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Lotus Biscoff Cake

If only I could tell you the extent of my obssession with Biscoff cookies and cookie butter these days! I made this Biscoff cake using their Cookie butter because I had been imagining for tooooo long how that would taste like! And when the cake came out great, I had to figure out a frosting that would go with it.

I think I speak for most of you, cream cheese frosting is the best thing that ever happened to the world of cakes (other than ofcourse a rich dark chocolate frosting) I felt like, cream cheese would be the perfect partner to pair with this caramel-ish tasting cake and would make it an over all not so sweet, dessert.

a slice of a 4 tier biscoff cookie butter cake on a white plate against a blue backdrop with some white net below the plate

Steps to make the cookie butter cake

So here’s a picture showing you all the ingredients roughly. The butter was room temperature, so kinda softened, and so were the eggs. The star of the show, however, was the very popular Lotus Biscoff cookie butter spread. Which I used a whole cup of!

a front view of all the ingredients needed to make a lotus biscoff cake.

The steps of this cake are very basic and I am just going to throw a tip here and there to make sure you get the perfect results.

I used a 9 inch pan to make 1 cake and cut it up in half. The picture of the cake that I’ve used was created using TWO 4.5 inch pan cakes, sliced in halves. (Hence the 4 layers)

In a bowl, I added the flour and baking powder. Mixed it well and set is aside to use at the end.

beaten sugar and butter in a white bowl along side some cake making ingredients on the sides

You start of by adding brown and white sugars in a bowl along with the butter and vanilla essence. Beat it up! Beat if for a good 3 to 4 mins, at medium speed, so that your butter sugar mix becomes fluffy and airy.

Go ahead and add the Lotus spread and beat it some more to get a uniform mix

lotus biscoff cookie butter added in a butter and sugar fluff, in a white bowl

I like adding the eggs one by one, and beating after each addition.

Your mixture might look a little curdled at this point, but thats ok.

raw egg in a cake batter ready to be mixed

Next, we are going to add in half of the flour mix first, beat some more, add milk and beat some more. Finishing it off with the remaining flour.

TIP: Whenever a cake or brownie recipe calls for adding milk and flour both, always end with flour.

  • top view of unmixed flour in cake batter in a white bowl
    Add in 1/2 of the flour
  • unmixed milk in the cake batter on a white bowl
    Add in milk
  • adding flour to lotus cake batter
    Add in the rest of the flour

Transfer the cake batter onto the baking tray (feel free to leave a little back for licking purposes :P)

action shot showing biscoff cake batter being poured in cake pan for baking.

Level the batter out with a spatula. This cake is a slow baked cake. So its gonna be baked at about 180 degree C for about 45 to 55 mins. It will rise up on the top like a dome but when it cools down, it’ll go back at base level. So if you are going to use this for icing etc, you won’t have to cut the top layer off.

Easy Cream Cheese Frosting

I paired this cake with a nice cream cheese frosting. I used the usual, butter, cream and icing sugar. Ideally, the block cream cheese is recommended for a stiff frosting. But I only had access to the ones in the tub, so I used that instead. It was stiff enough to be able to ice and stack a cake. But I don’t think it would be able to pipe out.

The quantity of this frosting is enough to ice the middle of the cake, crumb coat it and decorate it.

Tip: Use 3 layers of paper towel and place the cream cheese from the tub directly onto the paper towels. Do this right before beating the butter. 3 4 mins on the wet paper towel will help a little bit of moisture from the cheese to be absorbed.

TIP: You can also add 1 tbsp of sifted corn starch into the icing to make it stiffer.

a partial front view of a lotus biscoff drip cake, fully iced and decored with lotus biscuits and caramel shards on the top, against a blue grey backdrop

Reminder!

  • Always remember to sprinkle some milk or sugar syrup on your cake before stacking and icing it to keep it moist.
  • You can also eat this cake, at room temperature without using any frosting and baking it in a loaf pan instead.
a side view of 2 slices of a 4 tier cake biscoff cake and white cream cheese frosting on a white plate and blue backdrop.

Also, if you are interested, Here are few of my all time classic cake type recipes on the blog:

LOTUS BISCOFF CAKE

a slice of a 4 tier biscoff cookie butter cake on a white plate against a blue backdrop with some white net below the plate

Biscoff cookie butter Cake

A biscoff cookie butter cake made with cream cheese frosting and a rich caramel-ish flavor
4.58 from 96 votes
Print Pin
Course: Desserts
Cuisine: Continental, International
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 10 slices
Calories: 832kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

Cookie butter Cake

  • 200 gm butter 3/4 cup
  • 3 large eggs room temperature
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup castor sugar
  • 1 cup Biscoff Cookie Butter
  • 2 cups of all purpose flour
  • 1½ teaspoon Baking Powder
  • 3/4 cup Milk
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 280 gm Philadelphia Cream Cheese preferably the block one, you can use the Tub one if the block one isn't available
  • 200 gm Butter softened not melted
  • 4 cups Icing Sugar

Instructions

  • BISCOFF COOKIE BUTTER CAKE
  • Line two 9′ inch pan with baking sheet and spray it with
  • Preheat the oven at 180° C (or 360 F)
  • Mix baking powder and flour in a bowl and set aside.
  • In a large bowl, add butter, vanilla essence and sugars. Beat with an electric mixer at high speed until the mixture becomes nice and fluffy.
  • Add Cookie butter and beat for another 2 min at medium speed.
  • Add eggs, one at a time and beat on medium speed.
  • Next, add half of the flour mix and beat at medium.
  • Pour in the milk into the batter and beat. The mixture will look runnier and slightly curdled. This is normal.
  • Add the remaining half of the flour and beat well. Your mixture will look thick, creamy and smooth
  • Pour the batter onto the baking pan and bake for 45 to 50 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • The cake will rise from the center and level out on its own as it cools down.

  • CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
  • Beat butter and cream cheese at medium spread until the color becomes light and pale, and the mixture becomes fluffy.
  • Add icing sugar and beat for another 2 to 3 mins.
  • You can add corn starch for a more stiff icing

Nutrition

Serving: 1pieceCalories: 832kcalCarbohydrates: 155gProtein: 7gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 86mgSodium: 478mgPotassium: 136mgFiber: 0.5gSugar: 133gVitamin A: 487IUCalcium: 197mgIron: 1mg
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae

No bake chocolate and Peanut butter bars

Non-peanut butter lovers look away now please, because these no-bake chocolate peanut butter bars are alllllll ’bout that butter!

