Sweet Puda from the kitchen of Anju Poddar

Serves 6

Ingredients for batter:
1 ltr full cream milk to make fresh paneer
100 grams maida
1/2 cup water
1 tsp whole pepper corns
500 ml of ghee/oil for frying

Ingredients for sugar syrup:
200 grams sugar
1/2 cup water
1 pinch of saffron threads

Ingredients for garnish:
Slivered almonds (soak for 6-8 hours prior to slivering)
Ground cardamom powder

Method:
Malpua Batter….To serve in the evening, make the batter in the morning

Boil the milk and at first boil, remove it from the flame and break into paneer by using either 1 cup of whey or 1.5 tsp of lemon juice.

Let it sit for a while. Put it in a metal sieve and wash under cold running water to remove the sour taste. Keep aside.

Mix the ingredients together by first mashing the paneer with hand and then adding the maida, water and whole peppercorns. Cover the batter and leave it to ferment at room temperature.

Please prepare the sugar syrup by boiling the sugar and water on a high flame. Add a pinch of saffron. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes, the resulting syrup should have a thin consistency.

Boil the ghee in a heavy flat-bottomed pan called a tai. Heat the ghee on a medium flame and using a deep spoon pour the batter slowly until you get a circular puda of approximately 3 inch radius. You can make 3-5 at one time depending on the size of your tai. Flip each puda individually till it becomes golden-brown in colour.
Remove using a slotted spoon and immerse directly in the prepared sugar syrup.

While serving, garnish each puda with almond slivers and ground cardamom powder. Tastes best when served hot.

Note: Leftover batter and sugar syrup can both be stored in airtight containers for up to 48 hours. The batter requires refrigeration, the syrup does not.