Ingredients

• 4              oz goond
• 1              cup vegetable oil for frying goond
• 2              Pkts sev (5.5 oz each)
• 1              lb butter
• 4              oz coconut
• 1/2           cup powder milk
• 1              lb almond flakes
• 1              can condensed milk
• 1/2           tsp cardamom coarsely ground
• 1/2           tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4           tsp saffron threads
• 1/4           cup pistachios finely chopped as a garnish

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a fry pan and fry the goond.  The goond will double in size and become transparent.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan.  Break the sev and fry it in the butter for about 5 min.  The sev will be dark and fluffy.
3. Add the coconut and powder milk, cardamom, nutmeg, and saffron,  fry for 2 min stirring all the time.
4. Add the almonds, goond and condensed milk and mix well.
5. Pour the mixture in a 9 x 12 baking tray and spread it evenly.  Sprinkle the pistachio and cool it completly.
6. Cut into squares or diamonds and serve.
7. The Pak can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a month.

Note: You can bake the goond in the oven.   Spread the goond on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 300 degrees for 5 minutes.]

Makes 16 squares

Ingredients For the Base

• 1          cup white flour
• 2          tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2       cup butter, softened

The Filling

• 1           cup walnuts, chopped
• 1           cup brown sugar
• 1/2        cup unsweetened coconut
• 2           tbsp flour
• 2           eggs lightly beaten
• 1           tsp vanilla

For the Icing

• 1/2         cup Mascarpone cheese, softened(Mascarpone cheese is Italian Cream Cheese).
• 1/4         cup butter, at room temperature
• 6            oz white chocolate, melted until completely smooth

Instructions

1. Heat Oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9″ square cake pan.
2. Work together ingredients for base, either in a food processor or using your fingers, to make fine crumbs. Press into pan. Bake until cooked through, about 15 mins.
3. Meanwhile, stir together the filling ingredients. Spread the mixture over the base when it comes out of the oven. Return to the oven, bake until set, about 25 mins. Cool completely on a rack.
4. For the icing, beat the cream cheese, butter and melted chocolate until smooth.
5. Gradually beat in the icing sugar, and finally, the lemon juice. Chill until spreadable, about 10 minutes.
6. Spread the icing over the cooked walnut filling and cut into squares,

Sheer Khurma or Sheer Khorma(literally means “milk with dates in Urdu) is a festive vermicelli pudding prepared by Muslims on Eid ul-Fitr in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. It is a traditional Muslim breakfast, and a desert for celebrations. Sheer (in Sunskrit has a same meaning as Milk), is Persian for milk and Khurma is Persian for dates. This dish is made from dried dates.

This special dish is served on the morning of Eid day in the family after the Eid prayers as breakfast, and throughout the day to all the visiting guests.

You will find a few different recipes for this. This is my mum’s recipe. This was dinner served with Puri and Batata no Shak

Ingredients

• 1             tbsp butter
• 2             oz sev(vermicelli)
• 1             lt homo milk
• 1/4         cup sugar
• 1/4         tsp crushed cardomon seeds
• 1/4         tsp nutmeg powder
•                A few strands saffron
• 1/4        cup chopped finely, almonds and pistachio
• 2             tbsp finely chopped dates(optional)
• 1             tbsp raisins (optional)

Method:

1. In a large saucepan, melt the butter and fry the vermicelli till it golden brown in colour, about 5 min.
2. Add the milk, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to mark 4, add the sugar, and spices and let it cook on low heat stirring frequently till the vermicelli is soft and the mixture is thick, about 15 minutes.
3. Serve hot or cold.
4. Decorate with fruit and nuts before serving.

You can use half and half to make it rich.

You can also add 1 small can evaporated milk.

• 8              oz butter, at room tempreture
• 6              oz golden brown sugar
•                 zest of 1 lemon
• 2              tsp orange blossom water
• 4              large eggs
• 4              oz white flour
• 3              oz ground almonds
• 2              tsp baking powder
• 5              oz marzipan, chopped into 1/2″ cubes,
•                 tossed lightly in flour
• 12            oz cherries, stoned and tossed lightly in flour
• 2              oz shelled, unsaltd pistachios
•                 Icing sugar to dust

For the syrup

• Juice of 1 orange
• Splash of orange blossom water
• 1 tbsp golden caster suger