After my fascination with no-bake cheese cakes, and blonde brownies, these have made a permanent home in my heart! These bars are made with a smooth and silky chocolate layer over a thick and equally smooth peanut butter crumb layer. And both of them together just take you to that “ummmmmm aaaaaaa” zone, where you can forget all the worries of the world

I usually write long and lengthy posts explaining to you how everything works and how to fix problems that you might run into but these Chocolate and Peanut butter bars are soooooo forgiving that even if you get something wrong, they will still set and still taste amazing!!! (provided that you are a peanut butter fan of course)

2 small plates with 2 pieces of chocolate peanut butters bars each and a spoon in each plate. A baking tray containing remaning chocolate peanut butter bar shows from the top left corner. everything is place on a blue background

Quick steps to make these delicious bars

So you literally only need 5 ingredients to pull these bars off! There’s obviously chocolate and peanut butter. Then there is cream and biscuit crumb for texture, and honey for sweetener.

top view of all the ingredients needed to make the bars

You will also need a 9 by 9 inch pan to set your bars in. I prefer lining the pan with parchment paper so that I can remove the bars easily later.

a square baking pan lined with a parchment paper (top view)

Peanut butter layer of the bar

For the peanut butter layer I used sweetened commercially produced smooth peanut butter. I feel like this bar is super decadent and smooth so chunky peanut butter is a no-go for me. But if you like a little crunch in your bars, go ahead with the chunk.

top view of an orange measuring cup with peanut butter filled to the top
Peanut butter

Heat up the peanut butter in the microwave to get it in a more liquid-y state. And on the other side use a food processor to crush all the digestive biscuit into crumbs. For this layer I used peanut butter, cream, sugar and biscuit. You can skip the sugar if you want. I mixed everything together and tossed them on to the baking pan.

Make sure you press the crumbs down nicely along the edges evenly.

the biscuit layer all set in the square baking pan lined with parchment paper

Chocolate layer of the bar

I looooove how this recipe doesn’t need any stove use. Keep the cream and honey in the microwave for 30 secs and mix well. Keep it for another 30 secs and add in your chocolate. Mix your chocolate with a spatula. If it doesn’t mix well anymore, and the ganache seems to have cooled down, keep it in the micro for another 30 secs

cream in a white plastic bowl with cup up chocolate cubes showing from the top right corner
top view of a white plastic bowl. it has cream and chocolate in a half mixed state and a green spatula sticking out of it
IMPORTANT! Keeping your ganache or cream in the micro for longer than 30 sec increments may cause it to burn from the edges. So it’s important to only keep the ganache in the micro for 30 secs at a time.

Once you get a nice smooth mix, pour it onto the peanut butter layer, spreading it out evenly with your spatula. Now you can opt for a nice texture on the top or keep as is.

a creamy chocolate ganache ready in a white plastic bowl for chocolate peanut butter bars

I like to melt 1 tbsp of peanut butter in the microwave and drizzle it all over the chocolate in a random fashion. I then use a tooth pick to create a swirl-like pattern on top! Perfect picture!

a top view of an un-set chocolate peanut butter bar dish in a square baking pan with peanut butter swirls on top.

Setting time

Refrigerate the bar after all the swirling action. The bar sets quite nicely within 2 hours in the fridge. You can also chuck in the freezer for 20 mins if you can’t wait for that long (wink wink).

Tip: Use a hot knife to cut the bars to get clean smooth edges.
a partial view of a square baking tray lined with parchment paper. It has a few chocolate peanut butters bars on it and one piece with a bite taken. there is a partial view of a knife that has been used to cut the bars. the background is light blue

These bars can last for up to 2 weeks in the fridge and up-to 3 months in the freezer.

More No-Bake deliciousness:

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!

Chocolate and peanut butter bar

A no-bake quick setting bar, made with a layer of peanut butter and biscuits, and another layer of chocolate and cream, which is soft, decadent and a non-guilty dessert option
4.45 from 9 votes
Print Pin
Course: Desserts, Snack
Cuisine: International
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 25 bar
Calories: 259kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

Peanut butter layer

  • 1 cup of creamy peanut butter
  • 14 digestive biscuits or 2 cups of biscuit crumb
  • 2 tbsp cream
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar

Chocolate Ganache Layer

  • 150 gm Cooking chocolate with 50% or above cocoa
  • 200 gm cream fresh or tin or tetrapak
  • 2 tbsp of honey
  • 1 pinch salt

Optional

  • 1 tsp instant ground coffee mixed in 1 tsp of water.
  • 1 tsp peanut butter for decor
  • A handful of chopped peanuts

Instructions

  • Peanut butter layer
  • Line a parchment paper on a 9 by 9 inch square tray and spray some oil or butter on it.
  • Process digestive biscuits in a food processor to make crumbs
  • In a bowl, add peanut butter and heat it in the microwave for 60 secs or until liquid-ish in consistency.
  • Add biscuit crumb in the peanut butter along with a pinch of salt, cream and some brown sugar to from a uniform mix.
  • Drop the peanut biscuit mix into the prepared tray and use the back of the spoon to level it out. Set aside.
  • In a bowl, add cream and honey, and microwave for 30 secs.
  • Mix the honey and cream together and keep in the microwave again for another 30 secs.
  • Add in chocolate and use a spatula to fold the chocolate in the cream as it melts. You can heat this mix for another 30 secs if all the chocolate hasn’t melted yet.
  • Add in the coffee mix along with some salt in the chocolate (optional step)
  • Layer the chocolate ganache on top of the peanut crumb layer and spread around the tray evenly.
  • In a small bowl, heat 1 tsp of peanut butter for 30 secs in the microwave and drizzle all over the chocolate unevenly. Use a toothpick to create a random swirly pattern of chocolate and peanut butter.
  • Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Nutrition

Serving: 1barCalories: 259kcalCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 5gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 208mgFiber: 2gSugar: 11g
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae

Mix Papri Chana chaat

The best kinda food is alwaysss street food! Mix papri Chana Chaat is a popular Pakistani street food, made with mixing some amazing Desi snacks all in one, with chickpeas, hence the term “mix”. It has a veggie component, a carb component, some super spicy elements and a crunch factor. Permission to classify this as a salad? or better yet a full meal? I think so!

A mix chana chat usually has the following components:
  • A spicy sweet yogurt base
  • Boiled chickpeas
  • Fried fritters – Either Dahi barey (lentil fritters), dahi boondi (gram flour fritters) or pakoras (another gram flour fritter) in some cases
  • Chopped raw veggies
  • A crunchy element – Usually crushed papri or papdi (fried crispy puris) but sometimes random chips as well
  • Condiment and spice
  • Garnish

Preparing elements to make Chana chat

ingredients for mix chana chaat

There are a couple of different elements of this dish which need to be made before the dish can be assembled. I know the list may seems daunting, but if you belong to a brown household, you probably already have most of them at home. If not, you can even get them at your local grocery stores as well:

Sweet Tamarind Chutney

This sweet and spicy chutney goes well with soooo many things, basically its like ketchup, universal and perfect for almost every desi snack out there. You can make it from scratch at home or buy a bottle from an Indian/Pakistani grocery store.

