Traditional Sheera Recipe To Keep Handy For Upcoming Festive Season

One of the most iconic sweet dishes you’ll notice during the big fat Indian festivities is Sheera, a traditional sweet dish prepared with semolina, ghee, sugar and nuts.

Indians are big fans of sweet dishes and if you want to impress your guests this festive season then keep this recipe Kesari Bath Sheera handy.

Ingredients

For Roasting Rava

½ cup rava – finer textured, 80 grams fine rava (sooji or cream of wheat)

For Frying Cashews

½ tablespoon Ghee
10 to 12 cashews (kaju)

For Making Kesari Bath

1.5 cups water
½ tablespoon raisins
⅓ cup sugar, 60 grams or you can add ½ cup of sugar for more sweeter version.
¼ teaspoon green cardamom powder
12 to 15 saffron strands (kesar)
1 to 2 drops of natural orange food colour extract or a pinch of turmeric powder (haldi), optional
1.5 to 2.5 tablespoons ghee – to be added later

Instructions

Roasting Rava

• Heat a heavy and thick-bottomed pan first. Keep the heat to a low and add the fine rava (sooji or cream of wheat).
• Stirring often roast rava on a low heat.
• Roast till the rava becomes fragrant and looks crisp. Takes about 5 to 6 minutes on a low heat. Then turn off the heat.
• Transfer all the roasted rava to a plate and set aside.

Frying Cashews

• In the same pan, heat ½ tablespoon ghee.
• Add 10 to 12 cashews.
• Stirring them often on low to medium heat fry them till they get golden. Keep aside. Reserve this ghee to be added later in the kesari.

Making Kesari Bath

• In another thick-bottomed pan or kadai, take 1.5 cups water.
• Add the sugar.
• Keep the pan on low heat and stir very well, so that the sugar dissolves.
• Add raisins and the saffron strands. I have added raisins in the sugar syrup and they do soften up while cooking.
• Add 1 to 2 drops of natural food colour extract if using or else skip it. Mix very well.
• On low-medium heat bring this sugar solution to a boil.
• When it comes to a boil, then lower the heat. Add the roasted rava in 2 to 3 batches.
• First, add one batch and quickly stir to mix so that no lumps are formed. Continue to add the remaining batch of rava and mix very well.
• Add the remaining ghee in which the cashews were fried and also add 1.5 to 2.5 tablespoons ghee.
• Sprinkle the green cardamom powder.
• Mix very well, so that the ghee is distributed evenly in the Kesari Bath.
• Cover the pan and on low heat or sim let the Kesari Bath mixture cook.
• Simmer and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on low heat.
• The rava granules will absorb all the water and cook. The mixture will also thicken.
• You should not see any whitish or creamy specks on the rava. If you see then this means that the rava is still not cooked well.
• Once the rava is cooked well then add the fried cashews.
• Mix very well.
• Serve Kesari Bath hot or warm. You can also pour the kesari bhath mixture in small to medium steel bowls or in small to medium tart moulds and let them become warm. Once warm then unmold and serve.

(Recipe credit: vegrecipesofindia)