Itti si haseen itti si khushi
Itta sa tukda chaand ka
Khwaabon ke tinkon se
Chal banayeinn aashiyan …

Meaning :A little smile,little happiness, a small piece of moon,with lots of dreams, let's make a happy home.. Now that's the principle of my life!Simple and sweet ! To emphasize that ,this blogpost is all about two royal sweet recipes from the place my hubby grew up and is settled in,"Hyderabad" and this time a sweet dedication to myself ,yes,you are right (banta hai boss),blowing my own trumphet.Relax..it is called self-love !

Hyderabad is the capital and the largest technologically and culturally rich city of the state of Telangana,South India.As per Wikipedia,"The name Hyderabad means "Haydar's City" or " The Lion City", from Haydar 'lion' and ābād 'Prosperous city'.Makes sense ! :D

Hyderabad was established by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth sultan of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, in 1591.Hence,Hyderabad is known as the city of Mughals and Nizams.Sounds perfect to me ! Anything with a royal touch entices me ..especially the outfits and the royal cuisines .

I love Hyderabad because it also kinda reminds me of the ordinary place in North India/Jharkhand where I grew up and where my heart still belongs to.

Not to mention the varieties of sweets ,pickles ,biryanis and other one-of-a-kind mouthwatering recipes.O my...I am thankful to have my sasural/husband's house in Hyderabad.

So,today's recipes are all about royalty - Double ka meetha and Shahi tukda. These sweets/desserts represents ME !(Blush blush) Sweet and kinda regal by nature and taste.You see,Double stands for my hubby's birthdate :D ,Meetha means sweet in Hindi/Urdu ,Shahi means royal and his surname goes by "Chandra" ,hence tukda Chaand ka/slice of Moon lol...Ahem ahem...too sweet to digest ???:D ..Hajmola sir and Madam !;D :P

I tasted my first bite of Double ka meetha and Shahi tukda in America and I thought that should be some fancy and complicated recipes.It tasted fancy and royal .Rich in taste,look and presentation.So,that was something I wanted to cook sometime when I have no other sweet recipes to try.Last but not the least !

Somehow ,I didn't get any other recipes that would fit me/describe me exclusively.Guess what ,when I was looking for the recipe ,I realized though it is fancy ,pancy ,rich and royal - Double ka Meetha recipe and Shahi Tukda recipe are very easy to make even at home with very handy ingredients easily available at most of the home.They are nothing but a very simply prepared royal bread puddings.

All you need are bread slices,milk,sugar,ghee and a few edible garnish of your choice to make these royal desserts. Can you believe that ? I didn't...Sounds perfect for the lazy me who craves for the sweets most of the time....There is simplicity in royalty too...

A video demo how to make homemade Double ka meetha and shahi tukda and also show-offing the bond with my spiritual team (a part and parcel of me and means a lot to me) ,well,something funny :D

Interestingly ,double ka meetha and shahi tukda are used interchangeably by many .Though what makes the double ka meetha differ from shahi tukda are their origin and that for double ka meetha,cube size fried bread pieces are dunked with sugar syrup and rabdi/thickened sweetened milk dessert while the latter is in the form of fried triangular shaped bread pieces covered with rabdi only.Both these recipes are quite famous in Hyderabad/India,Delhi,Lucknow and Pakistan exclusively and a must in most of the celebrations,festivals and wedding.

So,let me share with you all how to make Double ka meetha recipe and Shahi Tukda recipe at home "yours truly" way .

What is Double ka meetha ?

Double ka meetha is a rich Hyderabadi bread pudding belonging to the Deccani Mughlai cuisine.Double roti a.k.a Bread meaning dough of the roti that rises to nearly double its size during baking, and meetha, meaning “sweet” in Hindi/Urdu.

So, here is how I make my homemade "Double ka meetha" recipe :

First I prepared a rabdi recipe.

What is rabri/rabdi recipe?

Rabdi/Rabri is a sweetened thick boiled milk served as a dessert by its own and can be used to take any other sweets to a next level by layering or dunking in rabdi like Jalebi,Gulab Jamun and Double ka meetha and Shahi Tukra and more ...

Rabri recipe

Ingredients

Full fat milk 4 cups

Condensed milk 2 cups

Cardamom powder 1/2 - 1 Tsp (adjust as per your taste)

Saffron strands ,a few

Chopped dry fruits like pistas,cashewnuts,almonds,dried rose petals as needed

Non stick wide pan

A few drops of Kewra water/Rose water (optional)

Step by step method to make homemade rabdi/rabri

To make instant Rabdi/Rabri at home ,take a non stick wide pan .Non-stick pan will prevent the milk from scorching at the bottom and it would be quite easy to make Rabdi/Rabri aptly .
Add the milk to it and let it come to boil on high flame.Keep an eye to avoid the milk from over-flowing.
Then reduce the flame and add the condensed milk to it and stir well.
Add cardamom powder and a few saffron strands as needed.Stir well.
Let it simmer on medium-low flame.
Keep an eye.Scrap the edges of any cream/malai and stir continously until the milk thickens.
Let it reduce to half the quantity or the desired level of creaminess/thickness.
Some people do add little bit of ground powder of bread slices to thicken the rabri/rabdi fast and to make it lacchedar rabdi recipe.I didn't.
Switch off the cooking gas.
That's it Rabri/Rabdi is ready to serve.
Allow the rabdi/rabri to cool off.
(Optional,just incase you don't like any pieces of thick malai/cream part,you may ground the Rabdi/Rabri in a mixer grinder until you get a smooth liquid consistency)
Then or later while serving garnish it with drops of rose water/kewra water and chopped dry fruits.I even used bits of dried fruit jellies for a twist.
Once cold ,put the instant rabdi/rabri mixture into the refrigerator for setting up properly and reaching the rich texture with full flavor.I kept it overnight .Next day it was more thicker and creamier.