Dahi bara masala (spice mix)

This is just a fancy term for a three spice mix made with red chilies, coriander seeds and cumin seeds. Click here for the exact ratio. You can also use Chat masala instead if you don’t feel like whipping up a spice mix of your own.

Dahi barey or Dahi boondi or pakorey

The mix papri chana chaat that you get on the street usually uses dahi bareys or dahi boondis in the mix. But sometimes when I am short on dahi bareys, I use dahi boondi or even pakorey in the mix! trust me! once you use pakorey, you are not going back!

Papris –

These are crispy fried puris that can easily be made at home, but you can also get them at your local Indian/Pakistani restaurant. oh and when I can’t be bothered to make them or buy them, I use slims instead! You can use long thin potato chips as well as a substitute.

Assembling the Chana Chaat

To assemble the chana chaat, we are first going to prepare the sweet and spicy yogurt mix. It has water, sugar, salt, dahi bara masala and yogurt.

yogurt and spices in a glass bowl with a whisk on a green mat

And then we just start to dump things in the yogurt base!

Adding boiled chickpeas to mix chana chaat
Adding boiled chickpeas
adding boiled potatoes to mix chana chaat
Adding boiled potatoes
adding in chopped tomato and onion in the boil with chickpeas and yogurt
Adding chopped onion and tomato

I boiled the chickpeas at home but you can ofcourse use the canned ones as well. The potatoes, tomatoes and onions are usually the only veggies this chaat has. But if you are feeling adventurous, feel free to explore with other veggies as well!

Adding in pakorey to the chana chaat
Adding in tamarind chutney and broken up pakoreys
adding in chopped coriander
Adding in a little bit of chopped coriander in the mix

Once all the elements are inside, you can decide how runny or thick you want your yogurt mix to be. I personally like it just like its served on the street, so mine usually has lots of yogurt. But this is the perfect time to adjust your salt to sugar, and yogurt to water ratio as well.

Toppings

Toppings for the mix chana chaat

Us brown folks are always a lil extra, so other than having all condiments and spices in the yogurt mix, we use a lil more for topping as well.

Serve your mix chaat in a bowl and add some more masala, chutney and veggies on top. Sprinkle broken papri pieces generously on top of the chat and some coriander for good luck! Dig in!

Mix chana chat in 3 bowls
How long can this chat last?

Unfortunately this chaat contains raw veggies so it doesn’t last longer than 2 days in the fridge. But you can prepare all the elements separately and mix them together only when you need it!

Related Recipes you will like

A bowl with chips, chutney, white sauce in chickpeas

Mix Chana chaat

A popular street food in India and Pakistan, made with some chickpeas, yogurt, spices and fried lentil fritters.
4.67 from 12 votes
Print Pin
Course: Appetizer, brunch, Side Dish, Snacks, Sides and Starters
Cuisine: Indian, pakistani, South Asian
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 286kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

  • 3 cups Boiled white chickpeas
  • 7 to 8 Pakoras /Dahi bara
  • 1 cup Papri or slims or any spicy crunchy chips broken into smaller bits
  • 3 tbsp Tamarind chutney emli ki chutney
  • 2 cups Beaten Yogurt
  • 1 cup water

Spice mix

  • 2 tsp Chat masala
  • 2 tsp Dahi bara masala
  • 3 tbsp Sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt

Veggies

  • 1 medium potato cut up in ½ inch cubes boiled in water with 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup Chopped onions or 2 medium ones
  • 1 big tomato chopped
  • 1/2 cup Coriander leaves chopped

Instructions

  • Add yogurt, water and the spice mix a large bowl and beat everything together to form a smooth mix.
  • Add in the veggies, boiled chickpeas and broken down dahi barey (or dahi boondi or pakorey)
  • Add in tamarind chutney as well and mix everything together.
  • Adjust sugar, spice and salt according to your liking.
  • Top with crunchy papri or chips and more chat masla and coriander
  • Serve at room temperature

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 286kcalCarbohydrates: 40gProtein: 11gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 323mgPotassium: 548mgFiber: 7gSugar: 14gVitamin A: 196IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 145mgIron: 3mg
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae

Lahori Chargha Recipe

If you are a desi or… love the spicy Pakistani/Indian food, I assure you, this Lahori Chargha recipe is made for you.

Chargha means Chicken in Pushto and Lahori chargha originates from the city of Lahore in Pakistan. Its made with whole chicken with skin removed and deep cuts added, marinated in some very aromatic spices. And then steamed plus fried to cook. You sprinkle lots of chat masala and lemon on top of it, dip it in some mint chutney and smack your lips with every bite.

This has been one my faaaaaavourite chicken recipes to make for dawats (get togethers) and seeing that we live here in Jeddah, I haven’t even found a place which serves authentic Lahori Chargha so I end up always making it at home. But honestly, its so basic, I don’t mind really mind either.

You can of course change the method of final cooking to your liking (baking or airfrying) But the traditional way is to steam and fry. Also F.Y.I a good chargha is soooo hard to photograph, I can’t even begin to tell you. So please bare with the pictures that I could come up with.

lahori chargha (steam fried chicken) on a bed of salad leaves on a blue background with fries popping from the side

How to make Pakistani Lahori Chargha step by step

Preparing the chicken

First things first. You gotta remove the skin of the chicken if it hasn’t been removed already. Second, wash it thoroughly and add deep horizontal cuts along its length and legs. To get rid of any chicken smell and blood, I like to treat my chicken with vinegar for 15 mins. And then I pat my chicken dry with a paper towel and get it ready to be marinated.

full raw chicken with skin removed and cuts added in a bowl

Marinating the Chargha

The quantities for the spice mix in this recipe are ideal for a chicken that weighs about 1 to 2 kg ( 3 to 4 lbs). If you are using a bigger bird, increase all the spices and salt by 2 pinches.

The marinade for this Lahori chargha is very basic, although you might need to ground some of your spices to create this marinade. It has salt, an egg, some lemon juice, yogurt, a little bit of food color, and a few ground Pakistani spices. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl to form a smooth paste.

TIP: Wear gloves to rub the marinade on the chicken to avoid your fingers from staining with the red color.
spicy marinade mix in a green bowl with a spoon in it for the lahori chargha chicken

Rub the Chargha spice mix thoroughly all over the chicken. Make sure you get all the deep cuts and edges etc. Be gentle and give your chicken the spa massage of its life! Also make sure to get the cavity as well.

