Indulge in little-known desserts from 35 countries in Thane, Kemps Corner

Chef Abhiru Biswas with restaurateur Nishek Jain who are introducing Russian South African and even littleknown Indian desserts to the city this yearIt was in 1998 that Mumbaibased chef Abhiru Biswas visited France for the first time Employed with a chocolatemaking company he was on an assignment to Paris After working from Monday to Friday I finally requested my boss to extend my stay by a day just so I could explore the city he says Armed with a road map he headed to Leon a commune in Lande southwestern France While gallavanting about town I stumbled upon this serpentine queue and thought it might be a sale at a fashion store Later I realised that people were waiting for the millefeuille at a bakery he laughs It was love at first bite sighs Biswas recalling his tryst with the classic French pastryThe interiors of Treats of the World in ThaneA shared love When we meet him on a weekday morning at his Malad bakery the 45yearold who is the techincal advisor of a leading Belgian chocolate brand has just finished baking the millefeuille just the way the French make it Crispy flaky and decadent in all the right places its a dessert that he wants Mumbaikars to familiarise themselves with His partner in this very sweet crime is Nishek Jain founder of the restaurant 29 at Kemps Corner and the duo will launch Treats of The World TOW a first of its kind vegetarian cafeacute at Thane and Kemps Corner The mission To take guests on a journey of 35 countries through eggless and gelatinfree dessertsBoth Jain and Biswas have harboured a desire to explore world desserts for years now And it came together when they were introduced through a common friend in 2014 I am a restaurateur but not a chef So while I had all these ideas in my mind I wanted somebody who could put my vision to action he says For Biswas a Bengali the attachment to desserts was almost emotionalFor me the idea was born during one of my backpacking trips to Scotland when I saw a bunch of students eating a decadent chocolate bar for breakfast When I asked them they said its the Scottish Mars bar a longstanding tradition among university students there says Jain who soon figured that the dessert is essentially a humble Mars bar fried in a peculiar batter that has somehow found its way into Scottish culture The chocolate bar is typically chilled before battering to prevent it from melting into the frying fat he says After returning to India the 33yearold tried making it himself but failed Biswas I realised had the expertise and technical knowhow to optimise it as far as taste and quality is concerned I felt people in India would love it if done right he says One continent at a time The duo have been spending many a waking hours brainstorming and conducting trials at the bakery for over a year now To the extent that our wives have given up on us laughs Jain But its a concept that they were aware required ample investment in terms of time and effort We are trying to get authentic world desserts to India and it is a challenge to nail it adds Biswas As per their plan each quarterly menu will introduce 20 new desserts Phase one will see the Basbousa a native Egyptian moist cakelike sweet using semolina cream of wheat baked and soaked in a sugar syrup and flavoured with orange blossom If I have to explain it to an Indian Id call it a halwa Its quite popular in the Middle Eastern belt Its heavy on the tummy but theres a balance of flavours mdash thanks to orange and coconut mdash so you wont find it cloyingly sweet says Biswas Theres also the popular Russian dessert Medovik a delightful orange honey cake with bourbon vanilla charlotteMany ingredients therefore are imported from the country of origin For instance the bokbunja or the berries in the Korean black raspberry mousse come from a rainforest plantation in South Jeolla province South Korea They have also sought inspiration from Australian chocolatier Max Brenner who made a fortune selling chocolate fondue Here itll be sold in three creamy dips mdash white dark chocolate and pure milk chocolate accompanied by fresh fruits like strawberry melon churros and butterscotch sticks Interestingly all the cocoa beans at TOW have been sourced from a plantation in Coimbatore in order to promote indigenous venturesMoving beyond kheerThe menu will also see desi desserts that many Mumbaikars might not be familiar with like ghevar from Rajasthan The discshaped sweet cake made with allpurpose flour and soaked in sugar syrup from Rajasthan is traditionally associated with the Teej Festival They had to drop makhan malai a creamy dessert so light that it melts in the mouth of its patrons made in Lucknow due to environmental factors The key to preparation of makhan malai lies in exposing the milk to dew at 4 am It wasnt possible to do it here says JainFor Jain the challenge lay in sourcing a healthy alternative to gelatin We found out about agaragar a gelatinous polysaccharide derived from red algae It is expensive but completely natural and without any synthetic properties The difference is hard to figure he adds But both Jain and Biswas are confident in their creations There used to be a time when Indians liked their desserts to be extremely sweet but now our palates have switched to darker cocoabased Its a good time to experiment says JainKorean Raspberry MousseKorean Raspberry Mousse From South Korea A dessert from the rainforest plantations of Mokpo South Jeolla province this is a slightly bitter mousse made of bokbunja Korean berries The berries add a slight crunch to the dessert offering a change in texture Rs240SMD RECOMMENDSSouth African peppermint Tart South Africa A mintflavoured brownie with dark chocolate ganache and pepper mint infusion Rs160Millefeuille FranceIts a 1000layered pastry with raspberry cream milk and chocolate ganache Rs175Basbousa EgyptA Middle Eastern semolinabased cake prepared for Ramadan Rs225Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news current affairs from Mumbai local news crime news and breaking headlines hereDownload the new midday Android and iOS apps to get updates on all the latest and trending stories on the go