Gulkand-Pista Kulfi/Rose petal jam Indian ice-cream

s the mercury climbs and the sun becomes more relentless, it is beginning to remind me of summers in India. The carefree school days, long summer holidays, visiting grandpa's place- I am sure each one of us must have some fond memories of summer like these. Summer also reminds us of our favorite food ice-cream :).The popular variation of which in India is called Kulfi. I have some fond memories of those summer evenings. I remember whenever we used to go out to eat chaat and panipuri (which was very often) we had to have kulfi otherwise the whole outing used to be incomplete. 

Kulfi is an Indian version of the ice-cream. Often flavored with cardamom, saffron and nuts, it has a very unique flavor. It has similarities with ice-cream in terms of texture, taste and of course the fact that it is frozen milk! But unlike 'western' ice-creams, kulfi is not whipped, resulting in a solid, dense frozen dessert. It is traditionally prepared by evaporating sweetened and flavored milk by slow cooking, with almost continuous stirring to keep milk from sticking to the bottom of the vessel, till its volume was reduced by half, it has a distinctive taste due to caramelization of lactose and sugar during the lengthy cooking process. Where I come from, it is often served with falooda noodles (kind of like vermicelli). During the summers in India, there is no dessert more popular than kulfi.

It is often considered difficult and time consuming to make, stirring the milk for hours in the kitchen and all... but here is a very fuss-free easy-breezy kulfi recipe where we will just get all the ingredients, mix them up and freeze. Kicked up a notch with gulkand,I bet this the best ice-cream you will make and taste.

Gulkand is essentially a jam made of rose petals. I have seen some Indian and middle-eastern stores carry it. Gulkand is a sweet preserve that I believe has its origins in the persian and middle-eastern cultures. It is very popular in Northern India. 'Gul' means flower and 'kand' means sweet. Rose petals are mixed with sugar and placed in air tight containers and left in sunlight for few days, stirred and mixed until it turns into a thick and chunky jam like preserve. It is used for many Ayurvedic purposes but very commonly used as a mouth freshener wrapped in paan (betel leaf).

Ingredients: makes about 20

Evaporated milk .................................... 1 12 ounce can

Sweetened Condensed milk ....................... 1 14 ounce can (I used fat free)

Half n half or cream .................................1  cup

Gulkand  .............................................. 3- 5 tbsp
Rose essence ........................................ 4-5 drops

Whipped topping ................................... 8 oz at room temp ( fat free)

Green cardamom powder ......................... 1/4 tsp(optional)

Corn starch .......................................... 1/2 tsp

Pistachios/almonds ................................ 1/4 cup (soaked in water for 30 minutes) shelled and peeled

Method:

1. Add all the ingredients (except whipped topping) in a blender and blend for 2-3 minutes until you have an even mixture. Note that the mixture will have a slight grainy texture due to the nuts.

2. Add in whipped topping and blend for 30 seconds, mix with a spatula and blend again for 30 seconds.

3. Pour in kulfi molds or popsicle moulds or a glass container with a tight lid (I use Dixie brand plastic cups and cover it with aluminum foil) and freeze for at least 7-8 hrs, preferably overnight.

4. When ready to serve, place the kulfi mold under running water for a few seconds. Pull out the kulfi carefully. ENJOY!

Notes:

1. Ready made gulkand is available in some grocery stores. Feel free to use that instead of making your own.

2. Fresh organic home grown wild rose petals are best for making gulkand. 

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