“Desserts are made of sugar and love”  No wonder most of us like to round off their meals with something sweet. In my house most of the times it is a seasonal fruits or even a hot cup of green tea. During weekdays it is either Indian dessert, baked cheesecakes or just a simple and easy fruity dessert like this Pomegranate Mousse’ I made yesterday to end a cozy family dinner.

Mousse is normally made with whipped cream which is slightly heavy for my system. I tend to replace the milk cream with either thick yogurt or cream of coconut in the recipe. Pomegranate Mousse with coconut milk is light, airy and quite easy to make.

“Gudia, I would like to eat our simple and traditional food” informed my paternal aunt during her first visit at my home. The very popular rustic treats from rural India Daal Baati and Lapsi (couscous dessert) are on her menu for most of the days. “But both the recipes are way too simple, your small Gudia of yesteryear knows to cook many varieties now, aunty” I tempted her with many food choices. “Some other day, this time lets keep it simple” and she changed the topic of conversation. Huh..of all the exotic desserts I know she opted for Lapsi, a simple 3 ingredient recipe!

Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it. ~ Russel Baker. Am sure many would be one to love summer for a good reason – Ice Creams! There was a time when the very word ‘Ice-cream‘ was banned in my house. Recurrent cough & cold and instructions from the music teacher to avoid anything cold for the children made sure that ice cream cease to exist in our house. For good long years both of us also avoided ice creams served during any party or functions lest our children will get tempted.

But now that they are grown up and have better immunity power the ban has been partially lifted. They are allowed to eat ice creams but have to gulp warm water immediately to reduce the effect of cold. Does this sound too cruel…Well, I have heard such weird stories from many possessive & protective parents. And I willingly admit that I am one among them 🙂

If being stupid, selfish, and having good health are the three requirements for happiness then I must admit that I am a mix of all the three! Let me unveil it for you…the recent after effects of the Indonesian earthquake in India had a mild effect on the properties but caught many people unaware. I was sitting on my dinning table with one hand on my laptop and the other hand holding a tea cup when the incident occurred. Suddenly I felt my heart pumping faster and I could hear my heart beat clearly. I started to sweat and my hand was trembling with the tea cup in it. It did not occur to me that this could be due to an earthquake. I started relating the symptoms with my 40 plus status and all the medical ailments that could remember at that time. I was paying attention to all the minute details of what was happening to me so that I could explain the same to my doctor….phew.  Yes, I was scared out of my wits.

A phone call from Hubby to inquire if I felt the earth quake relieved me and I screamed ” What, an earthquake, thank God”. Confused and a bit startled to comprehend my insane statement, he cut the line.  Being selfish is not a bad thing if it makes you happy without hurting others 🙂

A bowl of creamy wobbly Panna Cotta soaked in juicy fresh fruit compote is a best bet for an easy, quick and exotic dessert for any day! Panna Cotta means “cooked cream’ in Italian and this simple dessert is served with caramel, chocolate sauce or any fruit compote. Compote is a sort of thickened sweet sauce cooked with stewed fresh or dried fruits mainly berries in sugar.

It is really hard to switch over from the incredibly addictive cream based panna cotta with  yogurt and coconut milk. But then a look at the health benefits of yogurt and coconut makes it a wiser decision to do so. Panna Cotta cooked with coconut milk which I make often takes the recipe to different levels. I made two batches, the one set in the ramekins are with cream & yogurt combo and the other in the glass is just plain yogurt panna cotta. And no, I did not miss the creamy culprit from my recipe 🙂

Nutty Carrot Pudding a.k.a Gajar Halwa, this ubiquitous dessert hardly needs any introduction to those who love Indian food! This rich, decadent and comforting sweet made with red carrots adorns the dinning table of  many households during the chilly winter nights. The juicy sweet red carrots which gives the distinct color and taste to the pudding are available only for a few month in a year and its presence also welcomes the beginning of winter days in India. Fresh carrot juice, pickled carrots in  jars, exotic carrot jam, colorful pilaf with tiny chunks of red carrots and just plain carrots is what I love to serve mine.

“First there was a Fresh Corn Dessert a few days back and now there are two more desserts for the weekend..Hmm…do I smell some conspiracy” inquired the puzzled hubby. “Is all the sweet temptations for the digital SLR?” he smiled and replied to his own query after he noticed a sparkle in my eyes! The decision to buy this high-end digital camera has been put on hold for almost a year by the dear hubby. As he wanted to get completely convinced that I am really serious about my blog and will put the camera to good use before succumbing to my demands. And I saw my wish getting wings when he reached for his lap top to Google for digital cameras 🙂

There is nothing special in this dessert except the fact that I wanted to try my hands on Macarons. I do lots of baking but mine is restricted to just cakes, muffins, cookies and bread. Never got inclined to baking anything lying outside my territory. The pretty & colorful Macarons posted in many fellow bloggers got me attracted.

Ice cream was not in the party menu a few years back, before I realized that many children dislike fruit salad or anything that is remotely related to or being refered as health food! Given a choice even my kids prefer Ice cream over anything healthy 🙂 So down comes my Ice cream maker each year, from that dark corner of the loft. The poor gadget sees the light of the day just once every year!

Mixed fruit salad is also another staple in all of my parties. A dessert easy to make and refreshing to eat with loads of seasonal fruits in it. At times I semi bake it for 15-20 minutes for a different dessert altogether. Add colorful fruit jelly and serve in a designer glass for a classy & exotic look.