• Home
• /
• Lifestyle
• /
• Kitchen Classic

Don't tell them it's healthy

Did you know you could create the most mouth-watering desserts using. vegetables? Dare to try these out this weekend. Your little ones will thank you

Peas & Chocolate Mousse
Serves: 6
Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 15 mins
Chill time: 1 hour
Ingredients
1 cup frozen peas
½ cup icing sugar
2 cups whipped cream
2-3 drops mint essence
100 gm chocolate
1 tsp instant coffee
7-8 strawberries, sliced
Method
Defrost the peas and blend in a chopper until it turns into a smooth paste. 
Cook the peas with 2 tbsp icing sugar for 3-4 minutes, then cool.
Whip the cream with icing sugar until soft peaks form. Divide the cream into two 
equal portions. 
Add the peas paste to half the whipped cream, along with mint essence; blend it with a hand blender, then pour into the desired cups and chill. 
Melt the chocolate in a microwave for a minute. Remove and add coffee and the remaining cream slowly. Add this sauce 
on top of the peas cream cups. Chill again. 
To serve, layer each cup with 
sliced strawberries.
Beetroot Brownie

Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 35 mins
Ingredients
Water, as needed
1 cinnamon stick
2 medium beetroot, peeled
100 gm cooking chocolate
120 gm butter, room temperature
170 gm all-purpose flour
25 gm cashew nut flour
140 gm powdered sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp orange essence
4 tbsp milk
2 tbsp kumquat chopped, plus extra for garnishing
2 tbsp raisins
2 tbsp icing sugar, for garnishing
Method
Boil water with cinnamon stick in a steamer, together with beetroots (placed on the upper steaming bowl) for 5 minutes. Cool and grate; then
set aside.
Pre-heat the oven at 180°C.
Mix chocolate and butter in a double boiler until it melts.
Sieve all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add melted chocolate and butter to the hand mixture bowl and fold into the dry ingredients. Add grated beetroots. Adjust the consistency by adding milk.
Add orange zest and orange essence. Mix well. Add chopped kumquat
and raisins.
Transfer this to a rectangle loaf tin and bake for about 35 minutes. Cool before removing from the tin.
Top with sifted icing sugar and
sliced kumquats.
Carrot Caramel Custard

Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Chill time: 2 hours
Ingredients
1 ½ cup carrot, grated
500 ml milk
2 tbsp sugar
1 packet caramel custard
2 tbsp cold milk
¼ cup cream
1 tsp vanilla essence
Method
Boil milk with 1 cup grated carrot for 10 mins. Remove from heat and sieve.
In a separate pan, cook sugar with the remaining carrot till light and soft; keep aside to cool.
Mix custard powder with cold milk and add to the carrot-flavoured milk. Heat this mixture again for 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and add cream and essence.
Cool slightly before pouring into the desired cups. Chill.
Garnish with the grated, sugared carrot and caramel sauce. Serve.
Shahi Tukda Topped With Bottle Gourd Halwa

Serves: 6
Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 1 hour
Ingredients
½ cup ghee or butter
2 tbsp raisins
2 tbsp pistachio, sliced
2 tbsp cashew nuts, sliced
2 ½ cups bottle gourd, grated
1 cup sugar
2 green whole cardamoms
½ French bread, cut into
thin slices
1 cup mawa
2 tbsp almond powder
1 tbsp cardamom powder
Fresh whipped cream
Method
Heat 2 tbsps ghee in a pan, and sauté the raisins and nuts till very light brown; remove.
Add bottle gourd and sauté for 3 minutes. Add sugar and green cardamoms; cook for 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and drain some of the sugary syrup for later use. Discard
the cardamoms.
Heat a separate pan and shallow-fry all the bread slices. Cool.
Heat the bottle gourd mixture again with mawa and almond powder. Cook till it becomes solid. Add cardamom powder and fried nuts. Cool.
To serve, dip all the slices in the sugar syrup. Arrange in a serving plate and top with bottle gourd halwa and whipped cream.
Pumpkin Pepper Cupcakes


Makes: 12-16
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 30 mins
Ingredients
1 cup plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp green cardamom powder
Pinch of salt
½ cup pumpkin purée
½ cup olive oil
¾ cup powdered sugar
½ cup oats
1 tbsp fennel seeds, roughly crushed
1 tbsp black pepper, crushed
2 tbsp raisins
For icing:
¼ cup butter
1 cup cream cheese
2 cups icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla sugar
Method
Pre-heat the oven at 170°C.
Sift all the dry ingredients
(flour, baking powder, cinnamon powder, cardamom powder, salt) in a mixing bowl.
Mix pumpkin purée, oil and sugar in a separate bowl. Combine both mixtures with a hand blender, then add oats, fennel and black pepper. Mix again. Add some milk to adjust the consistency.
Mix in raisins and pour into cup cases. Bake for 15-17 minutes, then cool.
Mix all the ingredients for the icing with a hand blender and chill for 20 minutes. Spread on top of the cup cakes with a knife or using an icing bag.