Rasmalai is one of my favorite Indian desserts. It is so hard to pick one dessert so I said “one of”. I am a sucker for milk-based, good Bengali mithais. I grew up spending summers at my grandparents’ home in Calcutta and ate fresh sandesh, rosogulla, and rasmalai almost every day. As I am always trying to create different fusion desserts using my favorite Indian mithais, this Rasmalai mousse with white chocolate was a total experiment of textures and flavors, but it worked! White chocolate goes so well with the flavors of saffron and cardamom, the spices used in rasmalai.
What is Rasmalai?
Rasmalai is a combination of two words “Ras” meaning juice and “Malai” meaning cream. There are two parts to Rasmalai – the rasmalai balls and the thickened milk. The balls are essentially rasgulla balls. Rasgullas are a perfect dessert all by themselves. Rasmalai takes it a step further and dips the spongy rasgulla balls in flavored and slightly thickened milk. The sponge soaks up all the juicy goodness and is then chilled and garnished with nuts.
Ingredients used to make Rasmalai Mousse
To make Rasmalai:
- 1 can Rasgullas (about 14-16 pieces), squeezed well to remove the syrup
- 4 cups whole milk
- ½ cup sugar
- 7-8 strands of saffron
- ¼ tsp cardamom powder
To make White Chocolate Mousse:
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 ½ cups Heavy Cream
- 7-8 strands of saffron
- ¼ tsp cardamom powder
To make Whipped Cream:
- 3/4 cup Heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons confectioners (powdered) sugar
Important steps to make the Rasmalai White Chocolate Mousse:
There are 3 components to make this yummy fusion dessert.
Make the Rasmalai:
You have 3 choices when it comes to the rasmalai:
- Make the rasgulla and rasmalai doodh (ras) from scratch and then assemble them.
- Buy store bought canned Rasgullas but make the rasmalai doodh (ras) at home and then assemble them.
- Buy pre-made Rasmalai from an Indian store.
I go with option # 2. I personally find it a lot of work to make the rasgullas at home. There are some really good canned Rasgullas that you can find at any Indian store. I do like to make the Rasmalai doodh (ras) at home. Making the doodh hardly takes 15-20 minutes of my time and I can control the sugar and infuse it with saffron and cardamom for a wonderful flavor. I have provided my recipe for Rasmalai below. One tip for quick cooking the milk is to use a wide pan. Honestly, once the rasmalai is made and cooled, it is hard for me and my husband to resist eating it. The recipe provided makes 14-16 pieces (the number of rasgullas in a can) so we always have a few extra to eat. The recipe only uses 6 rasmalai pieces.
The rasmalai needs to be completely cooled and chilled before using it in the cake. So I tend to make it a day earlier when I am baking the cake bases. Keep it covered in the refrigerator till you use it.
Make the White Chocolate Mousse:
Besides the flavorings that are used, the white chocolate mousse only has 2 simple ingredients- white chocolate and heavy cream. We first make a ganache with the white chocolate and part of the mousse and then fold it into the whipped cream. It is very important to completely cool the ganache at room temperature before folding it in. The White chocolate mousse can itself be a great dessert on its own!
Make the Whipped Cream Frosting:
The Rasmalai White Chocolate mousse jars are topped with whipped cream frosting. One thing to keep in mind when making whipped cream is to have all the components chilled. I usually put the bowl and beater in the refrigerator for half an hour before I start whipping the cream. The whipped cream is lightly sweetened in this recipe. You can adjust the sugar as per your liking.
Once you have these 3 components prepared, it is a matter of layering the jars. If you are making homemade, Rasmalai can be made 1-2 days prior to making the Rasmalai White Chocolate mousse jars. the other two components should be made just prior to assembling the jars.
Recipe tips to make Rasmalai Mousse
- In order to save time and effort, you can use store bought rasmalai for this recipe.
- If you make the Rasmalai at home as per the recipe here, you will have a few rasmalai balls leftover after you assemble the mousse cups. You can enjoy Rasmalai on its own as dessert.
- Rasmalai can be made a day in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The dessert cups should be assembled the day of serving.
- It is very important to completely cool the white chocolate ganache at room temperature before folding it in the whipped cream. If the ganache is hot, it will split the cream.
- White chocolate mousse is a great dessert on its own. You can pipe it in small martini style glasses and garnish with berries and nuts.
