Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Coconut Mithai (coconut sweet)





I have a request to post this recipe and so here goes :)

Shuchi this one is for you. A very simple and quick sweet that takes all of five minutes to make and is amazingly delicious. The traditional version uses  fresh grated coconut and milk and involves a lot of slow cooking and time.This is the shortcut version that can be made in a jiffy.

I had actually made a mithai cake on the weekend for a friend's surprise birthday party and it was a combination of the cashew sweet and the coconut sweet.
The bottom layer was the cashew sweet topped with a layer of the coconut sweet decorated with silver leaves and almond slivers.

Ingredients:
I can of condensed milk
1 lb (less about 1/2 a cup)  of  finely shredded coconut (dry unsweetened)
2 tsps ghee(clarified butter)
seeds of 4 cardamoms- powdered
silver leaves/ slivered pistachios /silvered almonds (either one or a combination works well)
few drops of food coloring(red/yellow or green;in my house coconut mithai is associated with the color pink and so i tend to use the red but the golden also looks very pretty)

Keep a glass or a metal pan ready by greasing with a tsp of the ghee.In a thick bottom pan empty the contents of the condensed milk can and add to it the cardamom powder, 1 tsp ghee and the food color.
On a low flame mix these ingredients well and once the mix starts loosening up a little (about a couple of minutes) gradually add the shredded coconut with one hand and  go on mixing with the other hand.
I keep a lb of the coconut handy but do not use it all ,I only use as much as it takes to make a thick mix.



Mix till it all comes together for about a minute.Empty the contents into the greased dish and flatten with an oiled palm.Spread the silver leaves or the nuts and leave for about 30 minutes to set a little.Then cut into squares or diagonals.You can also make little ladoos (small balls) and top with slivered almonds or pistachios.
It keeps well  for about  a week provided it is not gobbled up by family members by then ;)


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