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. Lightly grease and line an 8″ springform cake tin with baking paper.
3. Using an electric hand mixer, beat the butter in a large bowl with sugar and lemon zest for 3-5 minutes until pale and fluffy, then beat in the orange blossom water.
4. Beat in the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition, then beat in orange blossom water.
5. Beat in the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition.
6. Fold in flour, almonds and baking powder.
7. Fold in half the marzipan pieces and half the cherries, then transfer to the prepared tin and poke in the remaining marzipan and cherries, making sure they’re just covered by the cake mixture.
8. Transfer to the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20 minutes, then turn the heat to 290 degrees and bake for 50-60 minutes more. Check after 30 min; if it’s looking dark, cover the top with foil – not before, as opening the door will make the cake sink. It is cooked when a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean.
9. About 5 minutes defore the cake has finished cooking, make the syrup.
10. Put all the ingredients in a pan and heat gently until the sugar has melted.
11. When the cake is cooked, remove from the oven, poke holes all over the top with a skewer and drizzle over the syrup.
12. Leave to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Don’t leave to cool on the base of the springform or the bottom will be soggy.
13. When ready to serve, roughly chop the pistachios, scatter over the top of the cake and dust with icing sugar

The cake will keep in an airight container for 4 days and tastes best the day after you make it.

Note:

When adding heavy ingredients to cake batter (such as the marzipan and cherries,)tossing them in flour first helps stop them sinking, as does reserving half of them to push into the top of the mixture.

Ingredients

• 1               lb “Marie” biscuit or “Arrow root” biscuits
• 1               can condensed milk
• 2               cup homo milk
• 1               cup evaporated milk
• 3/4            cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• 1               cup whipping cream

Decoration

• 1/4            cup chopped nuts
• 2               tbsp shaved chocolate

Instructions

1.  Spread the condensed milk on the biscuits and make a pile of 4 cookies.
2. Layer these piles in a small 8 x 8 Pyrex dish.
3. Sprinkle nuts on it.
4. Pour the milk and evaporated milk on it. Let this rest for 5 hours or overnight
5. Whip the cream and spread this on the cookies.
6. Decorate with nuts and shaved chocolate.

Ingredients

• 1             pkt ginger nut cookies
• 2             cup whipping cream
• 1/2          cup chopped almonds, pistachio,
• 1/4          cup cherries

Decoration

Nuts, cherries, chocolates or fresh berries.

Instructions

1. Whip the cream until thick, take half the cream and add the nuts and cherries. Cover the other half and leave it in the fridge.
2. Spread cream over each cookie and sandwich into a log.
3. Wrap this in saran wrap and leave for 6 hours or overnight in the fridge.
4. Spread rest of the cream to cover the log and decorate with cherries and nuts/chocolate.

Ingredients

• 1 lb jaggery
• 3/4 cup waterI
• 1 1/4 lb roasted, blanched peanuts

Instructions

1. Brush a small stainless steel bowl with oil or melted butter.
2. Boil jaggery and water until jaggery melts.
3. Strain with a fine sieve.
4. Return to the saucepan and continue cooking on medium heat until thick. Test by dropping few drops in cold water. It should be hard crack stage (150 degree on candy thermometer).
5. Add peanuts and mix well.
6. Spread the mixture evenly inside bowl.
7. Push a greased smaller bowl into the mixture to help create a hollow bowl shape.
8. You have to loosen the basket right away otherwise you will have a problem taking it out.

You sieve the mixture because jaggery has small stones in it.

I use a candy thermometer for best result every time. To make the handle: make 1/2 a recipe of the jugu pak. Pour the mixture on a greased surface, and roll into a 1″ round, long stripe (it should be about the depth of the bowl), shape it into a handle. Save about 1 tbsp of the jaggery syrup before you add the nuts, for using as a glue for the handle. After removing the basket from the bowl, stick the handle with the reserved syrup. The basket should be stored in a cool place. You can substitute walnuts or pistachio for peanuts for the handle.

Chocolate and Plain You have to do this Barfi 2 times, so double the ingredients.

Ingredient

Plain Barfi

• 8                          oz unsalted butter
• 1                          can(375 ml) evaporated milk
• 6                          oz sugar
• 1                          lb powder milk(Pacific brand)
• 1/4                       tsp cardomon powder
• 1/4                       tsp nutmeg powder
•                             few strands saffron

Chocolate Barfi

• 1                         tbsp cocoa powder

Instructions

1. In a large saucepan melt the butter. Add the milk and the sugar and bring to a boil. Boil it for 5 minutes.
2. Lower the heat to medium and add the powder milk, cardomon and nutmeg and mix well. Cook it for 5 minutes. The mixture should be thick.
3. Pour this in a greased 10 in square cake tin.

Chocolate Barfi

1. Omit the saffron
2. When the milk starts to boil add cocoa powder and mix well, add the rest of the ingredients and cook till the mixture is thick, 5 minutes.
3. Add this on top of the plain Barfi and let it set overnight.
4. Cut into squares or diamonds.

Store Barfi in an airtight container, in the fridge for a couple of weeks. You can freeze it too. Variation You can use 1 cup finely chopped pistachio and a few drops of green color to make a plain and pistachio Barfi. You can olso make it in one flavour.