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Diwali
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Golden
Cubes
In
Saffron-cream Sauce
Serves
4
This is a bread
pudding which is rich, delicious and totally guilt-ridden! Whenever I
make it, I decide to ignore the guilt and enjoy its full glory.
Traditionally, the bread is cut into cubes or triangles, but you can
cut them into any shape you wish. The pudding is enriched with khoya
which is made by boiling, then simmering full-fat milk, beyond the
stage at which evaporated milk is produced. The milk solidifies to
resemble the consistency of mashed potato. This is a process which
requires plenty of time and patience! An easy alternative is to mix
dried milk powder with single cream as I have suggested below. The
pudding is garnished with edible silver leaves (varq), which is a
Mogul tradition. Silver leaves are sold in Indian stores and are not
the easiest thing to handle. I use silver dust, which you can buy
from any shop where cake decorating ingredients are sold
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Ingredients:
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100g/3 1/2oz |
dried milk powder |
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75ml/3fl oz |
single cream |
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4 large slices |
day or two-day-old
white bread |
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sunflower or
vegetable oil for deep frying |
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300ml/10fl oz |
full cream milk |
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100g/ 3 1/2oz |
caster sugar |
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1 tbspn |
seedless raisins |
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a pinch of |
saffron threads, pounded |
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1/4 tspn |
freshly grated nutmeg |
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1 tbspn |
flaked almonds or
pine kernels, toasted |
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silver leaf or
silver dust, to decorate (optional) |
Method:
Mix the milk
powder and cream together until well-combined. Cover and chill for
1-2 hours.
Trim off the
crusts from the bread and cut them into 2.5cm/1in cubes.
Heat the oil
in a wok or other suitable pan over a medium heat. Fry the cubes of
bread until they are well browned. Drain on kitchen paper.
In a separate
pan, put the milk, sugar, raisins and saffron together and bring to
simmering point. Add the fried bread and cook until the bread has
absorbed all the milk.
Transfer the
bread to a serving plate and sprinkle over the nutmeg, then spread
the dried milk mixture over the top. If the mixture is hard, use a
fork to break down any lumps first.
Garnish with
the almonds and silver leaf or silver dust, if using. Serve at room temperature. |
