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Ingredients:

• 5 cups walnuts
• 1L milk
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 4-5 cardamoms, powdered
• 1/2 can condensed milk
• 1/4 teaspoon rose water
• Chopped walnuts and dried rose petals, to garnish

Preparation:

1. Roast walnuts in a pan on medium low heat for 3-4 minutes. Let cool, and then coarsely chop. Keep aside.
2. Line a strainer with muslin cloth over a wide bowl and keep aside.
3. In a heavy bottom pan, add whole milk and heat on medium high, stirring often. Let milk come to a boil, then turn heat off. Add 1 tablespoon juice, stir. If required, add another teaspoon till milk curdles completely and the whey separates.
4. Pour curdled milk over the muslin lined strainer. Wash the chena (curdled milk) to rid of the lemon flavor.
5. Squeeze out a little of the excess water- be careful not to over squeeze else the kalakand will be too dry. Tie the edges of the muslin cloth and let it hang over the sink faucet for 10-15 minutes.
6. In a pan, add the condensed milk, and chena (curdled milk). Mix and cook on low, stirring often. Cook for 10-12 minutes, till mixture thickens a bit and starts leaving the sides. Do not dry out completely.
7. Add cardamom powder and chopped walnuts, reserving a few to sprinkle on the top.
8. Grease an 8-inch pan, and line with parchment paper. Spread the mixture in half of the pan (the kalakand needs to be thick). Sprinkle the nuts and dried rose petals on top. Let set for a few hours, before cutting and serving.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon ghee
• 500ml full fat milk
• 1/2 cup milk powder
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 3/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/3 cup jaggery powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder

Preparation:

1. In a pan over medium low heat, add the sesame seeds and heat 3-4 minutes. They will turn slightly golden and pop. Do not burn. Let cool and coarsely grind them.
2. Pulse walnuts to make walnut meal. Be careful to not over grind, else you will make walnut butter.
3. In a heavy bottom pan, heat ghee. Add milk and stir. Let the milk come to a soft boil over medium heat. Add the milk powder. Cook over medium heat, stirring often. Make sure to scrape the sides of pan. Cook for 10-15 minutes, till milk is reduced to half.
4. Add walnut and jaggery powder, and mix well. Cook for another 5-6 minutes.
5. Add in the powdered sesame seeds. Mix well. Stir another 2-3 minutes. Add in the cardamom powder and chopped walnuts (reserving a few for the top). Mix well. Stir till mixture thickens and starts leaving the pan and looks doughy. Turn off heat.
6. Grease a 5” by 7” pan. Line it with parchment paper. Spread the cooked mixture evenly. Top with the reserved chopped walnuts, and sprinkle some sesame seeds. Let set for an hour in the refrigerator. Cut into rectangles and serve.

Ingredients:

• 12-13 dried figs, plus 3 figs
• 1/4 cup basmati rice
• 1/2 cup California walnuts
• 1L milk
• 12-15 saffron strands
• 6-7 green cardamoms, ground
• A pinch of nutmeg
• 4-5 tablespoons condensed milk

Preparation:

1. Soak 12-13 dried figs in warm water for 1 hour. Drain water and grind to a smooth paste – use 2-3 tablespoons of the soaked water if required to make a smooth paste.
2. Rinse 1/4 cup basmati rice a couple of times in water. Drain and let dry completely on a sheet pan. Once dry add to dry grinder and grind to a coarse consistency. You do not want a powder but coarse semolina texture. Remove, then pulse the walnuts to a walnut meal consistency.
3. In a thick bottom pan, heat 1L milk. Bring to a boil. Once milk is hot remove 1 tablespoon of milk and add to a bowl with the saffron strands.
4. When milk starts boiling, add the ground rice and walnut meal, and stir well. Add the condensed milk and stir well. Cook on low heat, keep stirring often.
5. When the rice granules are almost cooked, add the cardamom powder, saffron milk, nutmeg and the fig paste. Mix well. Let simmer for a bit. Total cooking time is around 25 minutes after the addition of rice.
6. Transfer to earthen clay pots and let chill in the refrigerator for a few hours. Garnish with walnut shavings, chopped figs and dried rose petals.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Basmati rice (washed and soaked for an hour)
• 1 tablespoon sago pearls (soaked for a couple of hours)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup California walnuts, soaked
• ½ cup condensed milk
• A pinch of saffron
• 1 tablespoon ghee
• Cardamom powder for flavor
• California walnuts for garnishing

Preparation:

1. Soak walnuts overnight and grind them in 2 cups of water to make walnut milk. Let there be no lumps in this.
2. Heat milk in a heavy bottom pan along with basmati rice. Keep the flame low at all times. Add saffron to the milk and keep stirring the milk to avoid it from sticking to the bottom.
3. Once the milk is reduced to half and the mixture is thick, add walnut milk and sago pearls to this.
4. At this point keep stirring the kheer very gently and continuously. Add condensed milk and cook the kheer till it thickens.
5. Add milk as and when required to keep the kheer like consistency. Add a pinch of cardamom powder to this
6. Heat ghee in a small pan. Add walnut pieces to this and let it crisp up and turn golden.
7. Add this to the kheer and serve it hot.