It's the time of the year when chef Vanshika Bhatia's Kanpur home fills with the divine aroma of kheer as it simmers on the stove. At the Bhatia family residence, the kheer isn't made from rice, but barnyard millet. The samakechawalki kheer is seasonal and made only in winters. "My mother would allow the sugars in the milk to caramelise well, giving the kheer its dense pink colour. Somehow, I haven't been able to replicate that, but every time I make this kheer, I am transported to the fasting days of Navratri when my mother, chachi and dadi would get together to make this," she says.

Chef Chirag Makwana