Gulab Jamun Rabdi Cups

phyllo shells topped with gulab jamun arranged in an antique plate

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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!

Prep Time15

Cook Time20

Total Time35

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian Fusion

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: cups

Author: Manali Singh

Ingredients

¾ cup whole milk 6 oz
¾ cup heavy cream 6 oz
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 75 grams
½ teaspoon cardamom powder
45 phyllo shells
12 gulab jamuns store-bought or homemade, cut into quarters
dried rose petals to garnish

Instructions

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.
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.
Now add the prepared saffron-milk-cream mixture to it and stir.
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.
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.
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.
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).
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!

Notes

These are bite-sized cups so it actually makes quite a lot. Don't overfill the cups since you are going to place the gulab jamun on top and if they are overfilled the rabdi will ooze out.
Do not make these a day in advance, the phyllo shells will become soggy. Assemble the cups on the day of the party, you can make the rabdi in advance. If the rabdi has become too thick, just add some milk and heat it a little to thin it out.

Nutrition