Full chicken (or chargha) marinated with spices in a bowl

Cover the chicken and leave it in the fridge to marinate.

Chicken, unlike beef or mutton is inherently tasteless. So in order for the marinade to work well, the longer you leave it, the better. I leave the chicken in the fridge to marinate overnight, but you can get away with 8 hours too.

Cooking the Pakistani Lahori Chargha

When you are ready to cook the chicken, remove it from the fridge at least 30 mins before and bring it down to room temperature. Tie the legs of the chicken together with a string and use a toothpick or a BBQ stick to attach the wings of the chicken to its body.

Attaching the wings to the body of the chicken prevents the wings from overcooking and turning black while frying. The browning of the wings remains even and it doesn’t dry out either.

Lahori chargha is steamed first and then deep fried to finish cooking. But you can chose alternate methods to finish cooking. If you have an instant pot or a food ninja, you can easily steam your chicken on the rack on it. The method I’ve chose here is super basic so you can make this happen without any fancy appliances too!

Use a pot big enough to cover the chicken. Preferably, a thick bottomed pot, or if you only have regular pots, use a griddle or a tava below the pot to prevent direct heating from the stove. Cut 3 to 4 onions in halves or quarters and place them on the bottom of the pot with about 1/4 cup of oil.

a steel pot on a girdle with onion halves and a little oil in it

Place the chargha on top of the onions and cover with a lid. Turn on the heat at full flame for about 5 mins and then reduce to medium low flame. Let the chicken cook for about 25 to 30 mins.

Important: If your chicken weighs more than 2 kg, increase your time for steaming by 10 mins for every additional kg (e.g. 40 mins of steaming for a 3 kg chicken)
Marinated full chicken placed in a steel pot / cauldron

Turn off the heat and remove the lid. Your steamed Lahori Chargha would look something like this.

Lahori chargha or PAkistani whole chicken steam cooked in a steel cauldron

Bonus: The onions at the bottom of the pan would have released considerable amounts of water and has also cooked in the awesome spices. I’ve only added onions, but you can also add other ingredients at the bottom that you enjoy with your chicken (like some garlic for flavor, potatoes or green chilies etc)

semi-cooked onions in oil in a steel cauldron

Handle the chicken very carefully now as it is going to be tender. Add oil to a pot with enough depth to cover half of the chicken. Use a strong grip tong to place your chicken in hot oil and fry on both sides for 6 mins each.

deep frying steamed chicken in a oil to make lahori chargha

Dish the chicken out on a platter or on a bed of rice, and sprinkle some chat masala generously along with some lemon juice. Digggg in my friends!!

lahori chargha (steam-fried chicken) on a bed of salad leaves and lemon on a blue background with fries showing from the top right side of the picture

Alternates, Fixes and Remixes.

Cooking alternatives.

The steaming step remains constant in all cooking methods, but you can finish cooking by either baking or using an air fryer.

For baking – Coat the steamed chicken generously with a layer of ghee. Bake at 200 C for 20 mins max. in middle rack of the oven. Open the grill on top as well. 10 mins on one side and then switch.

Fixes

  • If you’ve fried your chicken and it still turns out undercooked (although unlikely) Just steam it for another 15 mins at medium high heat.
  • If your chicken feels underseasoned or the salt level seems low, pair with yogurt dip or rice and prepare them with a slightly high level of salt. Or you can also sprinkle some extra chat masala and salt on your chicken to compensate.

Variations

You can use the same method to cook smaller pieces of chicken. If you are using smaller chicken pieces or tikka cuts, you will only need to steam them for 15 mins max.

Smoke the chicken – If you like the flavor of smoked chicken, you can add a piece of coal to give it a nice charred flavor while steaming.

What to do with left overs?

Easy Pakistani Lahori Chargha Recipe

lahori chargha (steam fried chicken) on a bed of salad leaves on a blue background with fries popping from the side

Lahori Chargha

Popular South Asian steam-fried spicy whole chicken, De-skinned, and marinated in aromatic Pakistani/Indian spices.
4.59 from 53 votes
Print Pin
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: South Asian
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 1 whole chicken
Calories: 1683kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken of about 1.5 to 2 kg with skin removed and cuts added.
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tbsp of yogurt
  • 1 tbsp of garlic ginger paste
  • 1 tsp of turmeric powder
  • 2 tsp of red chili powder
  • 2 tsp of cumin powder
  • 1 tsp of whole spice powder garam masala
  • 3 tbsp of lemon
  • 1 tsp chat masala
  • 1 tsp green cardamom powder choti elaichi powder
  • 2 tsp salt
  • A pinch of nutmeg powder
  • A pinch of red food color
  • Oil for frying

Instructions

  • 1. Skin a whole chicken and clean it. Add deep horizontal cuts along the chicken. Treat the chicken with 1/2 cup of vinegar and let it sit in the vinegar for 10 to 15 mins to get rid of all the smell.
  • 2. Throw away the vinegar and use a paper towel to pat the chicken dry.
  • 3. In a bowl, add all the ingredients for marinade and mix well.
  • 4. Coat the marinade all over the chicken evenly making sure you get all the cuts and nooks.
  • 5. Cover the chicken and let it sit in the fridge overnight or for at least 8 hours.
  • 6. Bring out the chicken and let it sit out for 30 mins before cooking. Tie the legs of the chicken together with a thread. And use toothpicks to pin the wings to the body.
  • 7. In a deep pot, add about 1/4 cup of oil and 3 to 4 onions cut up in halves. Preferably place a griddle below the pot or use a heavy bottom pot.
  • 8. Place your chicken on top of the onions. And cover the pot with a lid.
  • 9. Steam the chicken at high heat for 5 mins and then at medium to low heat for another 25 mins. (increase the time by 10 mins if your chicken weighs more than 4 lbs or 1.5 kg)
  • 10. Remove the chicken from the pot and deep fry it in hot oil for 6 mins on each side or until it looks crispy golden on each side. Make sure the oil level covers half of the chicken while you fry it.
  • 11. Dish out on a plate and sprinkle some more chat masala and lemon juice on top of it generously. Serve with Mint chutney and pulav rice.

Notes

Handle the chicken carefully while deep frying it. Use strong tongs to handle the chicken. And save your hands from oil spill too.
Use gloves while marinating chicken to prevent hands from staining.
Strain the left over oil and use it to make gravies and curries.
Increase the spices and salt levels a bit if your chicken weighs more than 1.5 kg or 4 lbs

Nutrition

Serving: 1chickenCalories: 1683kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 143gFat: 116gSaturated Fat: 34gPolyunsaturated Fat: 25gMonounsaturated Fat: 48gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 577mgSodium: 5209mgPotassium: 1551mgFiber: 0.1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1111IUVitamin C: 30mgCalcium: 139mgIron: 7mg
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae

Pakistani Basic Chicken ka Salan – Chicken curry

Basic Chicken curry or “murghi ka saalan” is something that literally ALL brown people have grown up eating. Although I don’t think anyone calls it murghi ka salan any more and we all just end up calling it Chicken ka Salan (cz amm….millenials??) But anywhooo…it is one of the oldest and bestest chicken curry recipe from Pakistan and also India I think. The curry is based on caramelized onions and yogurt and uses some very basic South Asian spices to bring you the ultimate comfort food.

