy textures are addicting.

Now, almost every week I find myself making these in various ways, but my two favorites are soups and stir-fry. Stir-frying these is super easy and makes for a great quick lunch or dinner. Another added benefit is that the recipe for this dish changes almost every time, all due to the sauce. I feel like making the sauce for the stir-fry is reminiscent of when my cousins and I were younger and used to make concoctions with whatever we would be able to find in our bathrooms. Sometimes the sauces come out great, sometimes they don’t, but trial and error is all the fun of it. In this recipe, I put a very basic one but feel free to experiment with it!

Recipe: Stir-fried Glutinous Ricecakes

Ingredients:

1 pound glutinous rice cakes (tteok), soaked in water for 30 minutes
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 carrot, julienned
1 cup mixed vegetables (bell peppers, mushrooms, etc.), sliced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Sesame seeds and green onions for garnish
Instructions:

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add sliced onion and julienned carrot to the skillet. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes until slightly softened.
Add the soaked glutinous rice cakes and mixed vegetables to the skillet. Stir-fry for another 3-4 minutes until everything is heated through.
In a small bowl, mix together soy sauce, oyster sauce, brown sugar, and sesame oil. Pour the sauce over the rice cakes and vegetables in the skillet.
Continue to stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly and everything is well coated.
Remove from heat and garnish with sesame seeds and chopped green onions before serving. Enjoy hot!
Desserts

Oreo Cheesecake

People often say that tastebuds change every 2 weeks and everyone's preferences in food are bound to change over time, however my love for cheesecake has been constant all my life. Almost any type of cheesecake will do it for me. I think my love for this dessert is perhaps a gene passed down to me from my grandfather. He is a pretty picky guy when it comes to desserts, but the man loves his cheesecake. Although he prefers plain cheesecakes, one of my favorite types is Oreo cheesecake.

During the Covid-19 Pandemic, I had a big cheesecake phase. I made pumpkin cheesecakes, chocolate cheesecakes, and a couple of others, but my Oreo cheesecake was the best of them all. I think by far my favorite part of the cheesecake is the crust, which I use the Oreo cookies instead of the traditional graham crackers. Making this recipe also was my first step into cake decorating, which I had a lot of fun doing on this cake.

Recipe: Oreo Cheesecake

Ingredients:

24 Oreo cookies
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
900g cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
Additional Oreo cookies for decoration (optional)

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Grease a 9-inch springform pan with butter and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Crush 24 Oreo cookies into fine crumbs using a food processor or by placing them in a zip-top bag and crushing them with a rolling pin. Mix the crumbs with melted butter until well combined.
Press the Oreo crumb mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared springform pan to form the crust.
In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and granulated sugar until smooth and creamy.
Add sour cream and vanilla extract, and beat until combined.
Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Sift in the flour and salt, and mix until just combined.
Gently fold in any additional chopped Oreo cookies, if desired.
Pour the cheesecake batter over the prepared crust and smooth the top with a spatula.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until the edges are set but the center still jiggles slightly.
Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside with the door slightly ajar for 1 hour to cool gradually.
Remove the cheesecake from the oven and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight until completely chilled and set.
Once chilled, decorate the top with additional Oreo cookies if desired. Slice and serve chilled. Enjoy!
Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

I used to love making this dessert, but now it seems like a chore sometimes. This is one of my sister's favorite and most requested desserts from me. She knows exactly when to ask me when I am in a good mood so I always end up making it for her. At some point, I realized that I had practically become a personal baker for her on demand. The amount of times I have made these for her and my family is too many to count, but they’re also super easy to make and always satisfy that chocolate craving. Pairing with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is a must.

I have experimented with this desert a few times, which is not out of the ordinary for any dish I make frequently, and have played around with different flavors. The most obvious choice was coffee, because who doesn’t love coffee and chocolate? I added some espresso and when the cakes came out of the oven, the cocoa smell became much more prominent, which only heightened my family's appetite for chocolate, which is a little ironic since coffee is an appetite suppressant. I also tried a blueberry version of this and it didn’t turn out bad, just not as good as the other variations.

