Mukhwas kulfi | Mouthfreshner kulfi | Indian kulfi | Unique kulfi | Betel leaf,fennel gulkand kulfi |summer special

Summers are here .Phew!!! Unlike in India  here in Qatar we get to experience almost 6 months long Summer !!!. No it isn't a typing mistake ,summer here lasts for as long as 6 months from may until the onset of October .And the temperature reaching as high as 48-49 c  ,apart from the high humidity content in the air .Its the season when fresh dates ripen, so imagine the temperature where a  fruit as hard as a potato ripens to a texture like avocado ,no less than a tandoor (hot clay oven)!!! . 

Are you wondering why am I presenting you a weather bulletin ?yes you guessed it right today's recipe is a summer treat,Kulfi . Kulfi is an Indian version of ice cream where in  milk is thickened and nuts are added to it and set in kulfi moulds .In India summers are synonymous to kulfi and lemonade-the official Indian summer drink .So to survive  in this temperature we definitely need some thing soothing ,refreshing to beat the heat.

 I have added a twist to a traditional kulfi to make it more refreshing and inviting .Do you like meetha paan (betel leaf) which is usually served as an after meal digestive ? fennel seeds ,betel nut ,gulkand  are served on a bed of betel leaves to make this incredible meetha paan .  . My kids are just crazy for it ,unfortunately we don't get it here .

So to just lift their mood and add a zing to their favourite ice cream i tried to merge both the flavours . A friend of ours had gifted a Mukhwaas - mouthfreshner (homemade) from India which had traces of crushed betel leaf,betel nut ,fennel seeds ,gulkand (rose petal reduction) , all mixed together to a homogeneous mixture .So next what?? just boiled this with milk and reduced it to form  Mukhwas kulfi .

There would be a riot of flavours in your mouth as you dig in the first bite ,smooth creamy texture of milk ,fragrance of gulkand (rose leaves reduction) and the freshening taste of fennel seeds .You just cant stop with one serving .

Off to the way I made it ............

INGREDIENTS

• 1 litre full cream milk 
• 3/4 cup 100 gms sugar
• red colour a few drops 

• 4 tsp mukhwaas 

                  or

•  2 betel leaves ( paan )
• 1 tsp fennel seeds 
• 1 tsp gulkand (rose petal reduction)
• 1/2 tsp betel nut (supari)

PROCEDURE

• Bring the milk to rolling oil in a sauce pan .
• Add the mukhwas or the substitute of it to milk .
• Simmer the flame and thicken the milk to the consistency of rabdi.
• Keep it stirring frequently by scraping the sides. 
• Stir in few drops of red colour 
• Transfer to box and refrigerate over night .
• Serve chilled

Yummily,