Be My Guest Anjali - Kesar Badam Pista Kheer

Anjali, my guest for the month is a Smily lady from Bangalore, India. 

She belongs to 'City Of Lakes - Udaipur' which I loved during my last visit to India. Currently putting up in Bangalore, but has travelled across several countries including Philippines, Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Dubai and Kenya. Psychologist by profession ( Can you believe it !! ), she is specialised in Human Mind and Behaviour and is working as a Corporate Trainer. And to top it all, she loves painting, dancing and singing.. Apart from being a Food Blogger and a wonderful photographer. Woahh !!! So much in one person.. Am glad I met you Anjali ;) 

Her Blog “Spice n Sugar Tales” is a simple yet colourful array of traditional and fusion recipes along with some real exotic posts. The Blog name in itself is very cute, “Spice n Sugar Tales“ given by her husband. She started Blogging in 2012, to support her friends who nibbled her for recipes.. Goes without saying ! :P..

Her favourite recipe from her Blog is this Rajasthani Ghevar.. I love Ghevar, I mean I am in love with it !! A Real, pious love. Unfotunately, we don’t get it here.. But whenever I go back to India I make sure to get some boxes for my greedy self and S here.  And I KNOW, how tough it is to prepare from scratch. Hats Off Anjali !!  She says her Forte is “Indian Sweets”, why am I not surprised on this now?

Well, my favourite from her Blog are ;

 

See how wonderful her Eggless Paav/Buns have come out 

I felt so hungry when read her post on this home-made Pizza

You want to know the secret behind softy soft Ras Malayi, visit the recipe surely

I swear when I looked the pics of her PAneer Methi Malayi, I ran down my kitchen the very next minute

A very informative post on Rajasthani speciality Daal- Baati- Churma 

In her own words – “I believe cooking is all about loving. The more is the love and happiness in your heart while cooking, tastier is the outcome in form of food, be any."

Friends, if you have any suggestion for me on this event or if you want to be a part of it and provide me with a chance and pride to know you better, please mail me at : nupurs.kitchen@gmail.com, for more details visit the Announcement Page for the event.

Nupur, one of the sweetest names I've come across, and such sweet and cherubic is this beautiful lady as well. She is a spectacular photographer and I love the rustic touch to all her fantabulous clicks. She writes and blogs at UK, Rasoi and Me, and a glance of her blog is just enough to make you fall in love with it. From basic recipes to splendid ones, all of them are worth bookmarking and for sure a master treat to the eyes. Now writing a guest post for such a brilliant food blogger is definitely an honor and I'm delighted to do so. I wanted to bring in something sweet and sugary, so what better could I think of than this 'Kesar Badam Pista Kheer'. This is undoubtedly my favorite, my hubby's favorite and most importantly, my darling 2 year old angel's favorite. Also I see Nupur using saffron and pistachio in many of her desserts, so I thought this perhaps would be the recipe that would compliment her blog the most. :)

KESAR BADAM PISTA KHEER/ MILK PISTACHIO PUDDING

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1. Full Cream Milk: 1 litre

2. Rice: 1/2 cup (well-washed and pre-soaked for 2 hours)

3.  Sugar: 4 tbs or as per your taste
4. Condensed Milk/ Milkmaid: 3 tbs 

4. Almond flakes: a handful

5. Chopped Pistachio: a handful

6. Cardamom Powder: 1/4 tsp

7. Saffron strands/kesar: 8-10 (soaked in 1/4 cup of warm milk
8. MTR Badam Feast/ Badam Drink: 3 tbs

 

 

Method:

1. Take a heavy bottomed wok/kadai and pour milk in it.
2. Bring it to a boil and then simmer.
3. Add the pre-washed and soaked rice to that.
4. Let it cook for around 30 minutes on medium heat till the rice goes tender and mushy.
5. Keep stirring every now and then to make sure that the rice doesn't stick to the bottom.
6. Also, keep on scrapping the cream (malai) that layers on the side walls and mix that with the boiling milk.
7. Once the rice is soft and done, and the milk almost reduced to half, add in the saffron strands, condensed milk, sugar, cardamom powder, badam feast/drink,  almonds and pistachios. 
8. Cook for 5 minutes on low flame with occasional stirring. Make sure the kheer doesn't stick to the bottom.
   
9. Let it cool and then refrigerate for 2-4 hours.
10. Serve chilled, topped with some almond and pistachio flakes.
    

Suggestions:

1. You can use any variety of rice, but I always prefer Sona Masuri or Basmati. If you are using sticky rice, beware that it doesn't stick, and reduce its quantity a little to avoid excess thickening of the kheer.
2. Full Cream Milk is always the best when it comes to making kheer/rabdi/basundi, but you can opt for versions that lie in your comfort zone.
3. Condensed milk is optional. This gives an extra, creamy feel, but even if you skip it, the kheer would still be scrummy. Make sure you add in a little more sugar if you happen to miss on condensed milk. 
4. If you are running short of time and need the kheer to be done in a go, then add half a tin of the condensed milk/ Milkmaid to half a litre milk and pre-boiled rice. Bring them all together to a boil, add some sugar and at last add the saffron strands(pre-soaked in 1/4 cup warm milk) dry fruits and cardamom powder.
5.  Make sure that the wok/kadai you choose is big enough to avoid any spilling of the milk on boiling.
6. The pistachio (unsalted ones) and the almonds that you use should be fresh, and not smelly or oily. Old dry fruits generally leave oil and give a bitter taste which can spoil the whole recipe. You can also saute almonds and pistachio in slight ghee in a pan first and then transfer them to the kheer.
7. Refrigerated kheer always has an edge over the warm/hot one.
8. Adjust sugar as per your taste, though I prefer mild sugary kheers.