Recipe: Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Optional: powdered sugar for dusting, vanilla ice cream for serving

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Grease four 6-ounce ramekins with butter and dust with cocoa powder, tapping out any excess.
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and chopped chocolate. Microwave in 20-30 second intervals, stirring in between, until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract until well combined and slightly thickened.
Gradually pour the melted chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly until smooth.
Sift in the flour and salt, and gently fold until just combined.
Divide the batter evenly among the prepared ramekins.
Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 12-14 minutes, or until the edges are set but the centers are still soft.
Remove from the oven and let cool for 1-2 minutes.
Carefully run a knife around the edges of each ramekin to loosen the cakes, then invert onto serving plates.
Dust with powdered sugar if desired and serve immediately with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!
Gajar ka Halwa

Every time I would go to my Dadi and Dada’s motel we would always have access to some types of sweets, called mithai. Mithai can be any type of sweet, with popular ones being gulab jamun, ras malai, kaju katli, and jalebi. My personal favorite, however, is gajar halwa, specifically when it’s HOT. It loses its magic once you let it cool down, so serving it and eating it hot is a necessity in my opinion.

There are so many different types of Halwa, a type of Mithai that is usually some sort of paste mixed with nuts and spiced syrup. This type of Halwa, Gajar ka Halwa, is made out of carrots, which surprised me as a kid and fueled my reluctance to try this dessert because “You can’t eat carrots for dessert!” This bias towards Gajar ka Halwa didn’t last for long, roughly when I found out that one of the cakes my mom had been making for a while was carrot cake. Once I tried this warm, sweet syrupy, and smooth textured dish, I was hooked. Anytime my grandma asks me what type of mithai I want to eat, it’s always the same answer: Gajar ka Halwa.

Recipe: Gajar ka Halwa

Ingredients:

1 kg carrots, grated
1 liter whole milk
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup ghee (clarified butter)
1/4 cup mixed nuts (cashews, almonds, pistachios), chopped
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder

Instructions:
In a large heavy-bottomed pan, heat the ghee over medium heat.
Add the grated carrots and sauté for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Pour in the whole milk and stir well. Cook the carrots in milk over medium-low heat until the milk is absorbed and the carrots are tender, about 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the sugar and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and the sugar is completely dissolved, about 15-20 minutes.
Stir in the chopped mixed nuts and cardamom powder. Cook for an additional 5 minutes, then remove from heat.
Serve hot, garnished with additional chopped nuts if desired. Enjoy the warm and comforting Gajar ka Halwa!
Ras Malai

I always thought having a big family was normal for most people up until middle school, with thirty cousins on my dad’s side and 12 on my mom's. I’m pretty close with my dad’s family since we see each other at least once a year, and super close with one pair of cousins on my mom’s side who live in Virginia which makes it easy to see them multiple times a year. With three of my mom’s four siblings scattered around the earth, it’s hard to connect with them, physically and emotionally. However, there is one thing, or should I say person, who does bridge all of us - my Nanjaan.

My Nanjaan is what I call my mom’s mom, and she is quite the traveler. Throughout the year, she rotates between living with all of my aunts and uncles, spending around 2-3 months at each place, bringing delicious Bengali cuisine with her. One of the trademark aspects of Bengali cuisine is its sweets, with another one of my favorite ones often being made by my grandmother. This creamy and slightly sweet desert is called Ras Malai.

Recipe: Ras Malai

Ingredients:

1 liter whole milk
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped almonds and pistachios
Instructions:

In a heavy-bottomed pan, bring the milk to a boil.
Once it starts boiling, reduce the heat to low and add the lemon juice.
Stir continuously until the milk curdles and separates into solids (chenna) and whey. This may take about 5-7 minutes.
Turn off the heat and strain the mixture through a muslin cloth or fine sieve.
Rinse the chenna under cold water to remove any trace of lemon juice.
Squeeze out excess water from the chenna and hang it for about 30 minutes to drain excess water.
After 30 minutes, knead the chenna until smooth and divide it into small equal-sized balls.
In a separate pan, add sugar to 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil to make the syrup.
Add the chenna balls to the syrup and cover the pan. Let it cook for about 15-20 minutes on medium heat.
Turn off the heat and let the ras malai cool down to room temperature.
Garnish with chopped almonds, pistachios, and cardamom powder before serving.
Enjoy the creamy delight of Ras Malai!

Croquembouche

This dish is without a doubt the hardest food I’ve ever made. Roughly two years ago, I had just finished ready Julia & Julia and in my French cuisine phase. I think that even though I’m not the biggest fan of how most French dishes taste, I love how technical they are to make. One day I decided I was going to try to make this dish, Croquembouche, as I had seen it before on TV and thought it looked amazing. However, the process of making this dessert was far off from amazing.

