Mishti Doi is a popular Bengali sweet that’s often made at Indian festivals like Durga Puja and Diwali, and today I have for you a delicious but vegan version of this beloved dessert. The process of making this dessert is much like making a cultured vegan yogurt in the Instant Pot (although you can also make it without an Instant Pot, see instructions below). It is simple, unique, and it’s sure to make your tastebuds sing!
What is mishti doi?
Mishti Doi literally translates from Bengali to “sweet yogurt.” It is a yogurt-based sweet that’s often made during Bengali celebrations, including Durga Puja and Diwali. Its beauty, to my mind, is that it’s stunningly simple, relying on the natural deliciousness of yogurt combined with caramelized sugar or natural palm sugar to create amazing flavor. But making mishti doi involves more than stirring sugar into yogurt. There’s some boiling and stirring of milk involved, although it doesn’t take too long, and you then set the milk with yogurt, wait overnight or for however long it takes for all of it to set, then eat it. Mishti doi is traditionally set in small terracotta ramekins, which help absorb moisture from the yogurt, because you want your mishti doi to always be very, very thick with no apparent whey. Mishti doi, in its authentic form, is made with palm jaggery–domed lumps of brown, unrefined sugar. But more modern versions use sugar. I love coconut sugar in this recipe, and it gives the vegan mishti doi a more authentic flavor. But this time I used cane sugar, which I had on hand, and to add that rich flavor I caramelized it. You can use any vegan sugar or, if you have jaggery, use that. The method will differ slightly if you use jaggery, and I’ll describe it for you in the recipe notes in the recipe box below.
Why you’ll love this vegan mishti doi
How to make vegan mishti doi
Blend the cashews with the 2 cups of distilled or filtered water into a very smooth milk/cream. Set aside. Place the sugar in a heavy saucepan with 2 tablespoon water. Let the sugar melt and then caramelize. The sugar will clump before it melts and then loosen up, so don’t worry if it take a little while. Keep stirring the sugar frequently so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan and burn. Let the sugar turn a rich caramel color, then turn the heat down to the lowest point or turn it off. Pour in the cashew milk gently. Take care and stand back as the milk can bubble when it hits the hot caramel. Turn the heat back on to medium high and let the milk come to a boil. Stir frequently. The milk will begin to thicken in a few minutes. Once it has thickened, stir in the almond flour and mix well. Add the vanilla extract, if using, and turn off the heat. Let the cashew cream sit for a few minutes until it’s lukewarm to the touch, around 110 degrees. Don’t add the probiotic capsules before it reaches this temperature or the high heat will kill the good bacteria and the yogurt won’t set. Open the probiotic capsules and stir the powder into the cashew cream. Immediately pour it into four ramekins or a single large heat-safe bowl. Make sure first that they will fit inside the Instant Pot liner, if you are using an IP. Place the ramekins or the bowl inside the Instant Pot liner. Close the IP lid and set it to the “yogurt” function for 8-10 hours. Eight hours will yield a less tangy mishti doi, if that’s what you prefer. I find 10 hours works just right for me.If you don’t have an Instant Pot, leave the mishti doi out in a warm spot for 24-36 hours, like a cold oven with the light turned on. My oven light is on the fritz so I left a ramekin on the countertop in my September kitchen, with daytime temps in the 70s, and it took around 36 hours to set. Once the mishti doi has set, garnish it with nuts and saffron, if you wish. Chill for a couple of hours at least before serving.
More delicious vegan Indian sweets
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