This Ganapati festival gorge on Walnut Barfi and Walnut Rasmalai

The month of August marks the beginning of a series of festivities across the country. From Ganesh Chaturthi to Dussehra and Diwali, August heralds the arrival of one happy occasion after another. From delicious halwas to lip-smacking barfis, Indian households truly come alive with the fragrance of wonderful sweetmeats come August.

Here are the recipes packed with the added crunch of walnuts to amp up your favorite Indian sweets and make your celebrations special.

California Walnut Barfi- Chef Sabyasachi Gorai
Ingredients
1 cup California walnuts
¼ cup milk
250g khoya or mawa
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon ghee/clarified butter + a little extra for greasing
½ teaspoon cardamom powder

Preparation:
1. Take ½ cup of California walnuts in a bowl.
2. To this add ¼ cup of milk and let it soak for 1 hour. Thereafter, blend it into a coarse pureé.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon of ghee in a pan and add the remaining walnuts. Sauté till golden, drain and set aside.
4. Now in the same ghee, add khoya and sugar and mix well. To this add the walnut puree and mix again.
5. Keep cooking this till it gets thick and leaves the sides.
6. Then add cardamom powder and fried walnuts and mix well.
7. Spread this on a greased plate and let it set for a few hours.
8. Slice into pieces and garnish with California walnuts.

California Walnut Rasmalai- Chef Varun Inamdar
Ingredients For the chenna
8 cups full cream milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup water

For the California walnut milk syrup
2 ½ cups California walnut milk
3 tablespoons milk powder
1/3 cup sugar
A few drops of yellow food grade color

Garnish
1/8 teaspoon saffron strands
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 teaspoon walnut flakes
Handful California walnuts, chopped roughly

For the sugar syrup
3 cups water
1 cup sugar

Preparation For the chenna
1. Boil milk in a heavy bottom pan.
2. When it boils, add in vinegar and water mixed together. Stir and turn the flame off.
3. Strain the curdled milk using a muslin cloth and wash the milk solids under running tap water. Keep aside till they cool.
4. With the heel of your palm massage the washed curds for 15 minutes till it is shiny and smooth. Divide into 12 balls.
5. Roll them and flatten them.

For the syrup
6. Heat sugar and water together till they start boiling, in a heavy bottomed vessel.
7. Drop in the chenna balls. Cover with a lid and allow it to roll boil for 15 minutes.
8. Switch the flame off and allow the syrup and chenna to come down to room temperature.

For the California walnut milk syrup
In a heavy bottomed pan, add California walnut milk and bring it to a boil. Add in sugar, yellow color and milk powder. Once the sugar is dissolved, switch the flame off.

Assembly
Take the poached balls, press them and drain the syrup off. Transfer into the flavored California walnut milk. Garnish with saffron strands, pistachio flakes and crushed California walnuts. Serve chilled.

Old Bombay Nankhatai- Chef Varun Inamdar
Ingredients
1/2 cup ghee
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup refined flour
1/4 cup California walnut powder
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon semolina
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder

Glazing
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Preparation
1. In a mixing bowl ghee and powdered sugar, whip smooth for 10 minutes till it is soft, white, fluffy and creamy.
2. Add refined flour, walnut powder, salt, semolina and baking soda, cardamom powder.
3. Mix well and knead the dough combining with your hand. Do not over knead.
4. Roll into a baking sheet till the dough is 1 cm thick. Transfer onto a baking tray.
5. Cut into long rectangles.
6. Mix milk and sugar in a bowl and apply on top of the cut triangles using a brush.
7. Bake at 180°C for 10 minutes.
8. Remove the tray and allow the cake to cool completely.
9. Store in airtight container.

Borhri Malai Khaja- Chef Varun Inamdar
Ingredients For covering
2 cups refined flour
2 tablespoons ghee

For layering
1 tablespoon refined flour
1 tablespoon ghee

For stuffing
1 cup khoya
1/2 cup California walnut powder
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon green cardamom powder
1 teaspoon saffron water
Oil for frying

Preparation
1. Roast the khoya and California walnut powder on low flame for 10 minutes.
2. Cool and mix sugar, cardamom powder. Keep aside.
3. Knead refined flour and ghee with little water to form a stiff dough. Make into orange sized balls.
4. Roll each ball to a thin disc 9 inches in diameter. Smear ghee and sprinkle refined flour all over.
5. Roll into a thin cylinder, twist it and spiral it up. Chill for 10 minutes.
6. Roll the chilled spiral ball into a 4 inch disc and add in a scoop of the cooled filing. Bring the ends together and roll into a ball yet again. Give it a smear of saffron water and chill for 15 minutes.
7. Deep fry over low flame.
8. Garnish with powdered sugar.