I like ice cream. No. I LOVE ice cream. So much so, that I cannot keep it in my house. I have been known, on too many occasions, to wake up in the middle of the night for a small taste and then realize that I have finished entire pint. Perhaps that is why I like kulfi, also known as ‘ice candy’, the Indian version of ice cream. Kulfi is made by evaporating the water from milk, then sweetening and flavouring it before it is frozen. This process creates a dense frozen dessert which thaws much slower than traditional custard based whipped ice creams. In the street, the kulfiwallah serves it on a stick, like a popsicle, but in high end restaurants it is offered as an element of a dessert.
When living in Delhi I was asked to cater an event which highlighted Canadian products. The warm season had arrived and I felt that a uniquely Canadian kulfi needed to finish the meal. Maple syrup and walnuts came to mind and so maple walnut kulfi was created.
With milk being the key ingredient I think it is important to use a reliable, full flavoured product. Recently at work, I was introduced to the fantastic milk of a cooperative dairy, Laterie de l’Outaouais, located across the river from Ottawa in Gatineau. This employee owned dairy focuses on purchasing quality milk from farmers and then minimizing pasteurization to get a full flavoured, rich tasty product. By far the best milk I have tasted in a long time. The maple syrup also comes from a nearby sugar shack in the Gatineau Hills.
Place milk in a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer gently for about 45 minutes. Occasionally, whisk milk and bottom of pot to ensure that the milk solids do not catch and burn on the bottom. Reduce the milk by two-thirds until you have 1 litre. The reduced milk will be a light brown colour and have some small chunks of milk solids. Pour the reduced milk into another container to let cool to room temperature.
Place the reduced milk, maple syrup and , chopped walnuts and ground cardamom in a blender and puree well.
Pour the mixture to almost the top of each popsicle mould. Cover the top of the mould tightly with a piece of aluminum foil. Carefully press on the top of the aluminum foil to carefully see the outline of each popsicle filling. Using a paring knife pierce the aluminum foil in the center of each mould. Insert a popsicle stick fully into each opening (see photo below). Place in a freezer and freeze for a minimum of 4 hours or preferably overnight. (Most recipes suggest placing the popsicle sticks in when it is semi-frozen. Doing it the way I suggested means you can simply walk away and not worry about when is it semi frozen).
To unmold the kulfi, quickly run the sides of the moulds under warm water and carefully put out the frozen kulfi.
Notes
I have seen many recipes which suggest using canned condensed milk to make kulfi. Condensed milk is often sweetened with additional sugar and in the case of this recipe will make the final product too sweet. Similarly, in other recipes you most likely will need to reduce the sugar added when using canned condensed milk. My personal feeling it to make the rabarhi in order to produce a more natural less sweet kulfi.
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Placing aluminum foil over the popsicle moulds and lightly press down. Make small slits with a paring knife in teh centre. This will help keep the popsicle sticks in the middle of the kulfi.
NOTE: This was originally posted on my blog India On My Plate on July 6, 2011
For my first recipe post I want to offer a seasonal recipe using fiddleheads, a vegetable which has been instrumental in shaping what I view as local and seasonal food. Ten years ago I participated in a Canadian Food promotion in Tokyo. While visiting the famous Tsukiji fish market I explored the nearby vegetable stalls and much to my surprise saw in-season fiddleheads. The host Japanese chefs were shocked to learn that this, a Japanese vegetable to them, was also Canadian. We incorporated them into an asparagus, fiddlehead, morel and wild rice pilaf.
Six years later while driving the winding roads away from the Himalayan village of McLeod Ganj, headquarters of the Dalai Lama, I again caught a glimpse of this familiar spring vegetable being sold along the roadside. Wanting to make sure I wasn’t suffering from altitude sickness, I recall asking my wife for reassurance that I had just seen a bunch of fiddleheads. Soon I was chatting with the vendor trying to explain in broken Hindi that we had the same seasonal delicacy in Canada.
These experiences, seeing the familiar in a foreign context, provided me with both comfort and intrigue. My definition of “local” and “seasonal” food began to shift and now I constantly find myself searching for more ‘local’ food as I travel.
In rural communitites, where vegetable cultivation is scarcely practiced, villagers often rely on nutritious wild vegetables. Such as fiddleheads which are high in omega-3, omega-6 essential fatty acids and rich in iron, potassium andother minerals and vitamins. From Shimla to Sikkim fiddlehead ferns, known as lingra, lingri or ningro, can be found in the remote forests of the Himalayas. During the Monsoon, women often harvest the tightly coiled fronds, for personal consumption, or to sell along the roadside. Often, the fiddleheads are simply boiled and eaten on their own. In Himachal pickled fiddleheads, lingri achaar, are a local delicacy while in Sikkim, they may be sautéed with chhurpi, a local cheese. I have added some new potatoes to a recipe shared with me by the roadside vendor along the route to McLeod Ganj. The fiddleheads pictured below are sourced from the nearby Gatineau hills.
3 cups or ½ lb fiddlehead ferns* (or substitute asparagus, okra or green beans)
8 to 10 new potatoes
2 tablespoons mustard or vegetable oil
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon coriander seeds, lightly crushed
¼ teaspoon turmeric
2 dried red chiles, cut in half (or good pinch of cayenne powder)
salt, to taste
fresh coriander for garnish
Instructions
Trim cut end of fiddleheads. Place fiddleheads in a large bowl with a lot of water and gently shake to remove any dirt or grit. Drain and repeat again. Drain the fiddleheads and set aside.
Place new potatoes in a pot of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are just cooked. Use a slotted spoon to remove potatoes to a plate to let cool. Cut into halves or quarters depending on size of potato.
Bring the water back to the boil and add the fiddleheads and cook until just tender, about two to three minutes. Use the slotted spoon to transfer the fiddleheads to a bowl of iced water for 5 minutes. Drain and keep aside.
Heat the oil in a karhai, wok or large saute pan over medium high heat. Add the cumin, coriander seeds and dried red chilies and cook for 30 seconds. Toss in potatoes, remaining spices and some salt. Reduce heat to medium and saute for 3-4 minutes until the potatoes are warm. Add fiddleheads and cook for another minute or so. Adjust seasoning and serve immediately garnished with some fresh coriander.
Notes
Fiddlehead ferns are like wild mushrooms in that some species are ok for human consumption while others are not. So, it's best to purchase them from a well known vendor. Fiddleheads should be boiled first in boiling water before proceeding with any recipe.
I like ice cream. No. I LOVE ice cream. So much so, that I cannot keep it in my house. I have been known, on too many occasions, to wake up in the middle of the night for a small taste and then realize that I have finished entire pint. Perhaps that is why I like kulfi, also known as ‘ice candy’, the Indian version of ice cream. Kulfi is made by evaporating the water from milk, then sweetening and flavouring it before it is frozen. This process creates a dense frozen dessert which thaws much slower than traditional custard based whipped ice creams. In the street, the kulfiwallah serves it on a stick, like a popsicle, but in high end restaurants it is offered as an element of a dessert.
