Pedas, Round 1

I haven't come across many indian sweets I haven't loved.  When I go to family friend's parties, I usually stuff my face with srikand and pedas.  So naturally, now that I've mastered ice cream, I want to move forward into the scary realm of disgustingly sweet yet flavorful indian treats.  And, pedas are my favorite (apart from rasamalai) so...off I went in search of a recipe.  

My aunt found a recipe online and sent it over to me.  That recipe described it as a soft milk fudge.  I guess that is a pretty accurate description.  

Milk powder

Everything mixed together

Lovely smelling cardamom pods

Making ground cardamom

What I first do is put the cardamom pods into the grinder and break the shells open (as shown above).  Then, I break apart the pods and put the black seeds into the grinder, to grind as below.

Ta-da!

This is what the "dough" looked like

Cashews - I decided to use these instead of pistachios

Rounding up the pedas

Pedas, from various internet sources.  Serves 24

• 3/4 cup paneer (which I made from scratch)
• 3/4 cup milk powder
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
• 1 tbsp. ground/slices nuts (either pistachio, almond, or cashews) for garnish

This recipe assumes you already have paneer ready to go.  If not, I'll post one shortly that you can use. 

Heat your frying pan to a medium heat.  Add the butter and let it melt.  Add the milk, milk powder and paneer and mix it well.  

Cook this mixture on medium heat and stir it continuously until it looks like dough, probably 15 minutes.  It will probably leaving the sides of the pan and that is when you will know when it is ready.  

Once the dough is cool, mix the cardamom and sugar into the dough until everything becomes blended. 

Divide the dough into 20-24 equal parts, and form into round balls.  Press down on the ball to make it look like a small patty.  Sprinkle a little bit of the nut mixture over each peda.  

These should be served at room temperature, and can be stored in a fridge for up to a month. 

To be honest - I must have not followed the recipe correctly as the pedas were a bit too soft.  So, I was on the hunt for a better recipe and I knew exactly where to go....

TO BE CONTINUED! * enter dramatic spanish soap opera music here *