Thandai Cheesecake Mousse with Gulkand Whipped Cream
Mar 19, 2016, Updated May 07, 2023
No-Bake Thandai Cheesecake Mousse with Gulkand Whipped Cream makes a great dessert for Holi!
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No-Bake, Eggless Thandai Cheesecake Mousse with a graham cracker crust and topped with Gulkand Whipped Cream. The perfect dessert to enjoy this Holi!
Happy Saturday everyone! I am so excited to be sharing today’s recipe with you guys! I have had this idea in my head ever since I started thinking of Holi recipes and I am so happy that it turned out well! I mean I do have my share of failures and when you are trying something new, you are never sure whether it will turn out as good as it’s in your head. But this thandai cheesecake mousse did and the gulkand whipped cream was just the icing on the top!
For those who don’t know what thandai is, please refer to my recipe for thandai. It’s a refreshing drink made with milk and lots of spices like saffron, fennel, peppercorns, poppy seeds, cardamom etc. This drink is usually made during the festival of colors, Holi which is next week! ? So obviously I am making some thandai to celebrate and what I am also making is this cheesecake mousse! The same flavors of thandai in a cheesecake form plus it’s no bake and should be made a day in advance which actually means you can make these just in time for your Holi party!
And gulkand is rose petal preserve, it’s basically just sugar and rose petals and used in a lot of Indian sweets. I used very little of it in the whipped cream to give it’s a slight gulkand flavor, you can add more for a stronger flavor.
I first thought of making a proper 9 inch baked thandai cheesecake and then I changed my mind at the last minute! I thought these individual thandai cheesecake mousse will be easier to prepare and also easier to serve at your Holi party. Individual servings are the best and it’s so convenient to make these in advance, pop in the fridge and then just serve your guests the next day.
To make the thandai cheesecake mousse, you first need to make the thandai paste. The recipe for the paste makes some extra paste but you can obviously just mix the extra with your milk and enjoy the thandai (obviously!). Once you have made the paste, the rest of the steps are really easy. Chilling the cheesecake mousse overnight is recommended. Once they are chilled, simply decorate them with some gulkand whipped cream and there you have it – a delicious Holi dessert which is sure to impress your guests! Hope you guys make this no-bake thandai cheesecake mousse this Holi and if you do please don’t forget to share a picture with me.
PS:  This recipes serves 12-14 but as you can my glasses are really small. You may get less serving depending on how big your glasses are.
Method
First of all make the thandai paste. Blend together all ingredients listed under “thandai paste” with little milk and set aside.
Crush graham crackers using your food processor till you get fine crumbs or put the crackers in a ziplock bag and crush using a rolling pin. Transfer the crushed crumbs to a bowl. Add sugar to it and mix.
Add melted butter and mix till crumbs feel like moist sand.
Take your serving glasses/bowl and divide the crumbs equally between them. Push the crumbs to the bottom of the glass using the back of your spoon or with your thumb till it’s all compact. Place the glasses in the refrigerator while you make the filling.
Warm 1 tablespoon of milk in the microwave and then add 1 teaspoon saffron to it. Crush the saffron a little when you add it. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
Using the paddle attachment of your stand mixer or using your hand mixer, beat cream cheese for 5-6 minutes or till completely smooth. It’s very important for the cream cheese to be at room temperature here.
Add sugar, cardamom essence and the soaked saffron to the cream cheese now. Mix till combined.
Add 4 tablespoons of the prepared thandai paste to the mixture.
Mix till everything is well combined. Set aside.
Now beat the heavy cream till it forms peaks using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer or using your hand mixer. Be careful not to over-beat it. [It’s a good idea to chill the bowl and the attachment for 15-20 minutes before you beat the cream, also the heavy cream should be cold and straight out of the refrigerator.]
Carefully fold in the whipped cream into the cheesecake mixture. Do this in 2-3 parts.
Once you have folded in all the whipped cream, take out the glasses out of the refrigerator.
Pipe or spoon the cheesecake mousse mixture into the prepared glasses. Cover with a cling sheet and refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Next morning, when ready to serve make the gulkand whipped cream. Start beating heavy cream using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer or use your hand mixer. Once it starts to foam a little, add gulkand paste, 2 drops of rose essence and few drops of pink food color (optional).
Beat till it forms still peaks. The gulkand whipped cream is now ready.
Take out the chilled thandai cheesecake mousse from the refrigerator and top with gulkand whipped cream. You can garnish on top with some mukhwas (mouth freshener which mainly has candied fennel) if you like! Serve immediately and enjoy!
* I recommend chilling the mousse overnight however if you don’t have time, the minimum recommendation is 4 hours.
* Make sure the cream cheese is completely at room temperature before you start beating it and beat it for good 5-6 minutes with your stand mixer or more if using a hand mixer. It should be totally smooth with no lumps.
* I used very little whipped cream on top, if you want more on top of your mousse, double the recipe for Gulkand Whipped Cream.
* You can find mukhwas at any Indian grocery store. It’s a mouth freshener which we eat after our meals in India.
