Pistachio Kulfi aka Indian icecream

Pistachio Kulfi aka Indian icecream

Finally—I’m back!  After days spent re-staining the deck blue, and getting ready for a barbecue in our back yard, and having and then cleaning up after that party, I’m finally back at the computer.  The party was for Husband Person’s barbershop chorus, and this year we had over forty people.  My friend Jeanne is frantic for barbershop singing, so she drove up, all the way from The United States of America, a seven hour drive.

Luckily for me, Jeanne is a major foodie, and should really have her own blog, but she devotes that extra time to cross-stitch, something that bewilders me!  (The needle goes in, the needle goes out, the needle goes in, and she doesn’t get hypnotized by it). She does win prizes for her stitching at the country fair, so people outside of her livingroom do get to see it, but still, perhaps a cross-stitch blog, Jeanne?

Anyway, I’m extremely lucky to have her as a friend, a fact I am especially aware of every time she makes us Pistachio Kulfi.  Knowing how droola-toola I get over that, she plunked her icecream machine into her car and arrived with it.  Oh, glory days!  On the Tuesday night before the barbershop party, we had a party of our own- masala cream prawns, sag paneer, coconut aloo and fancy chappatties.  For dessert, guess what we had?

Unfortunately, we were yacking so much I mostly forgot to take pictures, and my camera batteries were all dead by the time of the party, so no pics or videos of the party, and I’ll just have to cook those other dishes again, taking pics this time.

Jeanne’s recipe is adapted from Farah Ahmed’s recipe from Sunset magazine:

Every maker has its own manual- follow that!

12 ounces evaporated milk, chilled
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk, chilled
1 cup unsalted, shelled and roasted pistachios
1 teaspoon green cardamom, (I insist it be very freshly ground)
2 cups whipping cream
1 teaspoon rosewater (my idea)

This recipe is quickly and easily made.  Pour both milks, rosewater, pistachios and cardamom into a blender, and buzz until the pistachios are finely ground.  In a separate bowl, whip the cream till it holds sharp peaks.  If you’re working in a warm area, use a chilled metal bowl and beaters, and watch carefully.  If you whip a moment too long, you’ll be dismayed to find butter and whey.  Be careful!  Once you have firmly whipped cream, fold in the nut mixture.

Pour into your icecream maker, and follow the manufacturer’s directions.  If you don’t have such a machine, pour this into a shallow dish to freeze.  In India, I’ve seen it poured into paper cones and frozen with a twig, making a popsicle like confection.  Oh yum, and double yum, Jeanne’s comes closest to the kulfi I gobbled outside of a fort in Rajasthan.

We decorated this with fresh peaches that Jeanne had picked up at a fruit stand on the highway, but really it’s already magnificent on its own.

Thanks again to Jeanne for the icecream and help with the party.  Coming up next, the Nutella brownies I had her make for the party.  Yes, it seems if you can’t sing for your dinner, you have to help make it!  Anybody else like to come for a visit?