All dessert but no oasis

The last page of Indian menus is in dire need of a makeover. The same standards dominate, only a few places do them well. Yet, they reek of the sweet smell of success

- VIR SANGHVI

Red velvet cakes in India focus more on colour than texture. Anglaise can contain chemical additives, which ultimately affect the taste of the icecream. 

Even though India is in the midst of a bakery boom, have you noticed how, in much of the country, you still get the same old cakes and puddings? Some of it is, of course, because they are classics and tough to improve on. But in many cases, it is just laziness.

The only significant all-India innovation I can think of over the last decade is the ice-cream boom, consisting, on the whole, of egg-less ice cream.

(Sorry, but you can't really make a world class icecream without a substantial fat content and real eggs.) But usually, I am always disappointed by the failure of the ice-cream makers to make a good Anglaise (the custard mix that goes into the icecream machine). They try and disguise this by thinking of unusual flavours.

The other great dessert boom is cheesecake. As you probably know, there are two basic kinds of cheesecake: Baked and unbaked. The unbaked kind relies on a little gelatine to hold its shape, but Indian chefs often don't know how much is enough, and many cheesecakes are revoltingly springy. If the basic cheesecake is crap, blueberry or chocolate toppings are not going to rescue it.

Here is a list of some of the most popular items at Indian bakeries.

The cupcake boom took place in the early years of this century, but their popularity is waning because macarons are taking the center-stage in bakeries and sweetshops.