One night, last December, my parents, brother and I drove to the hotel ITC Grand Chola, Chennai. We had heard that ITC’s luxury chocolate brand, FABELLE, was opening a new shop in the hotel, the first of its kind in the city, and hence were eager to visit it. Located on the main road itself, the hotel really has a palace-like look. We were dumbstruck by the magnificent interiors, which had a royal feel what with the chandeliers, carvings and paintings on the walls, throne-like chairs, shiny tables and the employees dressed like kingsmen. Moving ahead, we reached the chocolate boutique – FABELLE. Fabelle now has its presence in ITC hotels in all the metro cities. Upon entering, another marvellous sight met our eyes. The sides looked as though large chocolate bars had been fitted on them! Even the workers in that particular shop were wearing chocolate-coloured clothes.

The menu was placed before us and as usual, we didn’t know which to pick. The waitress patiently explained to us about all the chocolates, desserts and beverages available there and gave some suggestions so as to ease the process. She told us that the cocoa for the chocolates used there was sourced from some of the finest cocoa growing regions of the world like Ghana, Venezuela, Ecaudor, etc. She also mentioned that all the chocolates there were handcrafted by them. Some of the chocolates we tasted were Elements – chocolate creations inspired by the elements of nature, the smooth and silky Ganache, Gianduja – a rich milk chocolate with Turkish hazelnuts and As You Like It – where you can craft your own chocolate creation in a tablet and the chocolatier will prepare that in front of your eyes ( you can choose your cup type, filling and topping ). Few chocolate desserts we tasted were The Lotus (a coconut and banana-flavoured bud-like chocolate that opens up like a lotus on pouring a kind of hot sauce) and Entrements – a classic French confection that is styled with mousse and creme, and tastes as well as looks good. Finally, we concluded our trial turned feast by sipping Hot Chocolate garnished with nougats.

It was truly an out of the world experience. Only when we reached the car parking area did we realise that it was past midnight. Chewing exquisite chocolates, we had  forgotten about where we were and not bothered to check the time. By now, I think you would have realised the magic of the chocolates there. Eating chocolates there is so mesmerising that you are sure to forget yourself. So…

Think Chocolate, Think Fabelle!

– Sanjana Suresh

Let me share you my experience at the “cake walk” where I tasted the extraordinary “Red velvet cheesecake “. Myself with my brothers, four of them were tired after playing in the beach. So we planned to go and eat cake. We searched for cake shop and found this shop “cake walk”. We went in and saw the menu card. There were variety of cakes,but my eyes rolled on to this delicious thing “Red velvet cheesecake” which is rare. But luckily at that time there were only three cakes. There were four layers in between each layers cheese had been layered . It was so yummy and it was garnished with some strawberries. We ordered one and started to eat .

The “yum”….. moment was an amazing experience which can’t be delivered in words.

-Roshini S

It was a fine evening may 18th 2018 my parents wedding day. My father after he finished all his work he came home. He took us to Sri mittai. Rasmalai is my mom’s favorite sweet.May be because it is so delicious or maybe because we didn’t get to eat it that regularly compared to other sweets. She is fond of sweets by miles. Rasmalai is also known as Rossomalai. It is originated from the Bengal region in the Indian subcontinent. The name Rasmalai comes from two words in Bengali ros means juice and malai means cream. It has been described as a “rich chessecake without a crust “. The Angoori Rasmalai is a modern variation of Rasmalai popular bengali sweet dish. It was so soft and creamy to eat. My mom she was so happy. Though it was costly there is nothing more than my mother’s smile. It was such a delightful evening.

