As the calendar turns its pages to mark yet another year of India's hard-fought independence, the nation gears up for a day of unity, pride, and reflection. Independence Day in India commemorates historical significance and a time for joyous celebrations and cultural expression. While flag-hoisting ceremonies and patriotic parades take centre stage, another delightful aspect of this special day emerges–the culinary traditions that bring families and communities together in a shared celebration of freedom. Join us on a gastronomic journey as we delve into a collection of delectable recipes that perfectly encapsulate the essence of Independence Day. From tricolour-inspired delicacies that pay homage to the national flag to regional specialities reflecting the rich tapestry of India's culinary diversity, we explore flavours that resonate with patriotism on Independence Day 2024.

　　Tri-Colour Special Cake

　　By Chef Sidharth Sharma (Nush Mush)

　　Ingredients

　　Orange Sponge Cake

　　1.5 tbsp butter

　　1/4 cup castor sugar

　　1 egg

　　1/2 tbsp edible flower orange colour

　　3 tbsp curd

　　1/3 cup refined flour

　　1/2 tsp apple vinegar

　　1/4 tsp baking soda

　　Green Cake Sponge

　　1.5 tbsp butter

　　1/4 cup castor sugar

　　1 egg

　　3 tbsp curd

　　1/3 cup refined flour

　　1/2 tsp apple vinegar

　　1/4 tsp baking soda

　　White Cake Sponge

　　1.5 tbsp butter

　　1/4 cup castor sugar

　　1 egg

　　3 tbsp curd

　　1/3 cup refined flour

　　1/2 tsp apple vinegar

　　1/4 tsp baking soda

　　Butter Cream

　　1 egg

　　1/4 tsp vanilla essence

　　1/2 cup castor sugar

　　1/2 cup unsalted butter

　　For Layering

　　1 cup buttercream

　　1/2 cup cream cheese

　　240 g fondant

　　Method

　　For Buttercream

　　Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites.

　　Beat the egg whites, divide the sugar, then add slowly. Continue beating until soft peaks.

　　While the eggs are getting whipped, keep the remaining sugar and cup of water on medium-low heat. Stir until sugar melts and becomes clear, reaching a temperature of 235-240F.

　　Drizzle the sugar. At this point, the meringue should be at the soft peak stage.

　　Do not stop the mixer until the meringue is cool.

　　Add the room temperature butter into the mixer one tablespoon at a time. Add vanilla essence and beat until butter is combined to a silky consistency.

　　For Sponge

　　Whip eggs in a stand mixer until foamy; gradually add sugar and continue whipping until the mixture falls off the whisk in a thick ribbon (~20 min).

　　Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350F. Line a round cake pan with foil. Brush the inside of the pan with softened butter and dust with flour. Shake out excess.

　　Sieve the dry ingredients (flour and baking soda).

　　Combine all wet ingredients (melted butter, water, vanilla, curd, vanilla/ edible flower colour).

　　Fold the dry ingredients in halves forming a number 8 with movements.

　　Fold in the wet ingredients.

　　Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

　　Bake the cake for about 30 minutes.

　　Remove from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

　　Assembly

　　Keep a mix of buttercream & cream cheese aside, and divide the mixture in a ratio of 2:2:1 (base/middle/top layer).

　　Layer all three multi-colour sponges with the blend of buttercream & cream cheese in a specified ratio.

　　Cover it with a fondant sheet.

　　Garnish with tri-colour fondant flowers.

　　Tri-Coloured Ghewar

　　By Chef Kush Koli (SAGA)

　　Ingredients

　　For Ghewar

　　¼ cup ghee

　　¼ cup chilled full cream milk

　　2 cups maida

　　4.5 cups water (chilled)

　　One pinch of yellow food colour

　　Ghee (or oil for frying)

　　For Sugar Syrup

　　1.5 cups sugar

　　1 cup water

　　10-12 strands of saffron

　　2-3 cardamom (crushed)

　　For Malai Rabdi

　　1 lt full cream milk

　　¼ cup sugar

　　2-3 drops of kewda essence

　　¼ teaspoon cardamom powder

　　Dry fruits for garnishing

　　For orange colour: Blanched carrot purée–2 tbsp (carrot-30g + food glaze 1/4 tbsp)

　　For white colour: Use rabdi

　　For green colour: Edible betel leaves (balanced and puréed) 3pc

　　Food glaze -1/4 tbsp

　　Method

　　For ghevar

　　Whisk ghee and milk until light and fluffy in a bowl.