Its one of those dishes that you make when you can’t think of anything else. And the popularity is such that it classifies as weekend food, quick dinner food, weekday random meals and ALSO party food. I mean how even? But it is what it is! Paired best with? Zeera pulao rice or steamed rice, but I’ve also seen my dad and other people eat it with chapati (flat breads) too…soooo! you know? Fun fact, chicken handi, nauratan chicken and this chicken curry are currently our top 3 monthly meals.

STEPS TO MAKE CHICKEN KA SALAN

The first step is to fry onions. Ideally, red onions are best for frying or most South Asian curry bases but work with whatever you get your hands on.

6 whole peeled red onions in a white plate

Cut your onions into halves vertically and then slice them thin vertically as well as finely as you possibly can. ( You are probably using your gadgets to do this step)

Throw these onions in a pot (aka pateeli) with 2 cups of oil. Now we aren’t going to use all the oil for our curry. In fact once the onions are fried we are going to remove pretty much all of it and set aside. But its important to fry the onions in more oil to get that nice crispy texture which is the base for this curry.

sliced onions in oil frying for making chicken ka salan
fried golden crispy onion slices for making chicken ka salan

Add onions in the pot with oil and fry at medium to high flame. Once your onions reach this nice golden brown color, remove them from the oil and set it up on a plate. When your onions cools down, chuck them in a food processor and bring them to a nice crushed form. They will reduce in quantity.

IMPORTANT: Don’t put yogurt or water in the processor while processing the onions as it will change the texture of the onions. And while other recipes do call for onions to be blended WITH yogurt (like dam keema) but this one in particular needs dry fried onions.
fried onions in a a nutribullet and some in a plate, and some fried onions already processed in a bowl.

Remove all the oil from the pot, and leave roughly about 5 6 tbsp behind.

TIP: The remaining oil has a really nice sweet flavor of the onions and is perfect to use later while grilling steaks, chicken etc or while making pasta
whole spices in a white plate

Next, you are going to add whole spices as shown above, in the pot along with your washed chicken. Add in garlic ginger paste and saute your chicken and whole spices for about 2 3 mins at high heat or until your chicken turns white.

raw chicken pieces in oil with whole spices
pakistani spices and chicken pieces in oil in a stainless steel pot

Then add all the powder spices, salt, red chili powder, turmeric powder and coriander powder. And just temper the spices at medium to high flame for 2-3 mins to remove the rawness of the spices

TIP: This step is known as bhunayi in Urdu and is the reason why South Asian food tastes different than other cuisines. Raw spices cooked in water compared to oil tempered spices have a different taste so be sure to not skip this step.
Adding yogurt in chicken ka salan

Then reduce the flame to low. Add beaten yogurt and 1 cup of water and mix well. Then add crushed fried onions to the chicken.

TIP: Use yogurt at room temperature to avoid curdling.
adding crushed fried onions in Pakistani chicken curry

Add another cup of water and cover the pot. Let it cook for a good 15 mins. After 15 to 20 mins, your curry will look something like this.

murghi ka salan or pakistani chicken curry ready

The oil would have seperated and come on top and the color would have deepend. Now you can fix the salt level and add 3 cups of water to create the perfect curry. You can also make it thinner if you like.

Alternates, fixes and remixes

Subtitutes

  • If you don’t want to use a cup of oil while frying the onions, you can skip that step and just fry the onions in as much as oil as you want (1/4 cup or 2 tbsp etc). But it might effect the taste over all.
  • You can use regular onions instead of red onions if they aren’t available to you.

Fixes

  • Burnt onions – Unfortunately burnt onions or dark brown onions don’t really have a fix and you will have to discard them and start over. You might be able to use them as garnish for haleem or biryani if they are just dark brown.
  • Curdled yogurt – If your yogurt curdles in your gravy, put the gravy through a blender to fix it. But make sure to strain your gravy before putting it in the blender to catch any whole spices. Put the blended gravy back in the pot along with 1/4 cup of water and cook for another 5 mins. This should help with the curdled yogurt.

Remixes

  • You can add 1 tomato to the gravy if you want to try a slightly different flavor profile.
  • You can prepare a beef curry with the exact same recipe.
  • You can add rice to this curry base to make a pulav/tahiri kinda dish.

Is this freezer friendly?

Absolutely! This is one of the perfect foods to be frozen. If you are making this as part of your meal preps, don’t add the water at the end and freeze the thick curry. Then whenever you are ready to eat, chuck the chicken directly in a pot along with the water you didn’t add last time, and in 20 mins it’ll be ready to eat!

Ideally, any food that you want to freeze, shouldn’t go in the fridge at all. Decide whilst cooking and freeze as soon as the food cools down. This way the taste of your food will not change over time.

The curry itself can last in the fridge for a week without alterations in taste.

What to do with left Chicken ka salan?

  • Left over gravy can be used to make pulav rice.
  • Boil eggs and potatoes and add to left over gravy to make andey aloo ka salan.
  • Left over chicken can be used to make sandwiches, pasta, literally anything with shredded chicken.
  • Use left over chicken to make potato cakes.

More Pakistani Chicken recipes

murghi ka saalan

Pakistani chicken curry – Murghi ka saalan

A traditional Pakistani curry, made with an onion and yogurt base, seasoned with South Asian spices.
4.80 from 40 votes
Print Pin
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: pakistani, South Asian
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 266kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

  • 1 medium chicken cleaned, washed and cut up into pieces
  • 6 small red onions or 4 cups of sliced onions
  • 1/2 cup oil
  • 1 cup yogurt at room temperature
  • 4 cups water
  • 2 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp coriander powder pisa wa dhaniya
  • 2 tsp red chili powder pisi wi lal mirch
  • 1/2 tsp Turmeric haldi
  • 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste or 1 tsp of each
  • 1/2 cinnamon stick
  • 4 green cardamom choti elaichi
  • 2 black cardamom bari elaichi
  • 8 whole black peppers sabit kaali mirch
  • 5 cloves long

Instructions

  • In a pot, add sliced onions and oil. Fry the onions at medium to high flame until they turn light golden brown. Remove the onions from the oil and allow it to cool down.
  • In a chopper, chop the golden brown onions without water until they turn into crumbs. Set aside
  • Remove all the oil from the pot and only keep about 6 tbsp of oil in the pot.
  • Add the whole spices, chicken, ginger garlic paste to the pot and saute it at medium flame for 2 to 3 mins.
  • When the water from the chicken dries up, add all the powdered spices and saute for another 3 mins.
  • Reduce the flame to low and add in yogurt and onion crumble. Stir it a bit, add about 1 cups of water, cover the pot and let it simmer for 10 to 15 mins.
  • Check to see if all the onion crumble has dissolved and an oil layer has formed on top of the curry.
  • Add 3 more cups of water, cook for another 3 mins.
  • Adjust your salt, and consistency of the curry.
  • Garnish with chopped coriander and serve with rice, or flat bread.

