Valentine's Day 2023: Chef Viraj Naik's Special Recipes

Valentine’s Week is here, and everyone is preparing to surprise their partners with romantic dates and memorable gifts. From confessing feelings to celebrating togetherness, we can say that love is in the air. But dates and gifts are not the only ways to make your partner feel special. You can watch movies or decorate your house.

Also Read: Valentine’s Day: Aphrodisiac Foods To Include In Your O-Diet

Here are ten yummy recipes by Chef Viraj Naik that you can try on Valentine’s Day:

No-Bake Strawberry Cheese Cake 

Ingredients:

For Strawberry Sauce:

• 8-10 strawberries 
• 2 tablespoons sugar

For Cheesecake:

• 1 cup cream cheese and whipped cream
• ½ cup condensed milk  
• 2 tablespoons strawberry sauce
• 10-12 digestive biscuits
• 2 teaspoons melted butter

Method:

• Crush digestive biscuits and combine them with melted butter. Layer it at the bottom of a greased or parchment-lined baking dish.
• In a mixer jar, crush the strawberries. Add the pulp to a heated pan along with sugar and cook it till the sugar dissolves. Then keep it aside to cool.
• In a mixing bowl, whip cream cheese very well. Add condensed milk and whip again. Now fold in the whipped cream and strawberry sauce.
• Layer the prepared mixture on the biscuit layer and garnish it with some whipped cream, strawberry sauce, and strawberries. Refrigerate it for 4-6 hours to allow it to set before removing and serving.

Cucumber Bites 

Ingredients

• 1 cucumber 

For Topping:

• 1/4 cup hung curd
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper powder
• 1 teaspoon grated cucumber or carrot
• 4-6 chopped basil leaves (optional; you can also take tulsi)

For The Drizzle:

• 1/2 lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon pizza seasoning

For garnish:

• Purple cabbage and sesame seeds

Method:

• Peel the cucumber, scoop out the seeds, and cut it medium-thick.
• In a bowl, mix all the topping ingredients. In another bowl, mix the ingredients for the drizzle.
• Fill the cucumber and drizzle the oil mixture on top. Garnish with cabbage and sesame seeds, and enjoy.

Pink Love 

Ingredients:

• 8 to 10 java plums
• 2 teaspoons sugar syrup
• ½ lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon black salt
• 1 cup sparkling water
• Salt and red chilli powder to decorate the glass rim

Method:

• Wash the Java plums and squeeze out all of their juice.
• In a glass, add juice, lemon juice, sugar syrup, black salt, and soda. Mix it well.
• Decorate the glass by rubbing lemon on the rim and dusting it with salt and red chilli powder.
• Pour the drink to serve and enjoy.

Almond-Caramel Pudding

Ingredients

For Almond Cake 

• ½ cup curd
• ½ cup sugar 
• ¼ cup melted butter 
• ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup almond flour 
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

For Caramel Sauce 

• ¼ cup sugar 
• 1 cup fresh cream
• Pinch salt  
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• Vanilla ice cream and almond flakes for serving

Method: 

• To make a cake sponge, mix all the wet ingredients in a bowl and whisk it well until the sugar dissolves.
• Fold in all the dry ingredients to make a lump-free batter.
• Bake it at 170 degrees C for 30-35 minutes in a 6-inch tin. Once done, cool the cake.
• In a pan, add sugar and let it melt. Once it turns brown, carefully add butter and cream. Add salt and mix it well.
• Cut the cake into the desired shape. Top it with the prepared sauce and ice cream.

Gajar Ka Halwa 

Ingredients

• 500 g grated carrots 
• 1litre milk 
• 1 cup unsweetened khoya
• 250 grams of sugar
• ¼ cup ghee 
• ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
• 1 pinch of nutmeg powder  

To Create A Sugar Cage

• ¼ cup sugar silver varkh for garnishing  

Method:

• In a heated pan, add ghee and sauté carrots until soft.
• Add milk and cook it until the milk is reduced and absorbed by the carrots.
• Add khoya and sugar and cook it until the sugar dissolves and the mixture gets thick.
• Add cardamom powder and nutmeg powder and mix well. Now remove and cool the halwa in a bowl.
• To make a sugar cage, melt sugar in a saucepan. Once it turns brown, switch off the flame. Take a glass bowl and invert it; now carefully drizzle melted sugar on the back side of the bowl. Let it set for a few minutes, and then remove it before serving.

Oreo Coffee Shake

Ingredients

• 3 Oreo cookies
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee powder
• 1 glass of chilled milk
• 1 scoop vanilla ice cream 
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• A few ice cubes
• Chocolate sauce for garnishing

Method:

• In a blender, blend all the ingredients.
• Add some more ice cubes to a jar and serve it with chocolate syrup.

Chocolate Strawberry Cake 

Ingredients

For Cake Sponge 

• ½ cup curd
• ½ cup sugar 
• ¼ cup oil
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup cocoa powder 
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda and baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• For the icing: whipped cream, fresh strawberries, grated chocolate

Method:

• In a mixing bowl, add all the wet ingredients and mix them very well until the sugar dissolves.
• Fold in all the dry ingredients and mix well.
• Remove the batter from the lined 6-inch cake tin and bake it at 170 degrees Celsius for 30-35 minutes.
• Cool the cake completely before icing. Cut the cake into three slices and decorate it with cream, strawberries, and grated chocolate.
• Coat the cake with cream and decorate it with fresh flowers.

Gujarati Fafda In The New Avatar

Ingredients

• 1 cup gram flour 
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ tsp asafoetida  
• Salt to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon carrom seeds
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder
• Water as required
• Grated raw papaya for serving

Method:

• In a bowl, mix all ingredients, add water, and make a soft dough. Knead the dough for about 5–6 minutes. Knead it once more with a teaspoon of hot oil.
• Roll it out into long strips and give it a feather shape using your hands. Fry it in medium-hot oil. Decorate it with some golden colour.
• Do a plating with fafda chutney and small balls (made with fafda dough).

Sev Tomato In The New Avatar

Ingredients:

For Sev 

• ¼ cup gram flour 
• Water as required
• 1/8 teaspoon asafoetida powder and turmeric powder
• ½ tsp oil  

For Sabji:

• 2 tomatoes 
• 12 teaspoon garlic powder, red chilli powder, and coriander-cumin powder
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• Salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon of oil
• ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds and asafoetida
• Greens from spring onions, chopped

Method:

• Heat oil in a pan; add mustard seeds and asafoetida. Add chopped garlic and sauté. Add the chopped tomato and cook until it gets soft.
• Cook until the oil separates after adding all of the spices and salt. To make sev, combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and make a soft dough with water.
• put balls of dough into the sev to extract thin strands of sev dough. Form it into a cage shape and fry it in oil. Serve the prepared sabji with sev and spring onion greens.

Paan Shot  

Ingredients

• 2-4 betel leaves
• 2 tablespoons of gulkand
• ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
• 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream
• 4-5 ice cubes
• 1 tablespoon paan masala
• ½ cup chilled milk

Method:

• In a mixture grinder, grind everything. Strain the mixture.
• Garnish it with some rose petals before serving.