Thandai Cheesecake Mousse with Gulkand Whipped Cream
Ingredients
Crust
- 1.5 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 3 tablespoons granulated white sugar
Cheesecake Mousse
- 12 oz cream cheese at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon saffron dissolved in 1 tablespoons warm milk
- 3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom essence
- 4 tablespoons thandai paste
- 1.5 cups heavy cream cold
Thandai paste
- 30 almonds soaked and skin removed
- 20 black peppercorns
- 2 tablespoons watermelon seeds
- 16 green cardamom pods
- 4 teaspoons fennel seeds
- 4 teaspoons poppy seeds
- 3-4 tablespoons milk
Gulkand Whipped Cream
- 1/2 cup heavy cream cold
- 1 tablespoon gulkand also known as rose petal preserve
- 2 drops rose essence
- pink food color optional
Mukhwas, for topping, optional
Instructions
- First of all make the thandai paste. Blend together all ingredients listed under "thandai paste" with little milk and set aside.
- Crush graham crackers using your food processor till you get fine crumbs or put the crackers in a ziplock bag and crush using a rolling pin.
- Transfer the crushed crumbs to a bowl. Add sugar to it and mix.
- Add melted butter and mix till crumbs feel like moist sand.
- Take your serving glasses/bowl and divide the crumbs equally between them.
- Push the crumbs to the bottom of the glass using the back of your spoon or with your thumb till it's all compact. Place the glasses in the refrigerator while you make the filling.
- Warm 1 tablespoon of milk in the microwave and then add 1 teaspoon saffron to it. Crush the saffron a little when you add it. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Using the paddle attachment of your stand mixer or using your hand mixer, beat cream cheese for 5-6 minutes or till completely smooth. It's very important for the cream cheese to be at room temperature here.
- Add sugar, cardamom essence and the soaked saffron to the cream cheese now. Mix till combined.
- Add 4 tablespoons of the prepared thandai paste to the mixture. Mix till everything is well combined. Set aside.
- Now beat the heavy cream till it forms peaks using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer or using your hand mixer. Be careful not to over-beat it. [It's a good idea to chill the bowl and the attachment for 15-20 minutes before you beat the cream, also the heavy cream should be cold and straight out of the refrigerator.]
- Carefully fold in the whipped cream into the cheesecake mixture. Do this in 2-3 parts.
- Once you have folded in all the whipped cream, take out the glasses out of the refrigerator and pipe or spoon the cheesecake mousse mixture into the prepared glasses.
- Cover with a cling sheet and refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 hours.
- Next morning, when ready to serve make the gulkand whipped cream.
- Start beating heavy cream using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer or use your hand mixer.
- Once it starts to foam a little, add gulkand paste, 2 drops of rose essence and few drops of pink food color (optional).
- Beat till it forms still peaks. The gulkand whipped cream is now ready.
- Take out the chilled thandai cheesecake mousse from the refrigerator and top with gulkand whipped cream. Garnish with mukhwas (optional) and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Thandai Cheesecake Mousse with Gulkand Whipped Cream
I made this for our annual Diwali party for over 30 guests. It was absolutely divine and a huge hit among both kids and adults. I was skeptical about kids liking this dessert due to it’s unique flavor, but they went for seconds and even thirds. Thank you for sharing this recipe. You have inspired me to make more fusion desserts for upcoming gatherings.
welcome! Happy Diwali!
Made this for Diwali the third time 🙂 always love it. This time I tried using a Parle-G crust instead of Graham cracker – turned out a little sweeter and the crust got a little harder. Not sure if it was because of the parle-g or my extra cold fridge.
Hi. Just one question. Is there a substitute for cream cheese ? Right now in India with the restrictions in place its difficult to get cream cheese. The recipe is brilliant. Would definitely want to try
sorry I don’t have a substitute for cream cheese since this is a cheesecake and it is the key ingredient. You can try with hung curd (hang it for 4-6 hours) and then use. I am not sure if that will work but you can try it.
Wonderful recipe! I have a question. Can I make this 2 days ahead of time? Thank you!
the cheesecake yes, I would not make the whipped cream topping 2 days prior, make that the last day
Thank you so much!
Awesome recipe! I would love to try this. I have a question though, can I make this 2 days ahead of time?
cheesecake part yes, whipped cream last day
Lovely recipe
Made these twice now and they are absolutely delicious. What a brilliant idea! Genius recipe 🙂 Love that its an Indian fusion one and it was a complete hit with my guests
Hi can u pls tell me OZ in gram?
How much cheese cream in gram?
around 340 grams of cream cheese.
Hi manali loved ur recipie but I have question whether this cheese cake sets without gelatin and have the same creamy texture?
Nikita, it doesn’t really set like a cheesecake, that’s why I call it a mousse…if you want to a set a no-bake cheesecake use gelatin or if you are a vegetarian use agar agar. hope that helps!
Hi. I was wondering if I can use readymade Thandai syrup (the one that you normally mix with milk and have) instead of preparing the Thandai paste.
Hi smriti, yes you may use ready made Thandai syrup..should work!
What is the ratio etc if you replace the paste with the actual
Syrup?
since I haven’t made/tested this recipe with syrup, I can’t tell the exact amount
fantastic!!! thank you so much for sharing….i had fun preparing it and my fiends enjoyed it!!!! thank uuuuuuuu!!!!
welcome Chaitra 🙂
Brilliant.. Now this is called perfect indo-western combo.. Bookmarking it
Thank you Priya!
these are so pretty! I love the bright yellow color! 😉 and the crust YUM crumbly graham cracker crusts are my favorite!
This looks fabulous!
love the fusion of thandai and gulkand flavors!
It look nice and taste…what the marvellous recepe that I have seen…thumbup to you deer…keep sharing and thankyou….I will alway follow your recepe..
Thanks Anu! 🙂
Excellent share
Thanks Shibani! 🙂