Notes

Use the left over oil for roasting steaks or for pastas as it has a really nice onion infused flavor to it now.
Use yogurt at room temperature to avoid curdling it in the gravy

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 266kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 3gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 1017mgPotassium: 302mgFiber: 3gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 201IUVitamin C: 10mgCalcium: 112mgIron: 1mg
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae

Top Recipes by Pakistani bloggers 2019

Not gonna lie, going through recipe round ups is one my favorite ways to kill time online. “How to eat a Spaghetti 4 ways”, or “6 ways to lick nutella off your jar” i mean c’mon these are guilty pleasures for all of us right?

But more so than that, going through recipes by my fellow Pakistani bloggers is just as much fun for me! 2019 has been absolutely amazing to me in terms of my blog, (not in terms of the greys that I can now see in my hair.)

So I went ahead and put together a list of my favorite recipes from these amazinggg Pakistani bloggers that I came across this year and the ones I KNOW will make a wholesome addition to your dinner menus

Just click on the titles of any recipe that you want to know more about. Here we go!

TOP RECIPES OF 2019 BY PAKISTANI BLOGGERS

1

Bhuna Gosht ( sauteed meat curry) by Cooking with Shazia

bhunna gosht or slow cooked beef in a white bowl
Recipe and picture credits : https://cookingwithshazia.com/

This recipe has me drooling since I first saw it on Shazia’s insta stories. It’s a cult favorite desi curry made by slowly cooking the meat in South Asian spices. And you basically chuck everything together in a pot and just let it cook so I am assuming sooper easy too! The color on this dish man! damn!

2

Instant Pot Salan Masala by Flour & spice blog

Instant pot salan masala in a jar
Recipe and picture credits: https://www.flourandspiceblog.com

Sarah’s instant pot salan masala is probably the biggest game changer in Desi cooking! For the busy mama on the go or the do-everything-in-advance-r, this recipe is sooper dooper handy. You just prepare the salan masala in advance and add it to any salan you are making. Hey! we all know, half of our cooking is just bhoonofying the masala right? I’d actually love to experiment and use this with rice too, might come up with a tahiri type dish, don’t you think?

3

Borani Baingan by Pots n curries

close up of borani baingan in a dish
Recipe and picture credits: https://potsncurries.com

Fatima uploaded this recipe for Borani Baingan and I gotta say, my eyes have been glued to it ever since! Fatima says that it’s an “Afghani Eggplant dish – extremely versatile and perfect for summers. The combination of rustic eggplants with tomatoes is like a match made in heaven and garlic- flavored yogurt topping is like a cherry on top” I bet you wanna give this a ride.

4

Asian style Fish and vegetable Stir fry by Mirchitales

fish and vegetable stir fry in a black bowl on white background with chopsticks on the side
Recipe and picture credits: https://www.mirchitales.com/

I feel like whenever I think about Asian foods, I am almost always reaching for chicken or shrimps. This bowl of wholesome goodness just got me thinking how amazing fish would taste with all those Asian spices. Going through her recipe, I can safely say its classifies for #under30minmeals. For quick and yum meal inspo….Check it!

5

Biscoff Cheesecake by Chai and churros

A biscoff lotus cookie butter cheesecake on a white cake stand
Recipe and picture credits: https://chaiandchurros.com

If you guys know me BUT at all, you know my crazyyyy fascination for Lotus cookies and clearly that makes me no special than half of the world. Henna is a cheesecake queen, but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this particular cheesecake! It has a rich and crumbly lotus crust and the sweet tangy cream cheese filling, and then SOME more lotus spread on top, ammm yeah, BRB, need a wipe.

6

Instant pot Channa pulao by Tea for turmeric

2 bowls of instant pot chana pulao on a white background
Recipe and picture credits: https://www.teaforturmeric.com

Izzah is probably one of my sweeetest insta finds! Izzah specializes in gluten-free and nutritious recipes coming from the South of Asia, and also modifies indulgent food to reduce their calorie content.

This Instant pot Chana pulao on her blog looks so comforting and inviting that I couldn’t resist putting it up. Because I also know some of you use instant pots, so I figured an instant pot recipe was very much needed. Busy bees and health nuts, take note, this recipe comes together in 20 mins tops and is naturally gluten-free

7

Aloo ka paratha by The Desi Wonder Woman

aaloo ka paratha in a platter by pakistani blogger
Recipe and picture credits: https://www.thedesiwonderwoman.com

So I stumbled upon this recipe/hack on Shezeen’s page while I was actually looking for something else. (who if you guys aren’t living under a rock, know as Desi wonder woman) Aloo ka paratha being the ultimate comfort food, and the hack also being pretty interesting, I thought you guys needed to SEE this!

8

Paalak Chicken by I knead to eat

bowl of paalak chicken by pakistani food blogger
Recipe and picture credits: https://ikneadtoeat.com

Wajeeha and I share a name, (but different spellings HA-HA), but we do share a pretty similar taste for food! The palak chicken on her page looks gorgeous!! And I went through the recipe and it looks perfect! You gotta see it for yourself and then add it to your weekly rotation.

9

Nauratan Chicken by me

Nauratan chicken curry in a black dish with yellow rice and chapati on the sides
Recipe and picture credits: https://butteroverbae.com

You are wondering, what Kind of narcissist puts up their own recipe in an inspirational recipe round up. Well….. me 😛 I am that narcissist. But jokes apart, this is one of my personal favorites recipes because well I came up with it from scratch, rather than adapting a version of my own (which usually happens with things like Tikka and dals etc). This is a less gravy kinda dish, made with boneless chicken, and sauteed onions, potatoes and bell peppers. It already IS in my weekly rotation because damn! easy! and also yum!

