Coconut Mango Burfi

With the weather continually being “cloudy chilly windy damp” for months we had a surprise bonus this past weekend. Early in the morning there was glorious sunshine and the temperature by mid morning had already climbed to the 70’s. I even dared to open the backyard door that was closed for a long time now and my 2 year old though suspicious at first tagged along and had a fun time playing in the backyard. It felt wonderful to feel the sun on the skin and not having to cover one self with sweater or a jacket. This day reminded me so much of a summer day back in India, the fun times we and the delightful things we ate as kids. Of the many things I desired that time the top on the list were fresh, sweet and juicy mangoes.

Anyway when I went to the Indian Grocery that evening with the thought of mangoes still lingering in my mind, I looked for them and as expected no avail. I knew it was wishful thinking on my part to expect to find mangoes in the mid of cold February. So I got the next best thing in mango ‘Mango Pulp’. Of course it goes without saying that the pulp does not have the same flavor and aroma of a real mango as it is loaded with sugar and citric acid. I was planning to make the usual Mango Lassi with it, but when I saw Coconut Burfi on sale close by, I got this idea of making Mango Coconut Burfi using Mango Pulp and Coconut.

Notes:

These are some thoughts that I had after making the dessert.

• The Burfi is not going to turn hard like a regular coconut burfi, because of the presence of mango pulp.

• The same cooked coconut mixture can be rolled and made into laddos instead of barfis.

• Toasted nuts like cashews, almonds and also raisins can be added to enhance taste and texture.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups shredded coconut fresh/frozen

• ½ cup milk

• ½ cup sugar

• 1/3 cup mango pulp (fresh or canned)

• 1 Tbsp ghee

• 1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Preparation:

• Take a thick bottom pan, on low flame add the shredded coconut first and toast it until the coconut turns dry and gets a light brown color.

• The coconut gets burnt very fast so great caution has to be used while toasting this. The aroma that the coconut emits at this time is simply divine.

• Add the milk, sugar and mango pulp and stir continuously on medium flame.

• Add the ghee at regular intervals. After about 15-20 minutes the mixture starts becoming thick.

• Now add the cardamom powder and mix thoroughly.

• Grease a small plate and pour this mixture into it and even it on the top with a spoon or spatula so that it is about 0.5 inch thick.

• Cut into desired shapes or even make laddos of this.