{"id":3233,"date":"2009-01-13T15:48:30","date_gmt":"2009-01-13T22:48:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ecurry.com\/blog\/?p=3233"},"modified":"2011-12-15T06:43:15","modified_gmt":"2011-12-15T13:43:15","slug":"besan-ki-barfi-a-chickpea-fudge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.ecurry.com\/blog\/desserts-sweets\/besan-ki-barfi-a-chickpea-fudge\/","title":{"rendered":"Besan ki Burfi – A Chickpea Fudge?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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What a strange sounding Translation! Anyway…<\/p>\n

India has a large repertoire of sweets. Some sweets are consumed all over the country whereas some are only typical to a region. Traditionally,\u00a0a lot of Indian sweets are prepared with milk, sugar & flour. In India sweets play a very important role in the culture. Every happy occasion, every ceremony, &\u00a0festival is marked by distribution of sweets. Just like a box of chocolate, or a bottle of wine is brought in as a gift, a regular form of gift in India is a box of sweets.<\/p>\n

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Besan<\/strong> is Chickpea Flour<\/strong> & Barfi<\/strong> is a sweet, of fudge like consistency usually made of khoya (thickened\/condensed milk) with other\u00a0fruits or\u00a0nut added to it<\/strong>. Barfi is\u00a0a kind of an all occasion sweet.\u00a0There are an array of ways that besan ki Barfi\u00a0can be\u00a0made, some have khoya or thickened milk in them, some are just the chickpea flour & sugar. In some variety of nuts & dry fruits are added.<\/p>\n

After all those cakes & cookies, my hubby’s system was craving some Indian sweets.\u00a0 With the besan at hand\u00a0 & all the nostalgia of the Barfi (which we ate years ago),\u00a0 I tried this\u00a0out for the first time\u00a0at home, & I have used Almond in it instead of Khoya or condensed milk (I did not have any). I have also used a lot of cardamom & saffron while cooking it.<\/p>\n

The Ghee\/Clarified Butter plays\u00a0a major role in adding the texture and flavor in this recipe. It will not taste authentic, if the Ghee is substituted. Ghee here plays another role.\u00a0It\u00a0also plays\u00a0a role in the shelf life of this sweet. Barfi may be left in airtight containers in room temperature for many days & does not need to be refrigerated.<\/p>\n

If anyone can give me an idea to what may be used instead of Ghee (for a Vegan Version)… may be nut butter?… I would really appreciate.<\/p>\n

Ingredients:
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  1. 1\/3 Cup Sugar<\/li>\n
  2. Water (half the amount of Sugar)<\/li>\n
  3. 1 Cup Besan (Chickpea Flour)<\/li>\n
  4. 1\/3 Cup Coarsely Ground Almond ( Can use Almond Meal)<\/li>\n
  5. 1\/2 Cup Ghee<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n
  6. 6 Small Green Cardamoms – shelled and the seeds ground<\/li>\n
  7. 1\/4 Teaspoons Saffron Strands<\/li>\n
  8. Nuts (Pistachio \/Slivered Almond) for Garnish<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Preparation:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Grease a plate with ghee & set aside. This is where you will pour the mix\u00a0of the flour.<\/p>\n

    Sieve the Chickpea Flour\/Besan.<\/p>\n

    In a thick bottomed pan, add the Besan\/Chickpea Flour, saffron, cardamom powder\u00a0& the Ghee & stir at low heat for about 45 minutes (might take more), till the raw taste of the flour goes away, & the ghee starts to separate. There will be aroma of roasted flour (you will see the the flour glisten). Keep stirring continuously to prevent it from sticking to the bottom & turning brown.<\/p>\n

    Start boiling the sugar with the water to a consistency that the syrup is thick enough to coat a spoon (1 wire consistency). Keep aside.<\/p>\n

    At this point add the Ground Almond. Stir more another 15 minutes. Try to break out the lumps that form while cooking. At this point you will see the color turn a shade darker.<\/p>\n

    Switch off the heat. Add the sugar syrup and mix till well combined. Quickly pour & spread\u00a0it in the greased pan to about 1\/4 inch thick..<\/p>\n

    Smooth out the top with the back of a spoon for a neat look. ( I did an awful job on that as you can see from the pictures…)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Cut criss cross with a sharp knife to form diamonds. Sprinkle the slivered almonds or any other nuts you choose on the top.<\/p>\n

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    Let it cool. It will harden slightly when cooled (they are supposed to be firm but not rock hard).\u00a0Carefully remove the slices from the plate and store them in airtight containers.<\/p>\n

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    Enjoy your Barfi, One bite at a time….<\/p>\n

    Sending this to JFI Chickpeas <\/a>hosted by Sometime Foodie, FIC:Yellow <\/a>hosted by Sunshinemom of TongueTicklers, & MLLA:Seventh Helping <\/a>hosted by Srivalli of Cooking 4 All Seasons &\u00a0 started by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n

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    Related Posts:<\/strong>
    \n    Kesar Pista Kulfi with Falooda<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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