Diwali Special: Motichoor Cream Cheese Tart

Festivities in India go hand in hand with desserts. Almost every region and state has special recipes, protected over the years to yield the most mouth-watering results ever. But I would lie if I say that I don’t grow tired of mithai during Diwali.

This Diwali why not give the old motichoor laddoo a creamy twist! Enjoy this festival favourite infused in cream cheese and set in a buttery tart shell!

Recipe:

Prep Time: 10 minutess

Cooking time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Makes: One 8-inch tart

Ingredients:

For the tart base:

· 20 badam pista biscuits/ parle g

· 100 grams butter, melted

For the filling:

· 150 grams cream cheese, softened

· 2 tablespoons milk chocolate, melted and cooled

· ¼ cup sweet boondi mixed with pista and badam flakes

For garnish:

· 150 grams chilled whipped cream

· ½ cup sweet boondi mixed with pista and badam flakes

· Edible silver leaf

Method:

Preparing the crust:

1. In a large bowl crush the biscuits using a flat bowl, you can also use a blender.

2. Crushing the biscuits by hand gives it a nice layered texture.

3. Combine the cookie crumbs and butter until thoroughly combined.

4. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a round pie pan.

5. If baking the crust, bake at 170C for 10 minutes. Set aside till it as at room temperature before filling.

6. If not baking the crust, refrigerate for at least 45 minutes before filling.

Preparing the filling:

1. To a bowl add cream cheese and white chocolate.

2. Blend till smooth and fluffy.

3. Add ¼ cup sweet boondi. Give it a final mix and set aside.

Assembling the tart:

1. Once the tart base is ready, evenly fill in the cream cheese mixture and smoothen using a spatula.

2. Refrigerate for 15 minutes

3. While the tart is chilling, using a hand-mixer beat the whipped cream on medium-low speed

4. Whip for one minute until the cream is frothy with bubbles on the surface.

5. Increase the speed to medium-high, until a fluffy and smooth consistency is reached,

6. Continue to beat for about 2 minutes for soft peaks.

7. Remove the chilled tart and using a piping bag pipe the whipped cream as shown in the video.

8. If you don’t have a piping bag, you can add a dollop of whipped cream on the surface and smoothen with a spatula

9. Now garnish the corners with sweet boondi and add the silver leaves.

10. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes and your tart is ready to serve!