Рецепт Recipe | Easy Gulkand Mewa Burfi or Fig & Date Fudge with Rose preserve – And I am not complaining..
There are many things in life that I wish I could keep with me forever. The memories and days spent at my hometown in Udiapur tops that list.
I had a chance to visit Udaipur last week, which incidentally was my shortest ever trip to my hometown. I started at the wee hours of morning, left my children behind for a week, changed two fights, killed never-ending transit time at airport, and then traveled by road again to finally reach Udaipur late in night.
Yes, I did it all in one day. But I am not complaining.
I never believed in the saying that one travels more useful when they travel alone till I did it this time. Infact I don’t recall taking time to get away from daily responsibilities and having that solitude after my marriage in 1996.
I had lots of time to reflect on the past years and the years to come during my travel. The wonderful memories and days spent with family & friends, how I have changed and grown over past few years, the opportunities lying ahead and what I want from my life.
It was a wonderful experience to escape from the fast and complex modern world and live a quieter life for a few days.
I wanted to make full use of my short stay in Udiapur this time and planned for a walk down memory lane.
I got up at 5.30 am and went for a walk to a popular lake Fateh Sagar near my house with mom and my camera.
Ah..the joy of breathing, walking and smelling the fresh air…one of the beautiful experiences I miss a lot living in a metro city.
I walked down the old city of Udaipur…reliving the childhood moments spent in the narrow streets and temples around the area.
Nothing much has changed except that a mall has appeared where my granny once lived.
I saw many shops cropping up in the neighborhood selling antiques, now that Udaipur is one of the popular tourist destinations of India.
Mom roasted a few local varieties of corn or Bhutta on a Sigdi (indigenous Indian stove).
Me and mom had a wonderful time sitting in her verandah discussing food, garden, children and life in general.
She loves gardening and I spotted these round beautiful chillies there.
How can my Udaipur trip be complete without the popular ‘Matka Kulfi’…mom holding the Kulfi for a click.
I asked her to prepare some of my favorite dishes…Makki ki roti, Tinda subji and Gunda Achaar on my plate…happiness is home!
Some more pictures of Udaipur trip here.
Rose preserve or Gulkand
I did not inform any of my relatives about this trip as I had very little time in hand. But the neighbors got to know that I was there and I was pampered with delicious Rajasthani delicacies every day. One of them brought these Gulkand mewa burfi and also presented a bottle of Gulkand (rose preserve) to me.
The base ingredient for this Burfi is Mewa, which is nothing but an assortment of dried fruits and nuts. Rose preserve adds a wonderful flavor to the fudge.
Back at home I made my own Gulkand and recreated the same Burfi for Diwali. I prefer these delicacies over the milk based sweets which are way to sweet for me.
Normally desi variety of pink roses or Damascus roses is used to make the Gulkand recipe. These roses give lovely flavor and perfect wetness to the preserve. The Gulkand can be used to flavor ice-creams, Firni, milkshakes, smoothies, Indian desserts or even in baked goodies.
Ingredients;
1 cup packed rose petals
1 cup sugar
10-12 cardamom pods
Method; Remove petals from the flower and rinse in plain water.
Spread the petals on a towel and let it dry.
Remove seeds from cardamom and crush it coarsely.
Take a clean sterilized glass bottle and add handful of petals in the bottle, sprinkle a little cardamom powder and layer it with little sugar.
Repeat the same process till the bottle is full.
Cover the bottle with a clean muslin cloth and place the bottle in sunlight.
The Gulkand will be ready in 3-4 weeks time. The Gulkand stays good for many months.
Fig & Date Fudge with Rose preserve aka Gulkand Mewa Burfi
Ingredients;
(make 20 small pieces)
- 1 cup chopped Dates
- 1/2 cup chopped dried Figs
- 1/2 cup chopped nuts
- 1 tbsp. Ghee
- 1 tbsp. Gulkand or rose preserve
Silver foil (optional)
Method; Soak chopped Figs and Dates in 2 cups of warm water for 3 hours. Drain the water and grind both the dried fruits in a blender. Add a little water if you find it difficult to grind. You don’t need to soak the dried fruits if you get the juicy variety of the same.
Coarsely crush all the nuts with a rolling pin. I used Pistachios, almonds and a few cashew nuts in this recipe.
Heat ghee in a non-stick pan, add all the crushed nuts in it and sauté for a few seconds.
Add ground figs and Dates puree in it and cook it on medium heat till the mixture becomes dry and starts leaving the sides of the pan, about 10-12 minutes.
Add rose preserve, combine well and take the pan off flame.
Grease a flat tray with oil and spread the cooked mixture over it. Press it with the back of a ladle to make it even.
Decorate it with a silver foil, if using. Refrigerate the tray for 2-3 hours before slicing the Gulkand Mewa Burfi or Fig and Date fudge.
Notes;
Use dried edible rose petals if you can’t find rose preserve.
Add 2-3 tbsp. Mawa or thickened milk while cooking the dry fruit puree to get a richer version for the recipe.
Mawa could be substituted with milk powder mixed with cream.
Add extra sugar if you find the recipe less sweet, the sweetness from Dates and figs make it mildly sweet and relatively healthy recipe.
Gulkand has loads of sugar, use it sparingly in your dishes.
Increase the amount of ghee or clarified butter to get a sheen on the Burfi.
Try this fudge recipe for another healthy sweet.
Happy Diwali to all of you!