PUDDINGS - MILK
Andhra Junnu (Milk Pudding)
China Grass (10 gram packet)
Milk 4-1/4 cups
Ilachi (Cardmom) - 6 pods - powdered
Peppercorns to taste, coursely ground
Fresh fruits for garnish (cherries, berries)
Sugar - 2 cups
Traditionally, Junnu calls for the first day milk after the birth of a calf. "China Grass" is a substitute. It’s manufactured by a firm in Chennai (Madras) and is available in some Indian groceries.
Boil milk. Wash the china grass in cold water to remove traces of any preservatives. After thoroughly washing, drain the water. When milk starts boiling, add washed and drained china grass. The china grass melts in the boiling milk in 4 to 5 minutes. After adding china grass, add two cups of sugar and stir constantly. After china grass and sugar melts, add cardamom power and ground pepper. Stir well for a few seconds and remove the vessel from fire. Allow the mixture to cool a little. Pour the mixture into sevearl small molds or cups, or in a larger vessel. You can also pour the mixture into a deep plate, and cut it into squares or diamonds after it becomes solid. Place fruits on top of the mixture and put in refrigerator to chill. In about one hour, the mixture should solidify like ice cream. After it becomes solid, it will not melt like ice cream.
Basoondi
Milk 2 ltrs.
Sugar 1 cup
Charoli seeds, handful
Crushed cardamoms ½ tsp.
Heat milk in a thick bottomed pan. Bring it to a boil. Simmer and reduce it to get a thick consistency. Stir continuously to avoid milk sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add charoli seeds and sugar. Cook on a slow for 10 minutes. Add green cardamom powder. Pour into a serving dish. Chill and offer.
Basundi
2 quarts Ricotta Cheese
2 cups sugar
1 cup milk
½ cup half-n-half
Little saffron
1 tsp cardamom powder
Preheat oven to 325 F for 10 minutes. Do no remove the excess water from the Ricotta Cheese. Place the cheese in a bowl and 1 cup of sugar and mix well. Put this mixture in an aluminum foil pack and bake at 350 F for 35 minutes. In a sauce pan add milk and half-n-half and boil on a low flame for 15-20 minutes. Add the remaining cup of sugar, saffron, and cardamom powder to it. The cheese can be removed after 35 minutes of baking. It will appear to be in a soggy consistency. Put the Cheese in the freezer for about 10 minutes to let it cool. Remove from freezer and drop the cheese slowly in the boiling milk and let it cool for about 10 minutes. Store in the refrigerator until ready to offer.
Milk Khoa
Whole Milk - 2-1/2 cups
Sugar - 1 cup
Ghee - 1 tsp
In a heavy bottomed vessel heat up the milk. As it starts to boil, reduce the heat to low and continue to boil further. Stir continuously to avoid the top layer from forming. When the milk is condensed to about 1/2 its original quantity, add the sugar and stir continuously. Let the sugar dissolve completely and the entire mixture start to thicken. When it no longer sticks to the sides of the vessel, add the ghee, mix thoroughly and remove from the fire. Store in a greased container or a vessel lined with a plastic until ready to offer.
Palgova
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp milk
2 tsp curd (yoghurt)
Elachi (cardamom) powder, a little
Ghee 2 tsp.
Put condensed milk, milk and curd in a microwave bowl and cook it for 2 minutes. Take it out, stir it and cook again keep for another 2 minutes. Finally add elachi powder and ghee and let it sit for another 2 minutes. While cooking in microwave, stop and and stir often, so lumps don’t form.
Sikarni
4 cups plain yogurt
2 cups sour cream
1/4 cup double cream
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon saffron
1 cup unsalted pistachio nuts, slivered or broken
In a large bowl, mix yogurt and sour cream together. Pour the yogurt mixture into a large colander with a cheese cloth liner. Hand and drain for about 12 hours. Transfer the mixture into a mixing bowl. Dissolve saffron in lukewarm cream. To the yogurt mixture add sugar, cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom, nutmeg, dissolved saffron, and pistachio nuts; fold in thoroughly. Chill overnight in refrigerator. To offer, scoop a cup of chilled Sikarni into a serving plate and garnish with whole pistachio nuts.
Sri Lanka Imbul Kiri Bath (Milk Rice)
Coconut Treacle Mix, 1 package
4 cups finely scraped Coconut
2 cups Treacle (Coconut or Kithul treacle)
4 Cloves
Pinch of Salt
For the Milk Rice
2 cups short grain white Rice
2 cups thick Coconut milk
2 tsp Salt
3 cups Water
Coconut Treacle Mix: Pour the treacle into a pot and bring to a boil while stirring. Add the Coconut and mix well. Remove from the heat. Add pinch of salt and the cloves, mix well.
Milk Rice: Put rice and water into a pan and bring to a boil. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. Add coconut milk and salt. Stir, cover and cook on low heat for another 10-15 minutes, until the milk has been absorbed.
Combine: Divide the slightly cooled milk rice into two portions. On a flat dish, evenly spread out a layer of milk rice using one portion (should be at least. ½ inch thick). Then evenly spread the coconut treacle mix on top. Cover it completely (including from the sides) with the second portion of the milk rice. It is important to do all this before the milk rice cools down too much as it will become too sticky to handle. Cut into blocks. Offer with bananas for breakfast or as a snack.
Strawberry and Saffron Pashka
1-3/4 cup cottage cheese
¾ cup yogurt
1/5 cup honey
1-1/2 cups strawberries
Large pinch saffron
Drain the liquid from the cottage cheese and sieve into a bowl. Stir in the yogurt and honey into the cheese. Lightly roast the saffron strands, crush, and add along with chopped strawberries. Line a clean earthen pot with a muslin cloth and fill with the cheese mixture. Keep overnight. Invert and decorate with strawberry pieces and black grapes and offer with hot strawberry sauce.