Double ka meetha recipe

Ingredients

Bread slices - 3 Nos

Oil 1/2-1 cup

Ghee 1 Tbsp

Wide pan for frying

Milk/Rabdi 1-2 Tbsps

Waraq/Varak/Silver edible foil for decoration (optional)

For making the sugar syrup/Chashni

Sugar 1 cup

Water 1 cup

Saffron strands,a few

Cardamom powder 1/4 Tsp

Non-stick pan

Step by step method to make Double ka meetha recipe at home:

Trim the edges of all bread slices and cut them into four cube size pieces and keep them aside.Make sure the bread slices are not too soft or chewy kind of.
Add water into a pan followed by sugar .
Let it come to full boil.
Then reduce the flame.Keep stirring in between and keep an eye.
Add the cardamom powder and saffron strands as needed.
Let it reduce to a sticking consistency.It will take sometime.
Meanwhile,heat oil in a pan and add little ghee ,allow it to melt.You can directly use the ghee and skip the oil.But to save ghee :D:P,I added little ghee with oil (best of both).ha ha...
Add a pinch of bread piece into the oil, if it is frying properly,oil is ready for frying the bread cubes.
Remove that fried bit of bread.On low flame,put all bread cubes one by one without over-crowding and when the bottoms are golden in color not dark brown/burnt,flip to cook the other side similarly.Repeat with any bread cubes.
Make sure not to hasten the process by frying those bread cubes fast on high flame out of patience and do not fry it for long and make it very crunchy.It should be soft yet a tad crunchy texture.
Remove all the fried bread cubes into a plate or directly to the sugar syrup if ready.
By this time,sugar syrup might have reached the right consistency.
Carefully take a bit of simmered liquid/sugar syrup and stretch between fingers.If it sticks and stretches/breaks.That is the right consistency I use for making my double ka meetha.It doesn't have be one thread consistency chashni/sugar syrup.
Transfer all fried bread cubes to the prepared sugar syrup when it is still HOT.Cover every fried bread cubes well with the HOT sugar syrup .If you miss to add the fried bread cubes to the sugar syrup when it is hot,the sugar syrup won't soak up the fried bread cubes well and it won't render the correct double ka meetha's taste.
Add little rabdi/fresh milk and mix well.This can be avoided but it makes the double ka meetha richer in taste.
Let it cool off.
Then serve immediately if you wish.Garnish it with chopped dry fruits of your choice.Add a few pieces of varak/waqr/edible silver foil if you wish.Optional though.
Or,once cold,let it set in the refrigerator and serve it next day.In that way the fried bread cubes soaks up the sugar syrup and flavor so well that it tastes finger-licking.I love it cold!
Double ka meetha is ready .
Serve it,enjoy it and feel royal !;)

What is Shahi tukda ?

Shahi Tukda is the non identical twin of the Double ka meetha .Shahi tukda recipe is also a decadent bread pudding recipe belonging to the royal Awadhi cuisine.Shahi means "Royal" and Tukda means slices/pieces in Hindi.

So,here is how I make my homemade "Shahi Tukda" recipe :

Shahi Tukda/Tukra recipe

Ingredients

Bread slices - 3 Nos.

Oil/ghee for frying

Chopped dry fruits and varak/edible silver foil for garnishing

Rabri/Rabdi as needed

Step by step method to make Shahi Tukda recipe at home

Trim the edges of the bread and diagonally cut it into two.Repeat with all bread slices and keep them aside.
Meanwhile heat oil/ghee in a pan .Put a bit of bread piece to make sure the oil is ready for frying.When that bit of bread piece is fried ,remove it.
Place all cut bread slices one by one without over-crowding and let it fry on medium-low flame until golden brown not dark brown ,little crunchy texture, flip to cook the other sides similarly.Repeat with any leftover cut bread slices.
Transfer all fried bread slices one by one onto a plate.
Add a little rabdi in a bowl or a serving plate and place all fried bread slices one by one.
Top them with more Rabdi as needed.
Garnish with chopped dry fruits of your choice and varak/edible silver foil.
Serve it immediately .If kept longer they may become soggy .If you add little rabdi otherwise can prevent it from becoming soggy though.
That's it my Shahi Tukda is ready !
Enjoy and feel like a shahi tukda . ;)

How I sweeten up my life ! Keep going..Strive and thrive dear friends !

So,if you are like me,you have a sweet tooth ,you are an ardent fan of royal foods like Mughlai and Nawabi cuisines,your celebrations and festivals are enhanced with your edible creations and even if that is not the case,if you are bored of the usual Indian sweets or give them a break and or if you are fed up of eating same bread recipes,then these royal yet easy to make royal bread puddings /desserts/sweets are worth trying for , so quick to prepare,tastes rich and delicious,smells aromatic and looks extravagant,an ode to edible royalty.

So,these royal sweets are part of my pre-diwali preparation .Hope you all will also try it,love it and share it .

So,here's wishing you all a very Happy Diwali in advance ! May this festival of lights ,bright up your life with joys,good health,long life,positivity,prosperity and delightful moments .May this festival of lights be the reminder to ignite the light in you,forget/blast the dark/past,enjoy the present and the future be blessed .

And Forever...Be loving/loved and in light !

Till we meet again,please take good care in everyway.Firecrackers , flames and too much sweetness (Except the exceptional ME :D) can also be hazardous to our health...