Dessert Gulkhand: - srrve hot with chilled sweetened cream or ice cream! I learnt this from a Chef in a 5 star hotel, where I had gone to see a cookery demonstration. If you buy special gulkhand bought from NI shops, 250 gms will do. What I used was T S R & co – Gokul gulkhand. White pumpkin - 2 kgs Shop-bought gulkhand - 400 gms Sweetened khoa - 200gms Remove skin & seeds from pumpkin & grate. Take in a heavy kadai & cook till the water dries up completely & it becomes a thick mass. Add gulkand & khoa & stir very well. Add just 1-2 tbsp ghee to prevent sticking. Cook on a medium flame till thick.
Nut-Khoa Burfi - a very rich, exotic burfi, without ghee! For SBS photos,please go to http://www.indusladies.com/forums/968496-post72.html Khoya - 1 cup (grated) Grated or coarsely powdered nuts - 1 cup Sugar - 1 ½ cups Cardamom powder - 1 tsp Stir fry khoa on a low fire till golden brown. Mix sugar & water. Boil to make a thick, one string syrup. Add khoya & nuts. Go on stirring on a low fire, till it becomes very thick. Remove & stir for a few mts. Empty on a greased plate and cut when cold.. It can be made like a halwa also.
Madurai Thengai Thiratipal - in some houses, customarily made for deepavali! Either this or Ukkarai is a must in Madurai. I am giving MW ukkarai in the MW thread. MW Ukkarai Already ukkarai is given in Old is Gold Ukkarai Freshly gratedcoconut - 2 heaped cups (only white portion) Moong dhal - 1/3 cup Jaggery crushed - 1 ½ cups (a little more or less to taste) Ghee - 3 tbsp Cardamom powder - 1 tsp Dry roast moong dhal on a kadai till medium brown. Powder that in the mixie and add the coconut. Give a run to get a smooth mixture. Powder the jaggery & mix well. In a kadai, heat 2 tbsp ghee & add the mixture. Cook on medium heat till the mixture starts thickening – this will be quick. Add rest of the ghee & cardamom powder. Remove.
Special Milk Chocolate - announcing my GD’s wedding!! Butter - 200 gms Milk powder - 2 ½ cups Cocoa - 50 gms Sugar - ½ kg Sieve milk powder & cocoa ogether. Add 2 cups of water to sugar. Simmer it to boil, stirring. Boil to one string consistency. Remove from fire. Add butter & stir till it melts. Then add milk powder-cocoa mixture & beat vigorously with a wooden spoon. Pour in a greased tray & cut. I use chocolate moulds and make shapes. If preferred, add chopped nuts, before pouring into the greased plate. This makes 60-70 chocolates.
Golden Balls - a variation of appam! Very ripe bananas, medium size - 4 Rava - 1 cup Sugar - ½ cup Cardamom powder - 1 tsp I used the FP. One can mix by hand also, by beating well. First mix rava, sugar & cardamom powder. Add grated banana & beat till you get idli dough consistency. Mix everything well & rest for 1 hour. Make balls & shallow- fry in paniyaram chatti or appakaral. Cook on a low fire to prevent browning fast.
Spoon Halwa - Famous in a Madurai Restaurant! This is served hot with breakfast, in small amounts along with idli, vadai & pongal. Bombay rava - 1 cup Water - 2 cups Sugar 2 ½ cups (+enough water to immerse the sugar) Ghee - ½ cup Cardamom powder - ½ tsp Saffron - a pinch Chopped nuts - to garnish Roast rava dry on a low flame till pink. Cool & soak in 2 cups of water. After an hour grind to a paste using that water & keep ready. Heat sugar syrup on a low fire, stirring well. Boil till it reaches 1 string. Remove & add the rava paste with one hand, whisking fast simultaneously with the other hand to prevent lump formation. (If lumps are there, pass the handblender trough it to break them – but if you do the above step correctly, there will not be a single lump!). Put back on fire & cook adding ghee little by little at a time. When it becomes a mass & leaves the sides of the vessel, add cardamom powder & saffron. Remove, garnish with nuts & serve hot.
Walnut Halwa - a less common, delicious halwa! Walnuts ( shelled) - 250 gms Milk - 1 ½ litres Sweetened condensed milk - 400 gms tin Ghee - 2 tbsp Powder walnuts in the mixie. Boil milk, add walnut powder & condensed milk. Blend thoroughly & cook till it solidifies. Add ghee at the end & mix.
Chettinad Ukra - a traditional Nagarathar sweet. Moong dhal - ½ cup Bombay rava - ¼ cup Rice flour - ¼ cup Freshly grated coconut - 1 tbsp Ghee - 3-4 tbsp Jaggery - 1 cup (or more to taste) Chopped cashews - 1-2 tbsp Cardamom powder - 1 tsp Fry moon g dhal in 2 tsp ghee till light brown. Boil till just soft in 1 cup of water. Strain & keep. Boil jaggery with 1 cup of water, strain & keep ready. Heat ghee & fry rava on low fire till well fried. Add rice flour, coconut & cashews & simmer. Fry on a low fire, till cashews turn golden. Add boiled dhal & jaggery syrup. Simmer & cooktill the entire mass is cooked & halwa consistency is reached. Add cardamom powder & remove. Keeps in the fridge for 3, 4 days & outside for 2 days.
Sago-Milk Halwa - Very easy to make! For SBS photos,please go to http://www.indusladies.com/forums/968500-post73.html Sago - 1 cup Milk - 3 ½ cups Sugar - 1 ½ cups Ghee - ½ cup Cashews, raisins - 2 tbsps each Cardamom powder - 1 tsp Soak sago in 1 cup of water for 2 hrs. Grind fine with milk. Mix the ground mixture, remaining milk & sugar without lump. Cook on medium heat on, adding ghee gradually. When it solidifies & starts leaving the vessel, add cardamom powder & cashew-raisins fried in 2 tsp ghee. Remove from flame.
Apricot Burfi - Sugar free! For SBS photos please go to http://www.indusladies.com/forums/968502-post74.html I am trying out a few sweets with dry fruits which do not require cooking. This is a recipe from my 40 year-old book 500 recipes - Sweets & Candies. Apricot pulp combined with dry fruits makes a naturally sweet burfi. Apricots are blanched in hot water for 2 mts & puree made. I used the apricots shown below. This step is necessary only if they are very hard. Apricot puree - ½ cup Chopped almonds, pista & cashews - 1/3 cup Ghee - 2-3 tsp (melted) Cardamom powder - ½ tsp Combine all ingredients to form a soft dough. Roll out into a rectangle & cut into squares. I used chocolate moulds to shape them.