Spruce up your day with a dessert by Bethica Das that's a winning combination of Mango Paniyaram with Kesar-Pista Phirni.
A great party or after-meal dish, it can be enjoyed chilled or at room temperature.
Though Bengali, Bethica has lived in Hyderabad and Chennai, where she augmented her cooking repertoire with Southie specials.
Mango Paniyaram With Kesar-Pista Phirni
Serves: 3-4
Ingredients
- ¾ cup mango pulp or as required
- ½ cup rava or semolina
- 1-2 tbsp sugar
- ¼ tsp green elaichi or cardamom powder
- ½ tsp Eno fruit salt
- 1 tsp ghee + extra to grease the paniyaram chatti or pan
- Pinch salt
For the garnish
- Few kesar or saffron strands
- 1 tsp chopped pistachios
- Scooped mango balls, made using a fruit baller scoop
- 1 sprig mint leaves
For the kesar pista phirni
- 3 cups milk
- ¼ cup pistachio, powdered
- ¼ cup sugar or to taste
- 1 tbsp rice, soaked and coarsely ground
- ¼ tsp green elaichi or cardamom powder
- Pinch salt
Method
For the paniyaram
- Heat ghee in a frying pan and saute the semolina for a few minutes or till it emits a nice aroma.
Keep aside to cool.
Mix with the mango pulp, salt, sugar, cardamom powder.
Cover and keep aside for 10 minutes.
Give it a quick stir again and check for consistency; should have idli batter thickness.
Add more mango pulp if required.
Add the Eno fruit salt and mix well. - Heat a paniyaram chatti or pan and grease well with a little ghee.
Drop a few teaspoonfuls of the prepared batter in each cavity and cook, covered over low heat till one side is well browned.
Flip it over and cook the other side too till done.
Take the paniyarams out of the pan and repeat process if any batter still left.
For the phirni
- Bring the milk to a boil.
Add salt, powdered pistachio, ground rice.
Mix well and simmer over low heat till it turns slightly thick.
Keep stirring continuously so that it doesn't stick to the bottom and burn.
Add the sugar and the cardamom powder.
Simmer further till you get the desired thickness.
Take off heat and keep aside.
To assemble
- On a serving plate, add some of the phirni and place 2-3 mango paniyarams in it.
Garnish with the saffron strands, chopped pistachios, mango balls and the mint leaves.
Repeat the process for the balance phirni and paniyarams.
Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Editor's Note: To veganise this recipe, use almond milk instead of regular milk in the phirni and add a few tbsp fresh coconut milk at the end of the cooking process to add further taste. Replace the ghee with cashew butter.
For sugar-free dessert replace sugar with jaggery or a sugar substitute.
For healthier phirni use red rice or brown rice.
Bethica Das is a Sharjah-based food blogger.