　　Add maida and whisk well. Add water and make a runny batter without any lumps. (If lumps are formed, strain the batter through a soup strainer).

　　Add the food colour and mix well.

　　Take a small saucepan ( 4 inches) and fill with ghee till half and Heat the ghee on high flame.

　　When the ghee is very hot, pour a ladle of batter from at least 1 foot high in the centre of the pan at a steady speed and as fast as possible.

　　Do not simmer the heat. The batter will splutter a lot. Be very careful at this stage. If the batter starts to overflow, stop pouring more batter.

　　Let the bubbles in the ghee settle down. Pour another ladle of batter on top of the previous batter. ( Always mix the batter before pouring )

　　Let it cook for a minute. Repeat the process 3-4 times.

　　Make a hole in the centre with a skewer. Let the ghevar fry on high heat till it is browned from the top.

　　Remove the ghevar from the ghee using a fork. Keep it on a tilted plate so that the extra ghee is removed.

　　For sugar syrup

　　Heat sugar and water in a pan. Add saffron and cardamom. Heat till one-string sugar syrup is formed. ( one string will be formed if you take a little sugar syrup in between your thumb and finger and pull it )

　　For malai rabdi

　　Heat milk in a heavy-bottom pan. Cook till it is reduced to half. Add sugar and cardamom powder. Cook till it is reduced to one quarter.

　　Add kewda essence. Assembling the ghevar. Dip the ghevar in sugar syrup for 10 seconds on each side. Remove on a plate using a fork.

　　Pour malai rabdi on top. Now layer it with Orange, White & Green colour.

　　Garnish with almond and pistachio slivers.

　　Veg Shashlik Sizzler

　　By Chef Shaurya Veer Kapoor (Gola Sizzlers)

　　Ingredients

　　Cottage cheese cubes-(1 inch by 1 inch)-9 pieces in a portion

　　Bell pepper cubes-(1 inch by 1 inch) - 9 pieces in a portion

　　Tomato cubes (1 inch by 1 inch) -9 pieces in a portion

　　For Mari Nation Mix

　　2 tbsp ginger and garlic paste

　　1 tbsp red chilli paste

　　1 tbsp deghi mirch

　　1 tbsp oregano

　　1 tbsp ketchup

　　1 tsp black pepper

　　Salt to taste

　　Cooking Method

　　Marinate cottage cheese, peppers, and tomato cubes. Skewer and grill.

　　Sizzler’s Vegetables

　　20g zucchini

　　20g peas

　　20g green beans

　　20g brocolli

　　20g carrots

　　20g sweet corn

　　20g braised red cabbage

　　Cooking Method

　　Cut the vegetables, blanch them, and sauté with butter, garlic, and black pepper.

　　Fried Rice

　　50g steamed rice

　　1 tbsp chopped garlic

　　20 g chopped cabbage, carrots, beans

　　1 tbsp soy sauce

　　1 tsp chilli sauce

　　1 tsp vinegar

　　Salt to taste

　　½ tsp white pepper

　　Noodles

　　50g boiled noodles

　　1 tbsp chopped garlic

　　20g shredded cabbage, carrots and capsicum julienne

　　1 tbsp soy sauce

　　1 tsp chilli sauce

　　1 tsp vinegar

　　Salt to taste

　　½ tsp White pepper

　　200 ml cacciatore sauce

　　50 ml oil

　　250 ml water

　　50g onions

　　2 tbsp ginger and garlic

　　50g tomatoes

　　1 tbsp oregano

　　Salt to taste

　　1 tbsp black pepper

　　2 tbsp ketchup

　　1 tbsp vinegar

　　1 tsp chilli paste

　　Method

　　Heat a pan and add oil. Sauté onions, ginger, garlic, and tomatoes with oregano, salt, black pepper, ketchup, and vinegar for 5-7 minutes. Add water and boil for 30 minutes. Blend and strain after cooling.

　　Assembly Method

　　Heat the sizzler pan on high flame for two minutes. Make a layer of blanched cabbage, arrange butter-tossed sizzler vegetables, put a bowlful of fried rice or noodles as per the guest’s choice, arrange veg shashlik, pour Cacciatore sauce gently, and garnish with cherry tomatoes and black olives.

　　Veg California Uramaki

　　By Chef Naveen Joshi (Nouba Jaipur)

　　Ingredients

　　3- 4 tbsp Sushi Rice

　　100gm Avocado

　　50gm chopped Cucumber

　　3 ½ tbsp Sushi Vinegar

　　½ tbsp Mirin

　　½ tbsp Sugar

　　½ tbsp Pickled Ginger

　　½ to 1 tbsp Wasabi

　　1 tbsp Soy Sauce

　　½ tbsp Japanese Mayo

　　Method

　　Prepare Rice: Cook sushi rice and mix with sushi vinegar, mirin, and sugar.

