6 Feni-Infused Desserts For A Goan Twist On Your Sweet Endings
Feni is an indigenous liquor hailing from the coastal regions of Goa where it is produced by fermenting cashew apples until they form a milky white, thoroughly potent spirit. The drink can be savoured neat to relish its pungent and earthy notes and its dense flavour along with a rather distinctly acidic aroma that characterises this homegrown spirit.
The liquor is also an excellent addition to desserts because it counteracts some of the excessively sweet notes in many sugary concoctions to make for a very well-balanced coming together of sweet, tart and fruity flavours. Several dessert variations can be infused with feni and served as the last course in a meal featuring a lot of Goan culinary preparations like a spicy vindaloo curry or a fine sorpotel or a lip smacking prawn balchao.
Read on below to know more about some of the feni-infused desserts you can prepare to put this Goan twist on your sweet treat game:
Feni And Coconut Rice Pudding
Prepare a delicious aromatic coconut rice that can be savoured with your main meal and infuse it with the cashew liquor to add into it that boozy touch and distinct aroma which is synonymous with the Goan feni.
Coconut is found in abundance along the Goan shores so you can bring together two core ingredients of this region’s cuisine into a rice dish that exudes the fresh and creamy qualities of the fruit and the pungent taste of the feni.
Add a dash of vanilla to the rice to infuse that additional aromatic and fragrant touch into the dish.
Feni-Infused Chocolate Truffles
Chocolates are always a delicious dessert and when combined with spirits, they take on a whole different level of luxury.
While vodka and bourbon are used widely in the making of different spirit-infused chocolates and truffles, feni is one spirit whose earthy profile makes for a very interesting flavour pairing in a simple chocolatey treat.
The intense notes of the Goan liquor pair well with a milder milk chocolate to produce a bite sized sweet that can be enjoyed following a particularly heavy meal.
Feni Panna Cotta
Panna cotta can be prepared by infusing it with lots of different flavours because milk and cream are two elements which can soak in diverse ingredients.
You can prepare the feni panna cotta following the classic recipe to make a jelly-like dessert and add just the right amount of liquor so it releases its flavours into a dessert that can be enjoyed at a Goan themed feast.
Garnish the panna cotta with fresh tender coconut malai to savour some indulgent tropical notes.
Feni Mango Sorbet
A fruity frozen dessert perfect for warm humid days by the beach, the mango sorbet is a refreshing sweet treat you can prepare at a summer luncheon.
Infuse this sorbet with a boozy kick by pouring in the classic Goan liquor that will balance out some of the excessively sweet notes of the mango and sugar in the sorbet with its distinctively tart taste.
You can also turn this into a popsicle by freezing the sorbet in ice candy moulds.
Feni And Cashew Barfi
Prepare this traditional south Asian dessert that celebrates the silky, creamy textures of a fine cashew puree seasoned with sugar and adorned with the aromas of spices like cardamom and saffron.
Introduce feni into the barfi for its robust flavours which counteract some of the heavier flavours of the cashews.
You can adjust the quantity of milk you add to this recipe when you pour feni in so that it balances out the consistency of the dish in such a way that the barfis fall into perfect squares.
Feni Apple Crumble
A classic warm dish enjoyed with ice cream, apple crumble is full of the aromatic notes of cinnamon and the sweet textures of apples that make this dessert a comforting treat after a wholesome meal.
Feni adds another textural element into the sweet treat because its earthy and dense notes make for a fine flavour combination with the sweeter and heavier tastes of the crumble. Savour the dessert warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a honey drizzle.