10

Shahi paneer makhni by Two cloves in a pot

Shahi paneer makhni in a karhayi by pakistani food bloggers
Recipe and picture credits: https://twoclovesinapot.com

I gotta be honest, I don’t experiment much with paneer but I know a lot of you love it. And this Shahi paneer by Sarah just looks soooo perfect. This dish comes from North India and basically consists of cottage cheese cubes cooked in a tomato cream base. I know she has rice and naan both in the picture, but I somehow just find this to go sooooo well with paratha! Read more about it on Sarah’s website.

11

Mango Kunafa cups by Afsheen Owais

mango kunafa cups dessert displayed in 3 jar by pakistani food blogger
Recipe and picture credits: https://blessedwiththebestmommy.wordpress.com

All good things end with desserts! Afsheen is like a baking guru is if may say so mildly. But this year, her recipe that I actually fell in love with, was a no-bake one. It just looks so inviting and sooo fresh. A kinda like a de-constructed Kunafa vibe going on here. I reallyy like the idea and then the execution of it. Check it out in the link above.

So 2019 seems to have made some serious additions…food wise ..(and well population wise :P) It’s always bitter-sweet saying good-bye to a year. But I hope these delicious distractions are gonna make you feel a whole lot better about it. Try them out, and tell me what NEW addition you made in your life in 2019 …you know… food wise 😛

top recipes by pakistani bloggers in 2019 collage

Easy Chocolate Chip Blonde Brownies

I’d add more, but these chocolate chip blonde brownies speak for themselves. They are fudgy and gooey and will make the perfect partner for that glass of milk this winter season.

These blondies are right on top my list of things to whip up for a quick brunch too btw. (other than the ever famous no-bake cheesecake or a chill creamy fruity custard).

Basic brownie making steps

So the first step in baking is always getting the oven on preheat. And lining your baking tray with parchment paper and an oil spray. I even sprinkle a little flour all over the baking tray to give my baked brownies a nice golden crust. (Just gluttonous things)

I also mixed all my dry ingredients in a bowl and set it aside.

Then I proceeded with beating together some softened butter and sugar. I’ve used light brown sugar, which when put in food processor becomes somewhat white lookin’ for some reason

sugar and soft butter in a white bowl

You only need to beat it with an egg beater for about 2 to 3 minutes till you get a nice fluffy mix. Add in the egg and vanilla essence and beat until its fully incorporated.

TIP: Make sure the egg is at room temperature. You want all ingredients to be at room temperature whenever you are baking brownies/cakes etc
fluffy beaten butter, sugar and eggs in a white bowl

Your mixture will look like this and is absolutely lick-able ( I don’t do that ok?). Go ahead and add half of the milk and beat some more. The batter might look a bit crumbly but that’s OK.

Next you add in your dry ingredient. At this point, if you don’t have Kitchen Aid, please mix the batter with a spatula first if you don’t want dry flour specks all over your kitchen top.

Lastly, adding the other half of the milk to make a rather thick looking brownie batter.

  • milk in a cup ready to be poured in the blonde brownie batter
  • mixing flour with the cookie batter in a white bowl with a brown spatula
  • some un mixed milk in the blonde brownie batter in a white bowl

Now comes my favvv part, adding in the chocolate chips (and nibbling simultaneously).

TIP: Coat the chocolate chips in about 1/2 tsp of flour and keep in freezer or fridge right before using them. This will prevent your chocolate into melting in to the batter while baking and will retain their shape.
  • raw blond brownie batter in a white bowl with a aqua blue spatula in it
  • unmixed chocolate chips on top of the blonde brownie batter in a white bowl with an aqua blue spatula in it
  • raw chocolate chip blonde brownie batter ready in a white bowl with blue spatula iin it

Reserve a few chips to add on the top and dump all the rest in the batter. Your batter is going to be thick so once its ready and you transfer it to your baking tray, you’ll have to use the back of the spoon to really spread it around.

I am using a 10 x 10 inch pan that I had at home, but you can also use a standard 9 by 9 pan as well.

Top it off with some more chocolate chips (you can also ignore my quantity of chocolate chips and add as many bags of chips as you want, nooooooo judgementttt my friend)

raw blonde brownie batter with chocolates chips spread in a square pan

The brownies take about 30 to 33 mins to bake at 175 C. The edges will be light golden brown when the brownies will be done. Wait for the blondies to come down to room temperature and then cut them up in squares.

3 pieces of chocolate chip blonde brownies stacked on one another

How long do they last?

  • Am….well they are gone before nightfall so not very long 😛 But generally they can last for up to a week in a cookie jar.
  • You can freeze them once they cool down if you don’t plan to consume them straight away. When you are ready to eat, let them thaw out for 1 hour or microwave for 30 secs.

Alternates and Remixes

Make it healthy-ish

  • You can use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour
  • Use dark chocolate chips instead of semi sweet ones.
  • Replace regular milk with any almond milk or any other nut milk
  • Use organic egg
  • You can also use pure ghee or pure home made butter instead of regular butter.
  • Use dark brown unprocessed sugar.

Remixes

  • Feel free to remix this recipe any way you see fit. Use caramel chips or sea salt caramel chips instead of chocolate. ( or you know any other ones you find)
  • You can also toss in blueberries instead of chocolate chips. (healthy-ish)

Easy Chocolate chip blonde brownies

2 pieces of blonde chocolate chip brownie with a glass of milk on the side and a half showing tray of chocolate chip brownies with a few scattered chocolate chips all around a blue backdrop

Easy Chocolate Chip Blonde Brownies

A vanilla version of the classic brownie, made with egg, butter, milk and flour with a heavy addition of chocolate chips
4.75 from 8 votes
Print Pin
Course: brunch, Dessert, high tea
Cuisine: Continental
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 25 pieces
Calories: 172kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

  • 1 cup softened butter (not melted) 200 gm
  • 3/4 cup granulated light brown sugar
  • 1 large egg room temperature
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 2 ¼ all purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 pinch baking soda
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 2 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup milk

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven at 350° F or at 175° C
  • Line a 10 x 10 inch pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking oil.
  • Lightly sprinkle 1/4 tsp of all purpose flour all over the baking tray.
  • Toss chocolate chips in a bowl with 1/4 tsp of all purpose flour and coat them all. Keep in the fridge till needed.
  • In a bowl mix in all purpose flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder and set aside.
  • In another bowl, Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy
  • Mix in egg and vanilla essence and beat until fully incorporated.
  • Add half of the milk and beat well.
  • Add in the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula.
  • Add the remaining milk and mix everything with a beater.
  • Reserve 1/2 cup of chocolate chips for topping and add the rest in the batter and mix with a spatula.
  • Drop the brownie mix on to the tray and use the back of a spoon to evenly spread it out.
  • Sprinkle the reserved chocolate chips on top of the batter and keep in the oven (centre portion)
  • Bake for 30 to 33 minutes or until the edges turn light golden brown.
  • Bring it out and let it cool down. Then cut into squares and serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 1barCalories: 172kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 1gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.3gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 124mgPotassium: 110mgFiber: 1gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 236IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 76mgIron: 0.3mg
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae

Easy no-bake Blueberry Cheesecake

Sometimes, all you need are classics. This no bake blueberry Cheesecake is a classic that will never go outta style and will probably only evolve more over time.

