Welcome your guests with the sweet fragrance of cardamom wafting from the kitchen! The creaminess of this dessert comes from the whole milk that is reduced to half while cooking. Usually made with rice, kheer can also be made with vermicelli or tapioca. 

Golden-fried and soaked in sugar syrup or chachni – what’s not to love? If you don’t want to go the whole hog and make them from scratch, get an instant gulab jamun mix that will be ready to serve in under an hour.

The desi version of sweet pretzels, jalebis are especially popular during Diwali, Ramadan and other festivals. Serve up this delightful dessert with rabdi, and you have a dish worthy of a feast! 

Made during festivals like Raksha Bandhan, Gangaur and Teej, ghevar is a doughnut-shaped delicacy made of maida, desi ghee, and sugar syrup. Top it with sweet cream/malai or dry fruits to add your own twist to this dessert. 

Like gulab jamuns, rasgullas are also dumplings soaked in sugar syrup, but that’s where the similarity ends. These white dumplings are made from a mixture of semolina dough and chenna or cottage cheese. Flavoured with saffron, rasgullas are best served chilled.

The trick to make a delicious rabdi is to boil the milk and sugar on a low flame and reduce it till the milk changes colour. Get rave reviews by adding flavours like cinnamon, saffron, nuts and dry fruits to this sweet dish. Rabdi and jalebi are soulmates, so you could always pair the two to create a delicious double dessert! 

While the base of any halwa is milk, ghee and sugar, you can always add different ingredients to suit your palate. For example, add some carrots to make gajar ka halwa, bottle guard for dudhi halwa, and moong dal for moong halwa. Garnish with dry fruits and nuts to make this dessert even more appetising. 

Creamier and denser than ice cream, kulfi is the perfect desi surprise for your guests. While malai, kesar and badam are well-loved versions, you can also give your creativity full reign and try to infuse chocolate, rose syrup, fruits, or even paan. During hot summers, serve kulfi-falooda by adding vermicelli, basil seeds (sabja), and rose syrup. 

This cashew nut sweet is cut into elegant diamond shapes and decorated with edible silver leaf. Whether you make it at home or buy from the local sweetshop, serve it on an ornamental plate so your guests can ooh and aah at these dainty beauties.

These desi desserts are just what you need to end a hearty meal well. Put your chef’s hat on, and serve up your chosen sweets!