Shrikhanda Cheesecake–no bake, no cheese
We often see labels like ‘best of both worlds’. This entices me a lot because at times we become indecessive to choose between two things and the ‘best of both’ concept gives pleasures & experiences of both worlds .
There’s such an experience which I would like to share which i experimented and been adored by many. Well , you’ll uncover its not a huge thing but appears very beautiful as well as surprising for the eyes who have been seeing this dessert served the traditional way. I served it to different guests on many occasions and to my surprise they all couldn’t make out what the ‘actual’ dessert was!
Thats where you will find the shrikhanda in traditional meal.
The good thing about this dessert over the similar looking cheesecake is this one is low in calories and easy on tummy as it doesn’t have cheese but gut friendly yogurt. In spite of missing cheese, the recipe promises the richness and creaminess as well as the crunchier base and freshness from fruits.
First step which requires patience or rather some planning is making hung curd..done by hanging curd overnight…I choose to use strainer lined with thick tissues.
Making of Shrikhanda : mixing thick hung curd with milk, cardamom, saffron, dry fruits , etc : whisk till smooth.
Other elements:
Biscuit base: crush or pulse some biscuits in blender to form base of cheesecake.
Jammy fruits: warm some fruit jam in microwave and toss fruits in it.
To serve as Cheesecake: Line them at bottom of serving bowls with crushed biscuits followed by shrikhanda and to finish off the jammy fruits.
: Recipe Card :
| Prep Time | 4 hours |
| Cook Time | 15-20 minutes |
| Servings |
people
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- 4 cups yogurt( around 1 kg)
- 1/4- 1/3 cup sugar- to taste
- 7-8 strands saffron
- 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
- 2 Tbsp chopped nuts (almonds, pistachios, cashews)
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg powder (optional)
- 5-6 Oats / digestive biscuits
- 1/2 cup fresh berries or any fruit
- 2 Tbsp any fruit jam
Ingredients
For Garnish
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- Take a deep mixing bowl and place a strainer on top. Line the strainer with a Muslim clothe or a couple of tri-ply kitchen tissues.
- Pour yogurt on tissue and let it rest for at least 4 hours and overnight would be better .the water collected in bowl should not tough the strainer.
- What you are left with is thick hung curd with very minimum water in it. Take it in a bowl.
- Put sugar, chopped dry fruits, cardamom, saffron , nutmeg and milk in the hung curd.Mix it well with a whisk and refrigerate .Mix again after 15 minutes when you can see saffron starts giving out the flavour and colour. Refrigerate further till ready to serve. Off late I’m serving my shrikhanda in no- bake cheesecake style.. just a layer of crushed oat biscuits + little sugar for base__ followed by layer of shrikhanda__ last to go are fresh fruits which can be glazed with a fruit jam.
- It’s very easy to make shrikhanda with Greek yogurt because of the thickness and fat content . Still better to strain at least 2 hours else it gives taste like sweetened yogurt.
- There are other many variations of shrikhanda. I’ve tried making mango ( aamrakhanda), berries mixed fruit , pineapple , tutti-frutti, fruits & nuts ,chocolates, tender coconut, persimmon, kiwi etc etc.
