Search
Login
Foodies Only in your inbox
By clicking "Subscribe", you agree to ourPrivacy Policy and to receive marketing emails from Foodies Only
ITC Portal
Copyright © 2025 Foodies Only
SearchLoginSearchLoginCopyright © 2025 Foodies Only
6 Min
10/02/2026
Rose Day kicks off Valentine's Week, and if you want to skip the cliché box of chocolates, make a dessert that actually looks like flowers instead. These recipes blend floral flavours with serious visual appeal – the kind of treats that make people pull out their phones before taking a bite. Whether you're going for the intricate French technique or simple puff pastries, these rose-inspired sweets deliver on both counts.
Valentine’s Day gets all the attention, but Rose Day is where the real work happens. It's the first day of Valentine's Week, which means you've got seven days to prove you're not the type who scrambles at the last minute to grab whatever box of chocolates and roses are left on February 14th. As for this particular day, rose-flavoured desserts are perfect, and they sit in that sweet spot between ‘I tried’ and ‘I have my life together’. They're fancy enough to photograph, romantic enough to count as effort, and most importantly, taste better than those dusty conversation starters.
There might not be anything floral in these, but what makes them so delightful is that they use thin apple slices, arranged on puff pastry strips and rolled to look like roses. The apples are typically softened in water with lemon juice and microwaved for a few minutes, then layered with cinnamon sugar or apricot preserves on the pastry. Like most mini tarts, they are then baked in muffin tins at 190°C for 40-45 minutes until golden. What you get is a dessert that mimics actual roses but tastes like apple pie.
Macarons are always a treat for both the eyes and the mouth, especially if you are making them. This rose day, give French macarons a floral upgrade with rose water in both the shells and buttercream filling. Rose water is potent, so start with less and add more as needed to avoid a soapy taste. Top the finished macarons with white chocolate drizzle and dried rose petals for extra oomph. The shells can be tinted pink to match the season of love. Make sure that the macarons mature for at least 4 hours or overnight for the best flavour.
A creamy cheesecake is a must-try for rose day, especially one adapted for the occasion. Infused with rose water, the typical cheesecake gets a delicate floral aroma and subtle flavour upgrade. You can opt for a no-bake cheesecake or go for a fully baked one with a water bath. To fit the theme, consider adding food colouring or beetroot powder to the cheesecake filling and decorating with edible rose petals for more visual impact. The rose essence should be subtle enough to be noticed but not overwhelming.
This creamy rice pudding flavoured with rose water is an aromatic dessert that makes a perfect end to a Valentine's Day meal. If you want to be extra, then upgrade this phirni into a rose phirni parfait! It's a lighter option compared to chocolate-heavy desserts and offers something different from the usual Western fare. This creamy rice pudding is made typically with ground basmati rice (pre-soaked) and milk, which is cooked until it thickens considerably, beofre adding rose petals and essence. Garnish with chopped pistachios, almonds, and rose petals before refrigerating for at least two to three hours.
This variation combines the beloved rice pudding with strawberry puree and rose syrup for a naturally pink dessert. Cook chopped strawberries with sugar and rose syrup until they break down into a paste, then let that cool before mixing it into the prepared kheer. The kheer base can be made with rice or ghee-fried vermicelli, which is a deep shade of golden, that is then cooked in milk and cream with cardamom for a perfumed dessert. The rose flavour balances out the tartness of fresh strawberries, creating a more complex taste than the typical kheer.
This tart features a hazelnut and almond base topped with chocolate ganache infused with rose, vanilla, cardamom, and cinnamon. To make this tart, first start with the shell and bake it until golden and stiff. If you want a vegan version, make it with coconut milk and chopped dark chocolate to create the ganache. Then pour the ganache into the cooled tart shell and refrigerate for one to two hours until set. You can also swap the dark chocolate with white chocolate, and add a bit of pink food colour to it to mimic the colour of roses.
Grilled pears are an Eastern delight, although not a very common one. They are made by soaking pears in balsamic sugar syrup. When topped with rose-flavoured rabdi, it creates a fusion dessert. The pears are first halved and cored, then grilled cut-side down for several minutes, until the sugars in them caramelise. During the final minutes of cooking, balsamic vinegar is added to form a glaze that complements the sweetness of the fruit. Serve the pears with rabdi, a thickened milk dessert flavoured with rose water and cardamom, served cold over the warm pears.
Rose Day desserts don't have to mean dumping rose syrup into everything you bake. The best recipes use floral notes as an accent, not the main event. Whether you're rolling apple slices into pastry flowers or piping ganache into macaron shells, the key is in balancing the flavours. Make something that looks as good as it tastes, and you'll have a Valentine's Week win on your hands.