　　Cut Fillings: Slice avocado and cucumber into long strips.

　　Assemble: Place a sheet of nori on a sushi mat, rice side down. Add fillings.

　　Roll: Use the mat to roll the sushi into a tight cylinder.

　　Cut: Slice the roll into bite-sized pieces.

　　Serve: Serve with pickled ginger, wasabi, and soy sauce.

　　Tip: Moisten your hands slightly to prevent rice sticking while rolling.

　　Panna Cotta

　　By Chef Shibendu Ray Chaudhury (Courtyard By Marriott Aravali Resort)

　　Ingredients

　　⅓ cup skim milk

　　1 (.25 ounce) envelope of unflavored gelatin

　　2 ½ cups heavy cream

　　½ cup white sugar

　　1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

　　Method

　　Pour milk into a small bowl and sprinkle gelatin powder over it. Stir until combined and set aside. In a saucepan, stir together heavy cream and sugar. Set over medium heat and bring to a boil. Watch carefully as the cream can quickly bubble up and boil over. Immediately stir the gelatin mixture into boiling cream, stirring until completely dissolved. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in vanilla. Pour cream mixture into 6 individual molds and leave to cool, uncovered, for about 20 minutes. When cooled, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours but preferably overnight.

　　Tricolour Malai Cham Cham

　　By Chef Shiva Ramakrishna, Novotel Vijayawada Varun

　　Ingredients

　　2 lts Full fat milk

　　300gm Sugar + 50gm for malai

　　02 tbsp Vinegar

　　1tsp Cardamom powder

　　3 tsp Crushed pista

　　1gm Saffron

　　Green food colour as per requirement

　　Orange food colour as per requirement

　　Method

　　Chhena Preparation: In a deep vessel pour 1 litre milk and set it to boil. When it comes to boil turn off flame, stir it for 1 minute, pour in 2 table spoon of vinegar diluted in 2tbsp water. Can also use lemon juice instead of vinegar. Add this solution to milk (1tbsp at a time) and stir continuously, until milk curdles. Spread a clean cotton cloth over a deep bowl and pour the curdled milk to separate chhena from the liquid. Squeeze the cloth to drain extra liquid. (Washing the chhena with plain water will help in cooling and completely removes the taste of vinegar from it.) Hang it for 1 hour.

　　Take out the chhena and mash it till smooth. Take the dough on a plate and roll it to Cylinder shape of the chhena, as shown in pictures and keep aside.

　　Sugar syrup: Make sugar syrup by adding equal quantity of water and sugar. Add the cooked chhena into the sugar syrup and cook for 10 min. Allow it to cool.

　　Malai: Take 1 Litre of milk add 50 gm. Of sugar, boil it 10 mins. Cool it down then separate the malai, which is at top.

　　Stuffing: Stuff malai into the cham cham and put food colour accordingly.

　　Watermelon and Labneh Salad

　　By Chef Altaf Patel, Geist Brewing Co.

　　Ingredients

　　380 gm Watermelon

　　50 gmLabneh

　　100 gm Mesclun Mix

　　10 gm Pumpkin Seed

　　10 gm Pomegranate

　　15 gm Red Radish

　　10 gm Mint Leaf

　　10 gm Coriander Leaf

　　10 gm Carrot Julienne

　　10 gm Cucumber Slices

　　20 gmWhite Sesame Chikki

　　Jaggery & Chaat Dressing Ingredients: (For 800 ml dressing)

　　200 gm Liquid Jaggery

　　200 gm Lemon

　　460 gm Salad Oil

　　15 gm Chaat Masala

　　10 gm Mint Chopped

　　5 gm Black Salt

　　Method

　　De-skin and cut the watermelon into 1-inch-thick slices, making even dice of 1 x 1 inch. Add the jaggery and chaat dressing and arrange the watermelon in the centre of the plate. Pipe the homemade labneh on alternate dice of the watermelon. Tossed the mesclun mix with the jaggery & chat dressing and arrange it around the watermelon. Top it up with fresh mint leaf, coriander leaf, carrot julienne, cucumber slices with mesclun mix. Garnish it with pomegranate seeds, pumpkin seeds & sesame chikki.

　　Tip: Keep the remaining jaggery and chaat dressing refrigerated for further use.