Indian cuisine · Desserts & Sweets

Ghevar

Rajasthani honeycomb cake: ice-cold thin batter is drizzled into hot ghee, soaked in syrup and topped with rabri.

Ingredients · for 6 servings

• 250 g flour
• 100 g ghee
• 700 ml ice water
• 300 ml whole milk
• 250 g sugar
• 150 ml water
• 1/2 tsp saffron threads
• 4 cardamom pods
• 50 g pistachios
• 1 l oil for frying

Instructions

1. Whisk 50 g ghee with a few ice cubes in a bowl for 8–10 min. until white and creamy, remove the ice cubes, and stir the flour in alternately with the ice water into a very thin, milk-like batter — it must be lump-free and ice-cold.
2. For the rabri, reduce the whole milk uncovered over 25–30 min. to a third, stirring regularly, sweeten with 50 g of the sugar and half the saffron, and chill.
3. For the syrup, boil the remaining sugar with the water, the rest of the saffron and the crushed cardamom seeds for 6 min. to a single-thread consistency and keep warm; chop the pistachios.
4. Heat oil and the remaining ghee in a tall, narrow pot to 180 °C and pour the batter in a thin stream from 30 cm height right into the center; foam will rise, then wait 20 sec.
5. Pour six to eight more rounds into the same center until a firm honeycomb disc has formed, and fry it golden-brown for 4–5 min., then carefully lift it out with a skewer and let drain.
6. Pour the syrup over the warm ghevar, let soak for 10 min. and top with the cold rabri and pistachios just before serving.