Kheer, Rice Pudding, Indian sweet

Its been quite some time that i posted any recipe, and all is due to the fact that i don't get enough time to blog. I do have lots of snaps of recipes that i do make, but couldn't blog about them. So now when i had time , though of posting some sweet recipe.

Recently have been regularly watching ,"Yeah rista kya kahlata hain", in Star plus; and seeing Akshara making kheer for more then 2 episodes.. ;), though of making myself too. And then on the eve of rakhi got the occassion to make this. So here it comes, with the measurements... :) "100 gram chawal aur 150 gram shakkar, char logon ke liye.."he he....

But firstly something about kheer.., It's a popular Indian sweet, made for all happy ocassions. It is also called as ?payash, payasa, payasam' in other Indian languages.

Kheer or payasam generally has a consistency of porridge. You can keep it plain or make it as rich as you like with the addition of nuts like cashews, pistachio, almonds etc. Most commonly made kheer is Rice Kheer or the Vermicelli kheer which is also called sevai or semiya payasam.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup rice
4 cups whole milk
1/4 cup sugar (adjust to taste)
A pinch of saffron(soaked in little hot milk)
2-3 crushed cardamom
2 tbsp sliced almonds
1 tbsp sliced pistachios
1 tbsp raisins (optional)
1 tsp ghee

Method:

Wash rice, drain and set aside.
Better use a non-stick frying pan to make kheer.
Melt the ghee(/butter) in a frying pan on medium heat, add rice and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
Then add milk and boil till rice is fully cooked and the milk is reduced to half ,on a medium heat, stirring often to ensure the milk does not burn in the bottom of the pan.
Finally add the sugar, saffron, cardamom, mixed nuts(almonds, pistachios) and let it simmer for a few more minutes.
Turn off the heat.
As kheer cools off it will become thicker in texture.
Kheer can be served chilled or warm.


Tips:

Rice can be replaced with Vermicelli.
If you will be serving chilled add 1 teaspoon of extra sugar
Instead of cardamom you can add your favorite essence, rose or almond or vanilla essence if you wish
Jaggery(brown sugar) can be added as a sweetener depending on personal choice.