My first time making the Pâte à Choux, the dough for the cream puff, was a struggle for me. I ended up having to make it twice because it wasn’t the consistency it was supposed to be, paying attention to the heat of the dough is key. When I got to making the second batch with full concentration, it ended up great! They key to this dish is persistence. Lastly, another aspect of this dessert that makes it complicated is the caramel that you spin around the dessert to decorate it., its very easy to make a mistake and make your caramel set too hard.

Recipe: Croquembouche

Ingredients:

1 cup water
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a saucepan, combine water, butter, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
Add flour all at once, stirring vigorously until mixture forms a ball and pulls away from the pan.
Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition until smooth.
Transfer dough to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip.
Pipe small mounds onto the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and puffed up.
Let cool completely.
For caramel, in a saucepan, combine sugar and water over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves.
Increase heat to medium-high and cook without stirring until syrup turns amber in color.
Remove from heat and immediately dip the top of each cream puff into the caramel, then stack them into a cone shape.
Let the caramel set before serving.
Enjoy the challenge and beauty of Croquembouche!

Beignets

Years before I had my French food phase, my family and I fell in love with a place rooted in French culture and cuisine -- New Orleans. We went there during the Spring of my fourth grade year and we ate to our hearts delight. One day we saw a huge line form at a restaurant named Cafe Du Monde. We ended up going there almost every day that trip because of the same reason everyone else was there, for the Beignets. These light, warm, and sugary breakfast desserts were addicting to say the least. They made a huge mess whenever we had them, so we knew to reserve a set of clothing just for the occasion, ready to be showered in powdered sugar. After we left New Orleans, we went home and tried attempting making these ourselves, and they were good, but just not as good as the ones we had at Cafe Du Monde. Recently, we went back to New Orleans for, what my sister and I wanted to go back for, the Beignets. After trying these again, we felt like they weren’t as good as the ones we had all those years ago, and that maybe the first time ever experiencing tasting them made them more magical to us than they really were. Now, we have made more attempts at these delicious desserts and have come pretty close to mirroring the ones we had in New Orleans.

Recipe: Beignets

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 envelope active dry yeast
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup evaporated milk
7 cups bread flour
1/4 cup shortening
Nonstick spray
Vegetable oil
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions:

In a large bowl, whisk together the water, sugar, and yeast. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
In another bowl, beat the eggs, salt, and evaporated milk together.
Mix the egg mixture into the yeast mixture.
Add 3 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and stir to combine.
Add the shortening and continue to stir while adding the remaining flour.
Remove the dough from the bowl, place it on a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth.
Spray a large bowl with nonstick spray, put the dough in the bowl, and cover it with plastic wrap or a towel. Let it rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours.
Preheat vegetable oil in a deep fryer to 350°F (175°C).
Roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness and cut it into 1-inch squares.
Fry the dough squares in the preheated oil until they are golden brown, flipping them as they fry.
Remove the beignets from the oil and drain them on paper towels.
Dust the warm beignets with powdered sugar and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Bhapa Pitha

A generational favorite - Bhapa Pitha. My great-grandmother used to make these warm and sweet molasses and coconut-flavored breakfast items for my mom whenever my mom visited her village in Bangladesh. Pitha is an umbrella term for many different types of small foods that are eaten in Bangladesh. A core part of Bengali culture and cuisine is rice, as such, these pitas are made by using ground rice flour to make the batter. My mom had the privilege of being right near rice farms when she visited her grandmother's village, so all the ingredients were the freshest.

My mom now makes these sweets every once and a while, which are especially delicious after waking up on a cold winter weekend. I always brim with excitement when I wake up and smell the strong coconut and jaggery smell drifting throughout the house. Unfortunately, these are pretty difficult to get used to making, as in my attempts they have fallen apart when steaming, but I hope one day I’ll be able to make a not broken apart batch of these half as good as my mom makes them.

Recipe: Bhapa Pitha

Ingredients:

2 cups rice flour
1 cup grated coconut
1 cup jaggery (or sugar)
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
Water
Instructions:

In a mixing bowl, combine rice flour, grated coconut, jaggery, and cardamom powder.
Slowly add water and knead the mixture into a smooth dough.
Divide the dough into small portions and shape them into cylindrical or oval shapes.
Place the shaped dough pieces in a steamer lined with banana leaves or parchment paper.
Steam for about 15-20 minutes until the pithas are cooked through.
Let them cool slightly before serving.
Enjoy the warm and comforting Bhapa Pitha!