Just Desserts:

Bananas with Chocolates and Nuts:

1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup walnuts
6 ripe but firm bananas (peeled and chopped)
2 milk chocolate slabs
6 ice cream sticks
1 tsp butter

Chop the walnuts and almonds and roast them separately with the butter. Keep them aside. Melt the slabs of milk chocolate in a double boiler to a coating consistency. Dip each banana in the liquid chocolate and Then roll in the roasted nuts. Keep in the refrigerator till serving time. You can store it in the freezer for a few days.

Quick Fresh Fruit Ice-cream:

Ingredients:
1 cup condensed milk
1 cup whole milk
1 cup fresh strawberries (chopped)
1 cup mango (peeled and chopped)
1 custard apple (peeled and deseeded)
1 tbsp gelatin
1/4 cup water.

Method:
Keep a few strawberry pieces for decoration. Soak gelatin in warm water and let it stand for 10min. Beat condensed milk and whole milk in a blender for 3 minutes. Add gelatin and beat again. Pour in a big bowl and mix in all the fruits. Keep in the freezer for 15 minutes till set. Decorate it with saved strawberry pieces.

Kulfi:

Ingredients:
Serves-16-18
2 litres whole milk
1 tin condensed milk
2 tbsp corn flour
8-10 almonds (chopped fine)
8-10 pistachios (chopped fine)
5-6 cardamoms (powder)
A few strands saffron, 2-3 drops rose water,2-3 drops almond essence.

Boil milk for 10minutes in a heavy bottom pan. Add the condensed milk and keep stirring till it thickens. Dissolve 2 tbsp cornflour in half cup cold milk to a smooth paste. Add it to the milk mixture. Keep stirring till it is thick. Remove from heat. Add almond essence, rose water, almonds, pistachios and cardamom powder. Lightly roast the saffron and soak in a little milk. Add it to the Kulfi mixture and mix well. Keep aside to cool. Transfer the mixture into kulfi moulds. You can fill about 16-18 kulfi moulds with this mixture. Keep these moulds in the freezer to set.

Crunchy Apple Pie:

Ingredients:
Short Crust Pastry:
225 g flour (maida)
115 g butter (cold)
1tb sp powdered sugar
2-3 tbsp ice cold water to bind

Apple filling:
2 tbsp walnuts
4 apples peeled and thinly sliced
1 tsp lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp powdered cinnamon sticks

Crunchy Topping:
4 tbsp cornflakes
2 tbsp unsalted butter softened
2 tbsp powdered sugar.

Method:
Cut cold butter into small cubes. Sieve powdered sugar and flour in a mixer. Blend the butter and sugar-flour mixture at low speed till the mixture turns crumbly. Take out and knead lightly with ice cold water to form a dough. Wrap in a damp cloth and keep aside. Mix apple, lemon juice, sugar and cinnamon. Heat low flame till pulpy and dry. Keep a small lemon sized ball of the dough for the topping. Roll out the remaining dough, 1/4 inch thick. It should be about 4 inch more in diameter than the pie dish. This will help to cover the base and the sides of the pie dish. Grease the dish and spread pastry in it. Pinch the sides and prick lightly with a fork. Bake at 200 Degree C in a pre-heated oven for 20 min. Mix all the ingredients of the apple filling and arrange over the pastry. Mix and sprinkle all the ingredients of the topping over the filling. Roll out the leftover dough and cut into thin strips. Arrange the strips in a criss-cross pattern over the pie. Bake in a preheated oven at 200 Degree C till the strips turns light brown and lightly crisp. Serve warm with or without ice-cream.

Date and Banana Pudding:

Ingredients:
1 tbsp castor sugar
500g seedless dates
3 large bananas (peeled and sliced)
300ml double cream
4 tbsp warm brandy
Finely grated rind of 1 orange
4 tbsp orange juice
1 tbsp sherry
Garnish: Banana sliced and sliced dates and oranges.

Method:
Soak dates in the warm brandy for an hour. Drain and halve the dates. Keep the brandy. Arrange half the dates in a serving dish and place half the bananas on top. Then cover with the remaining dates and bananas again. Sprinkle sherry on top. Mix cream, 2 tbsp brandy, orange rind, juice and castor sugar in a bowl. Stir constantly to prevent the cream from separating. Then pour the cream evenly over dates and bananas. Keep in the fridge for 30-45 mins. Decorate with sliced fruits.

Kesari Rajbhog:

Ingredients:
250g Cottage cheese
1 tsp refined flour (maida)
1 tsp semolina (rawa)
12-15 pistachio nuts
6-8 almonds
3 tbsp milk solids (khoya-grated)
2 tbsp rose syrup
1/2 tsp green cardamom powder
4-5 cups sugar
3-4 strands saffron.

Method:
Knead fresh cottage cheese till smooth. Add refined flour and semolina. Divide into 12-14 equal portions. Soak pistachio and almonds in 1 cup hot water for 5 minutes. Drain, peel and chop them. Mix grated milk solids with cardamom powder and rose syrup. Knead it into a dough mixing in the pistachio nuts and almonds. Divide into 12-14 equal portions. Stuff a portion this mixture into each portion of cottage cheese. Shape them into marble-sized balls. Dissolve sugar in 1/2 litre water. Boil and make a thin sugar syrup and strain. Then boil in a wide-mouthed pan and add saffron. Slide in stuffed cottage cheese balls and cook for 4-5 minutes on high flame. Sprinkle about 3/4 cup hot water and cook on high heat for another 5 minutes. The balls should double in size. Remove and keep sugar syrup. Refrigerate and serve chilled.