FAQs- Rasmalai Mousse
Yes, rasgulla and rasmalai are made from milk so they are not vegan but they are gluten-free. If buying store bought rasmalai, ensure that it is not made with any ingredients that contain gluten. White chocolate mousse is also gluten-free.
I buy Haldiram cans of Rasgulla. If you live in a place where fresh rasgullas are easily available at sweet marts, those would be preferable.
Chocolate chips are not made to melt. Although they will work for this recipe, it proffered to use a bar of good quality white chocolate.
Other Indian fusion dessert recipes to try
Recipe Card- Rasmalai White Chocolate Mousse recipe
Rasmalai White Chocolate Mousse Jars
Discover the art of crafting Rasmalai Mousse with White Chocolate – a divine blend of traditional Indian sweetness and modern elegance. Our recipe combines the ease of store-bought Rasgullas with the homemade goodness of saffron-infused Rasmalai doodh. Layered with a heavenly white chocolate mousse and topped with delicately sweetened whipped cream, these jars of bliss offer a taste of indulgence in every spoonful. Follow our step-by-step guide, and in just a matter of time, you’ll be serving up a dessert that’s as visually stunning as it is delectably irresistible.
8
servings30
minutes40
minutesIngredients
- Rasmalai
1 can Rasgulla (14-16 pieces in a can)
4 cups Whole Milk
1/2 cup White Sugar
7-8 strands saffron
1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder
- White Chocolate Mousse
1 cup white chocolate (chop and measure)
1 1/2 cups Heavy Cream
7-8 strands saffron
1/8 teaspoon cardamom powder
- Whipped Cream
3/4 cup Heavy Cream
3 tablespoons Powdered sugar (Confectioner’s sugar)
- Decoration
Chopped/unsalted nuts of choice
Method
- To Make Rasmalai
- Heat milk in a wide bottom pan. Bring it to a boil and reduce the flame to medium. Add sugar and saffron and stir constantly, removing the malai that forms on the sides of the pan. Cook for 18-20 minutes till the milk as slightly reduced.
- Now add the squeezed rasgulla pieces and cardamom powder and turn off the heat. Make sure all the rasgulla pieces are submerged in the milk. Cool completely before covering and placing it in the refrigerator to use later.
- To Make White Chocolate Mousse
- Heat ¾ cup cream till it’s very hot but not boiling. Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate in a bowl and also add saffron and cardamom to it. Make sure all the chocolate is covered with the hot cream and let it sit for 1-2 minutes. Then start mixing the chocolate with a spoon. After a few minutes of mixing the chocolate will change color and become glossy. Let this ganache cool to room temperature.
- In the meantime make whipped cream with the remaining ¾ cup cream. Add heavy cream to a bowl of a stand mixer or use a metal or glass bowl if using a hand held mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk just until the cream reaches stiff peaks.
- Slowly fold in half the whipped cream into the white chocolate ganache with a spatula. Gently fold in the rest of the whipped cream.
- To make Whipped Cream
- Add heavy cream and powdered sugar to a bowl of a stand mixer or use a metal or glass bowl if using a hand held mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk just until the cream reaches stiff peaks.
- Assembling Rasmalai White Chocolate Mousse jars
- Use jars, glasses or cups to assemble the dessert. It should be large enough so 1 rasmalai can fit at the bottom without having to break it. You will need 8 of them.
- Using your preferred jars or small glasses, start layer the components. The sequence is- 1 piece of Rasmalai with 2-3 tablespoons of the doodh, chocolate mousse, and whipped cream topping to finish it. I find it easier to use a piping bag to layer the chocolate mousse and whipped cream. Garnish the last whipped cream layer with slivered pistachios. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Tips
- In order to save time and effort, you can use store bought rasmalai for this recipe.
- If you make the Rasmalai at home as per the recipe here, you will have a few rasmalai balls leftover after you assemble the mousse cups. You can enjoy Rasmalai on its own as dessert.
- Rasmalai can be made a day in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The dessert cups should be assembled the day of serving.
- It is very important to completely cool the white chocolate ganache at room temperature before folding it in the whipped cream. If the ganache is hot, it will split the cream.
- White chocolate mousse is a great dessert on its own. You can pipe it in small martini style glasses and garnish with berries and nuts.
