Inspiced — Recipe Manager
Shahi Toast

Shahi Toast

cooking.nytimes.com
White bread transforms into a luxurious dessert in this classic South Asian sweet. Think of shahi toast as the ultimate bread pudding — cold, creamy, dreamy, crunchy and fragrant with cardamom, which tastes citrusy, sweet and floral. Buttered, toasted squares of bread are soaked in a citrusy-sweet cardamom cream until soft (but not soggy!) and topped with crunchy pistachios. This was one of my mom’s favorite desserts as a kid growing up in India and this is her shortcut version, with my upgrades (hint: butter). It is amazing how luxurious this tastes considering how easy it is to make.
  • Preparation:
  • Cooking:
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  • Serves: 4 persons

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Step 1

    Coat the bottom of a medium pot or a small Dutch oven with 2 tablespoons water and then add the cream. The water will prevent the cream from sticking when it’s heated up. Cook over medium heat, stirring regularly, until the cream is warmed through, 4 to 6 minutes. 

  2. Step 2

    Turn off the heat and stir in the sugar, cardamom and salt until the sugar dissolves. Set aside.

  3. Step 3

    Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, turn the heat down to medium-low, add the bread, and cook until the bottom is golden brown, 3 to 6 minutes. Flip using tongs and cook until the other side is also golden brown, 2 to 6 minutes more.

  4. Step 4

    Arrange the pieces of bread in a single layer, like a patchwork quilt, in a 9-inch square baking dish. Give the cardamom cream a stir to fully incorporate the sugar and cardamom, then pour it over the bread, making sure each piece of bread is fully soaked with the cream mixture to achieve the ideal creamy-crunchy texture.

  5. Step 5

    Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for up to 12 hours. Garnish with the pistachios and serve cold.
NY Times
cooking.nytimes.com