Kesari

I know... I know... I had posted this photo up with a "recipe coming soon" way back April... yes, that's how long it took me to find the recipe again after losing the scrap of paper I had it written on (including measurement tweak notes which I can't sob remember) ...

Kesari is a traditional indian dessert and is literally translated as sugar cake. So it's sweet and not one for the weight /calorie watchers... This recipe comes from Mrs Samuel's Cookbook (which at this moment is pieces of tattered ancient paper) - a "bible" for young Malaysian Ceylonese housewives in the 60s - and owned / photocopied / rewritten by hand by almost all of the women in my mom's / grandmom's generation of the family.

Kesari (adapted from Mrs Samuel's Cookbook)
Ingredients:
6 heaped tablespoons Semolina
6 tablespoons of Ghee (clarified butter)
12 tablespoons Sugar
6 tablespoons water
1 1/2 tablespoons of chopped cashew nuts
1 tablespoon raisins
A little yellow colouring
10 cardamoms (powdered)
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Heat one tablespoon ghee in a wok and fry cashews and raisins for a few minutes. Take aside and drain the oil.
2. In a seperate dry wok, roast the semolina then add water and sugar. Mix well. Add in the rest of the ingredients. Keep turning over mixture (kind of like a folding in movement) until it is able to leave the pan surface clean.
3. Butter a flat baking tray and smooth the mixture onto it. Leave to cool then cut into squares. Alternatively, you can spoon the mixture directly into dessert bowls and leave it to cool before serving.