Let’s face it, if we could, we would ALWAYs reach for the baked cheesecake but when the chips are down and you have a quick craving to fix or a quick dessert to fix up, you KNOW you are looking at no bake options. (or Shahi tukdey if you are feeling desi)

The perfect cheesecake, with a nice and light tangy filling paired with a rich buttery crumb base is sometimes all the therapy you need! What I love about this recipe is that it mimics the real deal perfectly. And since it has gelatin, you know it’ll set no matter how ever you mess it up.

A QUICK PICTORIAL OF THE NO BAKE CHEESE CAKE

Preparing the Biscuit base

I don’t know about you, but I loveeeee my cheesecake bases to be thick! Although of course I can’t expect all of you to share my guilty pleasures. So I’ve used a standard quantity of biscuits in the recipe (ugh boring)

Anywhoo….so for the biscuits, I know ideally it should be graham crackers but I find them very rarely here in the supermarkets. So my next best go to biscuits are the digestive ones, they are low on butter and sugar so they work really well with the whole dessert.

Go ahead and chuck in the biscuits in the food processor and make them into a fine powder. Add melted butter, and brown sugar and turn the processor around once more.

Adding melted butter to biscuit crumbs for cheesecake base

For any no bake dessert, ideally, a spring-form pan is best! I greased my spring-form pan with a cooking spray. Make sure to also spray some of this generously on all the sides as well.

roasting spray used to spray alll over the springform
buttery biscuit crumbs in a black pan tossed
biscuit base set in a springform pan with a glass on top to press it down

After greasing the pan, dump all the biscuit mix in the pan. And using a glass base to pack the biscuit in the pan has been the best hack discovery of 2019!

Disclaimer: Whatever method you use to pack the biscuit crumbs in the base, make sure you are not packing it too hard and only applying pressure moderately. Packing the base too tightly can cause your crust to become very hard when it sets and will be difficult to cut.

Making the filling for the cheese cake

So here’s the deal, the biggest problem with no bake cheesecakes are that they lack that tangy flavor that their baked counterparts have. To fix this, adding a little sour-cream has been a GAME changer from me.

cream cheese and sour cream with castor sugar in a green bowl ready to be whisked

I add in a little sour cream, cream cheese, castor sugar and vanilla essence all in one bowl and whisk them all together for 2 mins. Then I set this aside.

In another bowl I whip up my double cream to give me soft peaks. Now since this dessert uses gelatin, you can get away with slightly runnier cream as well. You dessert will still set.

cream in the process of being whipped
adding whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture

Once your cream is whipped and stiff, add it to the cream cheese mixture and lightly fold it in.

On the side you need to bloom the gelatin. This is simply done by adding a little bit of luke warm water in gelatin powder and letting it sit for 5 mins.

Add the bloomed gelatin to the cream mix, all the while constantly stirring with a whisk from the other hand.

Now quickly pour all the mixture into your spring-form pan and keep in the fridge to refrigerate. 10 hrs of refrigeration time is minimum for the gelatin to set completely, and ideally letting is set in the fridge overnight is even better

nobake blueberry cheesecake ready to be put in the fridge

After you’ve left the cheesecake to chill overnight, take it out and top it off with any topping you like. I went with a blueberry topping/filling from Americana, hence this was called a Blueberry cheesecake.

Tips to get the perfect sides of the no bake cheesecake:

  1. Greasing the sides of the pan (that you’ve done already)
  2. Let the cheesecake sit on the counter for 10 mins after removing from the fridge and then run a hot towel around all the sides of the pan. This will melt the outer layer of the cheesecake and detach it from the pan and will make removal that much easier.
  3. Alternatively, you can also use a parchment paper all around the width of the pan to ensure smooth edges.
nobake blueberry cheesecake ready

Alternates, fixes and Remixes

  • Substitute sour cream – You can use lemon juice instead
  • Cream cheese – Since this dessert uses gelatin for setting, you can use any cream cheese you can get your hands on. The cream cheese spread, or the block one both can be used.
  • If you feel like your dessert hasn’t set, let it sit in the fridge for a few more hours (although this is highly unlikely)

More No-bake Desserts on the blog

nobake blueberry cheesecake slices.

No bake blue berry cheesecake

An easy no bake alternative to the classic baked Cheesecake. It has a rich crumbly biscuit base and soft perfectly balanced cream cheese filling that pairs perfectly with any fruit you like.
5 from 4 votes
Print Pin
Course: Desserts
Cuisine: International
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 10 hours
Total Time: 10 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Calories: 460kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

For biscuit base

  • 17 whole Digestive biscuits or Graham Crackers 270 gm
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup melted butter

For the Filling

  • 500 ml heavy whipping cream chilled
  • 400 ml Philadelphia cream cheese
  • 1 cup castor sugar
  • 2 tbsp sour cream or 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 3 drops vanilla essence
  • 2 tsp gelatin leveled
  • 1/4 cup water

Instructions

  • Biscuit Base
  • Spray a 9 inch springform pan with cooking spray
  • In a food processor, add biscuits, brown sugar, and melted butter and process it till the biscuits are finely ground.
  • Dump the biscuit crumbs into the baking pan and press it down evenly (use the flat end of a glass)

  • Filling
  • Beat cream with an electric beater in a bowl until soft peaks form.
  • In another bowl beat cream cheese, sugar, vanilla essence and sour cream together for a good 2 to 3 mins with an electric beater
  • Add beaten cream to the cream cheese mix and fold the creams in with a spatula.
  • In a small cup, add gelatin powder and boiling hot water and mix well so that all the gelatin granules are wet. Let the gelatin sit and bloom for 3 to 4 mins. When gelatin forms a smooth honey like consistency, we are ready to add it to the cream cheese filling.
  • With one hand, start whisking the cream with a hand whisk and pour in the gelatin in thin stream from the other. Mix the cream well and work quickly. Transfer the filling into the prepared pan and use an angled spatula to even out the top.
  • Refrigerate the dessert for at least 10 hours or overnight. Top it off with any fruit filling of your choice and serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 460kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 5gFat: 38gSaturated Fat: 23gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 113mgSodium: 201mgPotassium: 110mgFiber: 0.1gSugar: 26gVitamin A: 1459IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 79mgIron: 0.2mg
Can’t wait to see your remakes! Tag meon IG with your pictures @butteroverbae