– Roshini S

I am sure most of you would have seen the pink packet of fake sugar on restaurant tables labelled ‘Sweet N Low’. This is saccharin, a sugar substitute that has fewer calories. People with diabetes add this to their tea/coffee instead of cane/beet sugar. Now let us see how it was discovered. Going back in time…

In 1879, one evening, Constantin Fahlberg, a chemist trying to find alternative uses for coal tar, came home for dinner after a long day’s work. As he ate, he wondered why the biscuits his wife had baked taster a lot sweeter than usual. His wife had no clue as to why they should. Then he made the connection: he hadn’t washed his hands after work, and the coal tar remnants had sweetened the biscuits. Saccharin came out of this observation.

At home, we can substitute saccharin, jaggery or palm sugar for table sugar as they are more healthier than regular sucrose. There is this Health Cafe near my house branded as ‘Dezire’. It serves traditional, Indian sweets as well as other desserts made out of a kind of natural sweetener that has a low glycemic index. This shop does not use sucrose or any other artificial sweetener. Their products range from Gulab Jamuns and Rasgullas to jams and cakes, which are all sugar free. These products are suitable for all, including health or calorie-conscious people and diabetics. My family is very grateful to the manufacturer since we can now satiate my diabetic grandfather’s craving for sweetmeats without having to worry about his blood glucose-level rising. I can assure you that eventhough they are a bit expensive, Dezire’s line of products are definitely worth the money and are a blessing in disguise for many households!

– Sanjana Suresh

Cookies are the perfect companions for all occasions. Whether we’re hanging out with friends, celebrating a festive occasion with family or just having some well-deserved me-time, cookies fit the bill perfectly. Who has heard of yummy traditional sweets like Halwa, Kesari, Mysore Pak, etc. made from cookies? Well, this concept was new to me until last week.

Parle Platina added a slight twist to everyone’s festive snacking this year with the ‘Parle Platina vin Pandigai Palagaarangal’ campaign, where people were invited to send in their innovative recipes of desi sweets, made with the Milano range of cookies. Different types of Milano cookies are available in the market namely Chocolate Chip cookies, Choco Delight, Mixed Berries, Choco and Hazelnut, etc. These premium, unique cookies are perfect for times when you need a  snack that is both indulgent and delectable, and they also lend themselves wonderfully to some classic Indian sweets.

A celebrity chef showcased the making of a delicious, mixed berries halwa using the one-of-a-kind Milano Centre-Filled Mixed Berries cookies. One lady used the Milano Centre-Filled Choco Hazelnut cookies to make a kesari with a difference. These unique, twin-dough cookies are exclusive to Parle and contain a real hazelnut and chocolate filling. Another one made a kesari using the Milano Centre-Filled Dark Choco cookies as base and added dry fruits to take it up a notch. These cookies are truly indulgent in every bite and are the perfect blend of dark chocolate cookies and a rich, creamy, chocolate filling. My neighbour prepared Mysore Pak using just Milano Chocolate Chip cookies, coconut, milk, ghee and sugar. Sounds simple right? Maybe you could surprise your family with these recipes! Try them out and indulge in the rich Milano experience…

~ Sanjana Suresh

 

It was diwali, so in most of the families they would prepare sweets and share their happiness. In my home my mother prepared Gulab jamun. But this time she made it from milk powder. Gulab jamun is milk solid based sweet. It is originated in North Indian subcontinent. Traditionally it is made from khoya which is milk reduced to the consistency of a soft dough. In modern recipes call for dried / powdered milk instead of khoya. Nowadays they are available in ready made packets. My mother she made soft balls from the powder. She made it as soft round balls. Gulab jamuns can be either served as cold or hot or even in room temperature. After making softballs she fried it in ghee. After that it was so hard and on outside but well cooked inside. The main difference between the Gulab Jamun made from milk powder and made from mawa is the texture. Milk powder Gulab Jamuns have porous texture from inside while mawa Gulab Jamun have smoother texture. After the frying process it was soaked in the sugar syrup for 2 hours. After those procedures finally arrived the yummy round balls. It was so soft.It was garnished with almond and other nuts. Gulab Jamuns are often served in festive occasions.

– Roshini S