What is Barfi?
Barfi is a milk based dessert. It is a popular North Indian dessert prepared during the festive season. You can make barfi with different kind of nuts and flours like this milk barfi, Santra Badam Barfi, flavor with saffron, rose water, and you can shape it in various different ways. The most common and easy shape is square. It’s a great dessert to make for parties, as you can make in bulk with very less effort.
Ingredient Notes :
Chenna - Typically Chenna is not used in preparing barfi, but adding a small portion of chenna created a delicate soft texture to the barfi. White Chocolate Chips - Adding chocolate in barfi is the modern fun twist and because I wanted to keep it white, I used white chocolate. Last year I made a different version of barfi using dark chocolate, Kaju Badam Barfi. Almond - Almond flour is added in the mixture to make the barfi and sliced almonds are added on top as garnish. If you don’t have store bought almond flour, then you have to take the extra step of soaking the almond in warm water to peel off the skin. Then dry the peel almond and grind it to fine powder. Cardamoms - Like most Indian desserts, cardamom is added here too. You can either use a coffee grinder to grind whole green cardamoms and then sift the powder. Or use store cardamom powder. Condensed Milk - Condensed milk not only adds richness to the barfi, it also helps to bind everything together into a fudgy rich texture. Dried rose petals - I used the dried rose petals only to garnish. So if you don’t have any, you can discard it. The exact measurements of these ingredients is mentioned in the recipe card below.
Steps to prepare
1: Knead the Chenna to a heavy bottom pan 2: Add cardamom powder to it 3: Pour the condensed milk and start cooking at a low heat, so the mixture comes together to a smooth texture. 4: Add the chocolate chips and continue cooking by pressing down the chocolate chips to melt it. You don’t want any lump. 5: Once the chocolate melts, add the almond flour and continue cooking. The mixture will start to thicken after you add the almond flour. Keep stirring until the mixture comes together into a smooth texture and doesn’t stick to the pan anymore. 6: Do a test by taking a small portion of the mixture in your hand. It will be hot, so use a spoon instead and roll it into a ball. If it doesn’t stick and holds shape, it is ready. 7: Rub little ghee or oil to a pan and place parchment paper on it. 8: Drop the mixture to the prepared pan and press it down to flatten the top. Add the sliced almond and rose petals on top and press it down gently. Let it set for a few hours. 9: Once set, slice into small bite size portions.
Storing Barfi
Barfi should always be stored in a clean glass air tight container. Because it is milk based, it will not have a very long shelf life. It will stay good for 2 days in room temperature, unless you live in a place where it’s very humid. The safest way to store is in the refrigerator. It will stay good for a few weeks if kept in the refrigerator.
A Few Notes to keep in mind:
It’s very important to cook the barfi in a heavy bottom pan, so it doesn’t get burnt. You have to constantly stir by giving your absolute attention while preparing the mixture. If you leave it unattended, it will get burnt.
If you enjoy white chocolate, try these recipes
Caramelized White Chocolate Bark White Chocolate Cake Mascarpone White Chocolate Caramel Cappuccino Semifreddo Easy Eggless Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake
