These Gulab Jamun Rabdi Cups are an easy to put together festive dessert for Diwali. You only need a handful of ingredients to make them and they are perfect for potlucks!

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 15 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Total time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 45 cups
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Indian Fusion

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup whole milk ([adjustable] 6 oz [/adjustable])
  • ¾ cup heavy cream ([adjustable] 6 oz [/adjustable])
  • generous pinch saffron strands
  • 2 teaspoons ghee (melted)
  • 15 oz ricotta cheese (I used whole milk ricotta)
  • ⅓ cup chopped nuts (I used cashews and almonds)
  • ⅓ cup granulated white sugar ([adjustable] 75 grams [/adjustable])
  • ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
  • 45 phyllo shells
  • 12 gulab jamuns (store-bought or homemade, cut into quarters)
  • dried rose petals (to garnish)

Method

  1. Add ¾ whole milk and ¾ cup heavy cream to a pan on medium heat. Once the mixture is slightly warm, crush a generous pinch of saffron strands with your hands and add it to the pan. Stir with a spoon. Let the mixture heat for 1-2 minutes more (no need to boil it) and then turn off the heat. The saffron will develop it's color and flavor while you work on the rest of the recipe.
  2. To a kadai on medium heat, add 2 teaspoons ghee. Then add 15 oz ricotta cheese to it. Stir and let the cheese melt. Cook the ricotta for around 10 minutes on medium heat, stirring often.
  3. Now add the prepared saffron-milk-cream mixture to it and stir.
  4. Add ⅓ cup chopped nuts (I used chopped cashews and almonds) and stir. Reduce heat to low-medium and continue to cook for 3-4 more minutes.
  5. Then add ⅓ cup sugar and mix. The mixture will become liquid-y when you add the sugar. Cook on low-medium heat for 5 more minutes after adding the sugar until the rabdi thickens. Add ½ teaspoon cardamom powder, stir and remove kadai from heat.
  6. Keep in mind the rabdi will continue to thicken as it cools down so it should not be super thick at this point. Let it cool down a little.
  7. Meanwhile, bake 45 phyllo shells to crisp them up according to instructions on the package. The one I used said to bake unfilled shells for 3 to 5 minutes at 350 F degrees. You can do this step while making the rabdi. Also cut 12 gulab jamuns into quarter (you might not need use all).
  8. Scoop 1 to 2 teaspoons rabdi in each shell (don't overfill), top with quarter of gulab jamun and garnish with dried rose petal. Serve and enjoy!

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.