Baked Yogurt Pudding / Baked Bhapa Doi (Bengali Dessert)

If you love cheese cake then you will definitely fall head over heels in love with this Baked Yogurt Pudding. 

Bhapa doi, is a traditional Bengali (Indian) sweet usually steam cooked. Bhapa means steamed and doi is yogurt.Yogurt is considered auspicious in Hindu religion hence bhapa doi is served during Indian festive seasons like Diwali ,Durga puja etc..in Orissa, West Bengal and Bangladesh.
The traditional recipe is quite time consuming with thickening of milk by slow cooking it then making yogurt overnight and finally steaming it but baking with store bought yogurt makes it ridiculously easy.

The pudding can be made one day ahead and served at room temperature or chilled.

Use only one flavor of yogurt u like : I have used Chobani Greek Yogurt vanilla flavor as part of #MadeWithChobani project.

Ingredients:(Makes 4 ramekins )
Yogurt - 1 1/2 cups (Vanilla /Plain Greek yogurt)
Full fat fresh cream - 1 cup ( U can cut down and go for whole milk or even half and half)
Condensed milk - 1 cup
Cardamom - 3 pods seeds powdered (optional)- tastes best with plain yogurt.

To decorate:
Kiwi sliced
Apricot dried
Red cherry canned
Roasted pistachios /cashews chopped

Method:
Beat the yogurt well without any lumps add the cream, condensed milk and cardamom powder / extract.Mix until well combined.
Boil 2 cups of water and pour it  into a casserole dish (This is to get a head start  in steam cooking as soon as the baking begins)
Pour the yogurt mixture into 4 ramekins equally and place it carefully inside the casserole dish with hot water.
Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes or until the top is firm yet jiggly on touch.(Do not let the edges brown or burn)
Remove ramekins from casserole and let it cool at room temperature decorate and serve or
keep it refrigerated for upto a day and decorate while serving.

Steam cooking :
If you prefer to steam cook instead of baking then place the ramekins (cover each with aluminium foil or steel lid ) in a double boiler with tight lid and water boiling in the bottom dish.Steam cook for 20 minutes on medium flame  till top of bhapa doi is slightly firm.
You could use one large round dish too instead of ramekins and scoop and serve in ice cream cups.

Note:

• Instead of cardamom use any flavoring essence of your choice like vanilla extract, pineapple extract etc according to the flavor of yogurt used.
• Go for some saffron stands on top while baking for the beautiful orangish hue on top and silvered pistachios that makes it the most traditional looking. 

Hope you like it.
Meena