One of the fewer sweets I love is this decadent Milk based Halwa, Kunda from a small city in Karnataka called Belgaum. This was made for Ganesh Chaturti since we decided to give more traditional sweets like Puran Poli & Payasa a miss.
I guess Kunda is very similar to Palkova from Tamil Nadu especially in the taste department. Except, that we use semolina to give kunda that grainy texture.
You Will Need:
- 2 cups Milk
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 tbsp semolina
- 1 tbsp fresh curds
- 3 tbsp desi ghee
- 1 tsp cardamom powder
- Almond slivers for garnish
How To:
In a heavy bottomed pan, add a tbsp of ghee. once the ghee is warm, add a tbsp of semolina & saute until it gets slightly changes colour & is aromatic. Add Milk & bring it a boil. once the milk boils, add a tbsp of yogurt & turn off the stove.
In another heavy bottomed pan, add sugar & caramelize over low flame. once the sugar gets caramelized, add the split milk & mix well. Cook on medium flame until the mixture becomes slightly thick & start leaving the sides of the pan.Add the remaining ghee & mix well. Do keep stirring at regular intervals to avoid the bottom from getting burnt.
Turn off the stove, Add cardamom powder & give it a good mix. Garnish with Almond slivers before serving
NOTE:
Kunda gets a little thick on cooling. So you may want to stop cooking when the mixture is still slightly runny. If you find the mixture too thick, add some more milk & cook for a while.
You can serve kunda at room temprature, however, I love my Kunda warm. Since, Kunda thickens when refrigerated, I warm them in the microwave to get a Halwa like consistency. Just add a little milk & give it a nice mix before you put it inside the microwave
Try serving Kunda along with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream on the side & give that Gajar ka Halwa a break
