Fragrant Rice Pudding With Pistachios (Kheerni)
"This traditional dessert is often pre[ared for Diwali, India's great Festival of Lights. Indians of all religions and sects join in 10 days of rejoicing and thanksgiving. For non-Indians, this dessert is a light, exotic twist from the usual rice pudding. Prep time does not include chilling time."
photo by Coasty
- Ready In:
- 1hr 40mins
- Ingredients:
- 9
- Serves:
-
6-8
ingredients
- 6 cups milk
- 1⁄3 cup basmati rice (or any long-grain rice)
- 1⁄2 cup milk
- 1⁄4 cup blanched almond
- 1⁄2 cup mashed ripe banana
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1⁄4 teaspoon saffron thread
- 3 tablespoons coarsely ground raw unsalted pistachio nuts
directions
- Bring 6 cups milk to boil in heavy shallow 5-quart saucepan. Rinse rice with cold water until water runs clear. Drain. Stir rice into milk. Reduce heat and simmer until pudding thickens and rice is very tender, stirring frequently, about 1-1/4 hours.
- Puree 1/4 cup milk and almonds in blender until smooth, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of blender. Add banana, sugar, cardamom and saffron and blend. Pour into pudding. Rinse blender with remaining 1/4 cup milk and add to pudding. Continue simmering until thickened to consistency of tapioca, about 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled.
- Just before serving, spoon into goblets and sprinkle with pistachios.
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Reviews
-
One of my favorite Indian desserts, love the rich cardamom flavor. Never thought to add bananas before, fantastic!! ZWT6 -
We all really enjoyed this different (for us) rice pudding. The cardamom really came through and the saffron added both flavour and colour. Thanks for a great recipe.
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This was a wonderful creamy Kheerni, I liked the banana twist. Will be adding this to my favourites. I made this for Unrated Asian Recipe Tag Game July-Aug 2009
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
JackieOhNo!
Stormville, New York
I didn't start cooking until my early 20's, even though I come from a family of accomplished and admired home cooks. While I grew up watching my Italian grandmother in the kitchen, I remained uninterested in trying anything on my own. As a young lady, I was known for being particularly ignorant in the kitchen, with no idea how to even make a hot dog! All this changed, however, when I got engaged. I realized it was time to let my inherent talents out of the bag. At the time, the New York Times had a weekly column called The 60-Minute Gourmet by Pierre Franey. Each week, I would follow these recipes diligently, and taught myself to cook that way. From there, I began to read cookbooks and consult with relatives on family recipes. At my ripe old age now, I feel I know enough to put together a very pleasing meal and have become accomplished in my own right. Having an Irish father and an Italian mother, I'm glad I inherited the cooking gene (and the drinking one too!). One thing I have learned is that simpler is always better! I always believe cooking fills a need to nurture and show love. After being widowed fairly young and living alone with my dog and cats, I stopped cooking for awhile, since I really had no one to cook for. I made care packages for my grown son occasionally, and like to cook weekly for my boyfriend, so I feel like I am truly back in the saddle!!
