Monday, April 14, 2008

Whole lotta nut love!


There's no such thing as too much of 'boarding! Really! Even when my ass hurts after two days of sliding, gliding, rolling down the mountain :) But follow that up with an insanely long run ... hmm ... the body starts whining a bit. And wants some serious TLC. And the mind just wants to some long overdue blogging!

And what could be be better than an insanely nutty comfort dessert? The minute we remembered that it was TNY, the reflex was to embark on making something simple, something sweet, something oozing earthy nut flavours!


Our version of phirni does not have chunks of almonds, instead we ground up the almonds along with the milk. We also cut back on the rice and let the almonds define the flavour and consistency of the pudding. And, obviously, topping the pudding with a variety of other nuts could only be more goodness! :)


Badam Phirni (Almond Pudding)
Nuts topped with ... nuts!

Servings: 4 ramekins

3/4 cup almonds
3 cups nonfat milk
1 T rice
1/2 cup demerara sugar
1 T pistachios - crushed
1 T cashews - broken into bits
1 t charoli seeds
1 t crushed green cardamom

Soak the rice in hot water for 1 hour before grinding it to a fine paste.
Soak the almonds in hot water for about 10-12 minutes.
Peel the almonds and grind them into a fine paste with 1/2 cup of milk.
Heat the rest of the milk in a saucepan along with the ground rice.
Add the almond paste and stir constantly, bringing the mixture to a slow boil.
Let the milk thicken - this takes about 15+ minutes.
Add the sugar and cardamom and continue stirring over low heat.
In the meantime, toast the pistachios, cashews and charoli seeds.



Opinion?

Think we like this version of our badam pudding better than the traditional phirni! The soft creamy badam consistency is *so* good. And if we're in the mood for a thicker version of payasam, this is what we'd settle for! Plus, this is a certified favourite with Vodka, he licked the bowl clean in record time :)

Happy New Year to the multitudes celebrating it - I didn't quite realize how many people celebrate the New Year today - tamils, malayalees, bengalis, punjabis, sinhalese, thais, the list goes on!

Added bonus: Today is
N'Ko Alphabet Day! :)


Other nutty dessert recipes:

Brazilian Chocolate Bananas
Orange Almond Chocolate Cake
Date Candy
Nut Barfi
Sugarcane-Banana cake in cashew-pistachio milk

32 comments:

Kalai said...

Happy New Year to you and your family! :)

Dhivya said...

wow!looks so so tempting!!!love those pictures

Uma said...

so delicious. wonderful pictures. Happy new year to you too.

Divya said...

wow this looks so delicious ..I remember i had this sweet in a party and that was yummy ..thanks for sharing i am gonna try it now

Unknown said...

nice pics..n a great dessert..

Cham said...

Happy New Year and wonderful pictures of thick payasam or kheer!

Sagari said...

delecioussss and pics look very tempting

Seena said...

KK,what healthy dish !! My version is in draft, this looks so lovelier than mine.. :)

Anonymous said...

Yumm sounds and looks delicious.

Mansi said...

that pudding looks simply amazing K!!! and I totally agree with your "boarding" experience..its so much fun though!:)

Arundathi said...

That does look delicious!

sra said...

Love this version. Hope your rear is feeling better now!

Prajusha said...

looks delicious.

Anonymous said...

That looks so delicious.. the pics made me drool over them :)

sunita said...

Happy new year to you too..and yes, you can add Assamese to your list ;-)...btw, the phirni looks great :-)

Unknown said...

A very happy New year to you...the phirni looks awesome and rich!

tigerfish said...

Almond pudding with nuts - why not ?

Anonymous said...

Yes, Happy New Year to you! I've never had this pudding but would love to try it :)

Finla said...

Super delicious. ANd beautiful pictures.

Anonymous said...

I've never made phirni, maybe I should start with this one. It looks so good.

Namratha said...

Those pics are making me drooool..how many of these Phirnis did you eat Kay? :)

test it comm said...

The almond pudding sounds really good. Nice photos!

A, mama of twins said...

This sounds delish.. by the way have you tried the Phirni at Kabul Afghan restaurant? I could eat 8 tubs of it. ITs so good..

AnuZi said...

Happy new year dahling. And may I add yummmy! The pics look gorgeous enough to reach out and eat :o)

Anonymous said...

I'm unfamiliar with badam phirni but your description and photos make it very appealing. I love the idea of something creamy and almond flavored that's spiked with cardamom.

Cynthia said...

What a treat indeed!

daphne said...

we hv something similar from where I grow up! It's called almond paste! without the sprinkle of nuts on top though. Looks your photos!

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amna said...

that looks lovely! i keep googling the name of those white err.. bowls u guys use for baking and then keep forgetting! to my defense, they are not common in india!

Chef Erik said...

Looks great! Nice pics too!

Coffee and Vanilla said...

Hi,

Just a short note that you have been awarded with "E for Excellent" Award :)

http://www.coffeeandvanilla.com/?p=2082

Ciao, Margot

Traca Savadogo said...

Yum! It's amazing how such simple ingredients come together to make a wonderful dish.