Coconut Burfi

Festive season or not sweets are relished almost anytime during the year. Here’s a very easy to make recipe of a popular Indian sweet made from coconut and custard powder…
Health Check – Coconut is highly nutritious and rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. It is classified as a ‘functional food’ because it provides many health benefits beyond its nutritional content.

Ingredients (Makes 10-12 burfis)
1 and 1/2 cup coconut powder (if you have grated coconut, grind it in a mixer to make a thick powder)
1 cup milk
4 teaspoons vanilla custard powder
¾ cup sugar (Increase or decrease the sugar content depending on how much sweet you want it to be)
2 tablespoon ghee (fat made from cow milk)
Cashew nuts/ walnuts for garnishing
Sweet Condensed Milk (Optional – If you don’t have/want to use custard powder and milk)

Cooking Method
1. On a non-stick pan roast the coconut powder, mixing ghee, on low flame, for 5 minutes.
2. In a separate cooking vessel, put the milk to boil.
3. Meanwhile take a small bowl and mix the custard powder with very little milk to make a paste.
4. Once the milk is boiled, mix sugar into it and stir continuously to avoid the milk sticking to the bottom.
5. Mix the custard paste into the milk and stir continuously for 5 minutes, on low flame, until the milk thickens nicely.
6. (Optional) – For those who do not wish to use custard powder and milk, use sweetened condensed milk instead of steps 2- 5.
7. Remove the milk from the cooking stove and let it cool for another 5 -10 minutes.
8. Slowly mix the thickened custard milk with the roasted coconut powder and stirwell, on low flame, until the coconut powder absorbs most of the milk.
9. Take a baking tray/thali and grease it with some ghee.
10. Pour the coconut -milk batter into the baking tray and flatten it’s top surface nicely.
11. Garnish with chopped cashew nuts/walnuts.
12. Refrigerate the batter for 1-2 hours.
13. Cut the Coconut barfi into equal pieces and serve.