What's Cooking? Basundi, The Gujarati Classic Slow Cooked Dessert.

    

    
   Dealing with the new house and a whole bunch of other stuff I'll get into later has been a lot of work. Last week finally, the last of the boxes left the living room and we started to get an idea of just what goes where, and also what that "what" should be. There's also the issue of how the house works with people besides ourselves in it. One of the things that appealed to us about the place was how it would work for entertaining. The way we designed the place was with friends and family in mind and we were eager to take it for a small test spin. Each weekend we've been having a few friends over to see how everything works.
 
   One of the major changes has been in the dining room table. Instead of the long  reclaimed barnwood table we had, (now out on the deck) there is a new hammered copper dining room table, square shaped that seats 8 or 10.

Turns out people like that shape better than hollering down a long table. But what to put on that table? Last weekend moving with baby steps we had a few people over for dessert. After 3 months away from them I wanted to get my mitts on my clay pots again.

  
What better way to break in the table and re-christen one of my clay pots then with famed Gujarati chef Tarla Dalals recipe for the slow cooked milk pudding known as  Basundi.

    Basundi and variations of it are found all over India. The best way to think about it is as a slow cooked rice pudding.... without the rice. It's one of the easiest recipes you'll find anywhere. With just a few ingredients it's simple in preparation. The thing that makes Basundi special is that it's true slow cooking. With a little bit of effort and bit more investment of time, you can easily make this Indian classic. With the weather starting to change around here, it's the perfect dessert to make on a cool and rainy fall afternoon.

Basundi

Here's What You Need:
2 litres of milk (full fat)
1 cup of sugar
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 cup chopped pistachio
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 tsp saffron

Here's What To Do:
Pour the milk into a wide bottomed pot, or a clay pot.

Turn the flame up.

 Bring the milk to a boil.

When it boils turn the heat down to low and cook it until the volume is halved. Keep a spoon nearby and stir the milk occasionally so nothing sticks.

If you're using a clay pot, always use a silicone or wooden spoon to keep from damaging the clay.
When the milk is reduced by half you're ready for the next step.
Add in the sugar.

Keep cooking it on a low flame and keep stirring until the milk starts to thicken.

Remember to scrape down the sides of the pan as you stir to prevent sticking, scalding, or burning. This should take about 25 minutes.
When the milk has thickened, add in the ground cardamom.

Stir the cardamom in well. Keep cooking and stirring for another 20 minutes.

When the basundi has thickened, it's ready to serve. You can serve it warm or let it chill a while and serve it cold as I did.
To chill it, take it off the flame and let it cool a bit.

When it's cooled enough, pop it in the fridge until you're ready to serve it.
Before serving, toast the saffron in a small cast iron pan, then crumble it.
Set it aside.
Chop the pistachios.

Ladle the Basundi into small serving cups. I used katoris.

Crumble a bit of the toasted saffron on top of each serving, followed by a bit of chopped pistachios, and a few slivered almonds.

 Serve it up.

I served it with a hot unsweetened spiced tea. Basundi is thick and rich so you don't need large servings to satisfy.  This recipe made 8 servings.

 
   It felt great to get back behind the stove working the clay pots again. Now that I have them out of their boxes, and safely stowed in the kitchen it's time to break out the dal. Fall's a coming as is my first crop of pineapple guava.

A spicy sorbet, or a chutney, I haven't quite decided. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

Friday! Friday! Everybody's Talkin' 'Bout The Weekend...Dessert!

 "Friday, Friday" in the immortal words of Rebecca Black, "Everybody's Talkin' Bout the Weekend." 

   Around our house, what they're usually talking about is dessert. At least I am, and after the super heated week we had here in Sonoma, what I want is something cool and smooth and no, ice cream is not the answer to everything (a lot of things yes, but not everything) as much as I'd like to think so. On a day like today when my mind is mush from work, the fan is whirling, the air conditiong means nothing and the foxes are shrieking in the vineyard out the back door, I would kill for a tall, frosty glass of Coconut Wedding Pudding. Except that I am too damn lazy to make myself some. Not that it's hard mind you. It can be ready in less than an hour.
   The reason I chose to make this dessert for my big Goat Vindaloo Lunch last week was the pure simplicity of it all, and also because Goat Vindaloo can be like the hottest July day in one's mouth, and the mere idea of coconut wedding pudding... well, it's indescribable. So if there's a real hot July day right outside the window, it doesn't get much better than this sweet little pudding.
   This pudding is what's known in the South Indian kitchen as a payasam. It doesn't really resemble the puddings that Americans are used to, and yes, Jello Cook and Serve, I'm talking to you. The consistency of this pudding is more like a thin, creamy soup. So when it doesn't thicken, set up and look like it's waiting for a dollop of Cool Whip, don't freak out. It's not supposed to. This pudding can be made in a little less than an hour and be served warm, hot or cold. It's delicious any old way.

Gluten Free Coconut Pudding

Here's what to do:
It starts with a base of dal. Yes, this pudding is made from lentils.

In a heavy pan or kadhai heat:
  2 Tbs of unsalted butter
When the butter has melted, add in:
 1/4 cup of moong dal
 1 Tbs of chana dal

Saute them for about 2 minutes or so.
 Add in:
  2 and 1/2 cups of boiling water.
Partially cover the pot and let it all cook on a medium heat for about 35 minutes or until the dal is nice and tender.
Turn up the heat and pour in:
 1 cup of milk.

Take the lid off and keep things cooking for another 5 minutes or so.
Give it an occasional stir to make sure nothing sticks or burns.
Turn off the heat, let things cool a bit, and then using an immersion blender or regular blender, puree the dal and milk together.
Put the pan back on the fire and add in:
 1 cup of coconut milk
 1/2 cup of light brown sugar or jaggery
 1/4 tsp of ground cardamom
 1 cup of milk
 2 tsp of cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbs of water or milk
Simmer it all together  until it starts to thicken a bit and keep stirring in the meanwhile. It's going to come out as a thin, custard sort of pudding.
If a skin forms, don't worry. A couple of spins with a whisk takes care of that.
 Serve it in individual dishes or parfait glasses. I served it chilled for a hot afternoon lunch.

 When having a bold main course such as a vindaloo, it's great to have something a bit gentler to finish out the meal. This pudding fills the bill. Not too sweet, and fragrant with cardamom, it's just the finishing touch my #Goaterie meal needed.

   And now for something not exactly completely different.....Prizes!
   I'm celebrating my 2nd Blogiversary (yes, that is a weird word) this month, and I've decided to celebrate it with some great gifts from the very generous people at Workman Press, and Tropical Traditions.  I'm giving away 2 great gifts.
 A Copy of the fabulous cookbook Mangos and Curry Leaves

The other prize I have is Organic Coconut Water Vinegar from the nice people at Tropical Traditions. This vinegar is great and what can I say, a must have for old skool Indian cooking!

So how do you get this stuff???? Here's what to do?

1.) Follow  @WorkmanPub  and  @Troptraditions on Twitter 
2.) Follow @kathygori on Twitter or follow my blog The Colors Of Indian Cooking
3.) Tweet about the sponsor and my giveaway  or mention it on your blog
4.) Let me know you've done so

 The drawing is going to be conducted on Random.org. It starts today July 1st  and ends on July 14th. Thanks again to everyone who helps make this blog possible, especially my husband Alan Berger for his great photographs.  
Coming up next, I go Gluten Free with an answer to the regular wheat chapatti. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori