I made this burfi (as well as the treat featured last week) in celebration of Divali, the Hindu New Year or Festival of Lights. According to Hindu belief, followers of Lord Rama honoured his return to Ayodhya with rows of lamps (deepavali in Sanskrit) after a fourteen-year exile during which he triumphed over King Ravana who had kidnapped his wife Sita. Divali is the shortened form of the word deepavali.
There are many other significant events associated with Divali in Hinduism as well as Jainism and Sikhism. Divali is observed as a celebration of the victory of good over evil and the uplifting of spiritual darkness. It also marks the end of the harvest season, and is associated with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. Traditionally, Divali marked the end of the fiscal year.
During Divali people light candles, set off fireworks, eat sweets and dried fruit, and give gifts (especially new clothes) to children. Many families create a rangoli at the entrance to their house.
I’ve been celebrating Divali for many years now. I usually invite friends over for dessert. This year I also made some savory treats which I will feature on this blog in the coming weeks.
Makes 30 pieces
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick or 1/4 pound) unsalted butter
1 lb (roughly 500g) ricotta cheese (full fat or partly skimmed)
1 cup granulated sugar
5 drops of red food color (add more for a deeper pink)
1-2 teaspoons of rose water
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon cardamom
2 1/2 cups powdered milk
2 ounces almonds, chopped
2 ounces pistachios, chopped
Directions
1. In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter. Add ricotta cheese and cook for 8 minutes.
2. Add sugar, food color, rose water, nutmeg and cardamom. Stir for a further 6 minutes.
3. Add powdered milk and mix for a further 4 minutes.
4. Pour the mixture into a metal brownie pan (6 x 10 inches). Sprinkle with nuts and press them into the mixture.
5. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate overnight.
6. Cut into rectangular pieces before serving. Will last for two or more weeks in the refrigerator.
There are many other significant events associated with Divali in Hinduism as well as Jainism and Sikhism. Divali is observed as a celebration of the victory of good over evil and the uplifting of spiritual darkness. It also marks the end of the harvest season, and is associated with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. Traditionally, Divali marked the end of the fiscal year.
During Divali people light candles, set off fireworks, eat sweets and dried fruit, and give gifts (especially new clothes) to children. Many families create a rangoli at the entrance to their house.
I’ve been celebrating Divali for many years now. I usually invite friends over for dessert. This year I also made some savory treats which I will feature on this blog in the coming weeks.
Makes 30 pieces
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick or 1/4 pound) unsalted butter
1 lb (roughly 500g) ricotta cheese (full fat or partly skimmed)
1 cup granulated sugar
5 drops of red food color (add more for a deeper pink)
1-2 teaspoons of rose water
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon cardamom
2 1/2 cups powdered milk
2 ounces almonds, chopped
2 ounces pistachios, chopped
Directions
1. In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter. Add ricotta cheese and cook for 8 minutes.
2. Add sugar, food color, rose water, nutmeg and cardamom. Stir for a further 6 minutes.
3. Add powdered milk and mix for a further 4 minutes.
4. Pour the mixture into a metal brownie pan (6 x 10 inches). Sprinkle with nuts and press them into the mixture.
5. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate overnight.
6. Cut into rectangular pieces before serving. Will last for two or more weeks in the refrigerator.
7 comments:
what do i use in place of ricotta cheese? khoya? how much? thanks
Hi...,
I would love to try ur rose burfi -looks awesome!! Could u please advise whether the powdered milk in ur recipe refers to khoya or the normal full cream powder found in the average western supermarket?
thks in advance,
Susanna
Susanna - I'm referring to the milk powder you purchase in a Western supermarket (such as Carnation brand). I'm not familiar with khoya. Good luck!
AKR
Hi, I just made the rose burfi, it looks great. I just noted a discrepancy, you indicated 1/2 cup butter but then wrote 1 stick which is a 1/4 cup. So I used 1/4 cup of butter. Also I used 2x 500 mg of ricotta not realizing that one 500mg container is actually one pound (opps:D). I just added more powdered milk and sugar to compensate. Perhaps if you could write 500mg container it might make it straight forward. Thanks again! I can't wait to try the chocolate swirl nankhatai, I have been looking for that recipe everywhere!
Thanks,
Rishma:)
I meant 500g not mg of Ricotta, sorry:)
Rishma - 1 stick of butter is 1/2 cup. You can see the conversion here: http://www.onlineconversion.com/forum/forum_1026097353.htm
You may mean that 1 stick of butter is 1/4 pound.
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