Almond Puri with Fat-free milk halwa - For the books

Confused as to why all the sudden "fried goodness" from me?
Well, this is an old post and has an update, this recipe "Almond Puri" along with my "Egg Puffs" recipe has been published in the "Ekal INCREDELICIOUS 2008 Recipe Treasures" book.
This whole experience from participating, winning, and to this, could be called my trigger to start writing this blog and showcasing my recipes online. I am pretty happy with both.

Puri is a kind of unleavened bread that is deep fried in oil. It is served for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It is basically savory, meaning it is made from flour and salt. But this is a dessert variety. I have not tasted sweet puris anywhere else other than those made by my mother. So, this is what says "home" to me.

My enthusiastic post written earlier on is here:
Now it feels like reading a long lost secret letter!

My "Almond Puri" recipe won the second place in the "Ekal Incredelicious 2008" in the dessert category. Yay! my first win in any competition ever! And feels good...
This is my mom's recipe which my brother and I used to love as children. Just a few tweaks here and there, and made it my own.
If you have visited my blog before, you might have noticed that I am normally into healthful cooking, but a few puris in moderation never hurt, right?

I must admit that there were quite a few interesting and delicious plates alongside mine, and were quite innovative. Got an opportunity to learn a lot of new things! A good experience overall :)
I am posting this recipe for the people who tasted it yesterday and wanted to try it at home. Happy cooking!

Almond Puri with Fat-free milk halwa

Ingredients:

For Puri:
Whole wheat pastry flour/Atta – 2 cups
Almond paste – ½ cup (Soak, peel, and grind almonds into a paste)
Nutmeg – ¼ tsp
Salt – 1 pinch
Melted butter – 1 tbsp
Clove – A few to seal the puris
Water – If and as needed (to form a dough like consistency with the above)
Oil – For frying

For Filling:
Rice powder – ¼ cup
Ghee (clarified butter) – 3 tbsp (or just enough to form a paste with the rice powder)

For Syrup:
Sugar – 2 cups
Water – 1 cup
Cardamom powder – ½ tsp
Saffron – 1 pinch crushed

Accompaniment (optional): Milk halwa (Easy method)
Condensed milk (Fat free is an option) – 1 can
Plain yogurt (Fat free is an option) – 3 tsp
Cardamom – 1 pinch
Ghee (clarified butter) – 1tbsp
Mix all the above in a microwave safe bowl, and microwave for 2 min, take it out, mix, and microwave again for 2 min. Repeat till the mixture is light brown in color. Serve as accompaniment with the puris.
For detailed recipe check out FAT FREE MICROWAVE THERATIPAAL


Method:

Syrup: Mix sugar and water in a heavy bottomed pan and let it come to a boil. Wait till it reaches one string consistency (235° F–240° F). Add saffron and cardamom and set aside.

Puri: Mix the whole wheat flour, almond paste, salt with the melted butter. Knead till it reaches dough like consistency, if needed add a little water.

Form small balls, and roll out into circles, say 5” in diameter. Brush on the filling paste, fold into a semi circle, again brush on filling and fold such that it forms a triangle.
Seal the layers with a clove in the middle to prevent it from opening. Press down edges very slightly.

Shallow fry them over medium heat in a pan till golden brown.

Dip the puri in sugar syrup and serve them with slivered almond and pistachios along with milk halwa as accompaniment.

This is off to these lovely events:

FIC-Brown by Sunshinemom
JFI – Nov’08 – Festival Treats by Srivalli
Yummy Festival Feast - Diwali by Pallavi
Festive Food: Diwali Celebration by Priti