Kesar Kheer

Deepawali away from home is always sad and just can't get the same even when it is celebrated with full fervour here in Kuwait and the thing I miss the most about Deepawali back home is the special food cooked by my mother on this special day! The Dahi Vade, Poori, Aloo-Tamatar ki Sabzi and the awesome Kheer which she makes! I have grown up devouring the Kheer she makes and have rarely liked any other version made by somebody else! that's how special her Kheer is!

To make this day special I decided to make Kesar Kheer at home myself this time! I have always made Phirni/Kheer using the National/Mehran readymade mix always but this time I wanted to make it special! I wanted to make it from scratch and boy I was successful or what! And the icing on the cake was this was calorie free and sugar free as I used Half Fat Milk and Splenda as the sweetener!

Thanks to the best possible Recipe Book on Indian Cuisine - "Prashad - Cooking with Indian Masters" the Kheer became a reality!

My parents are coming to Kuwait in February 2014 and I am definitely making this for them!

And now the recipe details...

Ingredients:

3 Litres Milk (I used the Half Fat variety)
75 grams Basmati Ricce
3 tbsp Desi Ghee
75 grams Splenda (Granulated)
15 Green Cardamoms
15 Almonds
1/4 cup Raisins
15 Cashews
15 Pistachios
2 grams Saffron
30 ml Milk (to dissolve the Saffron)

Method:

1. Wash the Rice in running water, soak for an hour and then drain

2. Blanch the Almonds in warm water for 10 minutes, remove the skin and then slice them

3. Saute the Pistachios and Cashews in Ghee for 5 minutes and make a powder of 10 green cardamoms

4. Dissolve the Saffron in warm milk for 15-20 minutes

5. Pour the Milk in a Pan and bring it to boil

6. Heat the ghee, add 5 full cardamoms, add the soaked rice and bhunno it when it changes colour to light brown (it should take 8-10 minutes)

7. Add the Rice to the boiling milk and stirring continuously all the while, keep simmering it on low flame and keep stirring continuously so that the mixture doesn't get burnt in the bottom

8. The MOST IMPORTANT key is Low flame and the continuous stirring!

9. Once the mix is reduced to 60-70% of the original volume, add the Splenda Powder and stir slowly so that it gets dissolved completely

10. Add all the Dry Fruits at this stage plus the Green Cardamom Powder

11. Keep stirring till you get the desired consistency of the Kheer

12. The Kesar Kheer is ready to devour...

13. Thank me later


Till the time we meet again…

Cheers to life…

Till then ride safe and have safe sex…

Hasta la Victoria Siempre…