SAY KHEER!

“Lohri takes me back to an indulgent childhood in a joint family,” says chef Manish Khanna, founder of dessert cafés, Noir and Brownie Point. Though a Mumbaikar, his food memories have sincere Amritsari undertones. Helmed by his grandmother, the kitchen would smell of rewris/ sesame disks, gajaks/ rectangular bars made of sesame seeds and jaggery, and shakkar para, a sugar-coated version of Nimki ( a fried snack). However, nothing can replace his grandmother’s bajre ki kheer, he reminisces. “This millet pudding knew minimal use of milk; it was made in fresh sugarcane juice and was wholesome before eating clean became woke. On gaining a sticky texture, it would be generously ladled with dry nuts sautéed in ghee,” the chef hungrily narrates. Manish revisits the dish every year by savouring it at home with his family.

He has innovated with Rewri Brownies to ring in the celebrations this time around, but his heart remains with the kheer.