Mango Kesari

Kesari is a sweet pudding made from roasted semolina. To up the flavor quotient and do something slightly different, I tried adding mango pulp to infuse a sweet and delicate flavor of mango. Adding the mango pulp also made the kesari really soft and moist, which is usually achieved by adding a lot of ghee. So win-win from that perspective.

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup fine or semi-fine rava or sooji 
2. 3/4 - 1 cup mango puree or canned mango pulp
3. 1.5 cups sugar (adjust depending on how sweet the mango/mango puree is)
4. 2 tablespoons ghee / clarified butter
5. 1 cup milk
6. 1.5 cups water
7. 1 teaspoon powdered cardamom 
8. a generous pinch of saffron
9. 2 tablespoons of mixed nuts and raisins

Preparation:

1. Warm the milk for about a minute. Soak the saffron in the warm milk.
2. Heat ghee in a heavy bottomed pan. When the ghee melts, roast the rava until it begins to change color
3. When the rava begins to roast, add the nuts and raisins and roast until the nuts begin to change color (I did this because I am lazy)
4. Heat water separately until it begins to boil. When the rava and nuts are roasted, slowly add the boiling water while stirring the rava continuously, making sure no lumps form. This is crucial. 
5. After mixing in the hot water and making sure there are no lumps in the rava, slowly add the milk (along with the saffron) while stirring the mixture continuously. 
6. Next, add the sugar and stir well. Keep stirring on low-medium heat making sure the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. After stirring for 5 minutes, the rava will plump and begin to cook. 
7. Now, add the mango pulp and stir well. Stir for another 5 to 10 minutes until the rava begins to spit and splutter as it cooks. 
8. At this point, add the cardamom, mix well and close the pan and let it cook for about 5 minutes until all the moisture is absorbed. Stir every 2 minutes or so to make sure the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. If the kesari is still sloppy in consistency, let it cook for a few more minutes. You can also add more ghee as needed if the kesari looks dry or is sticking to the pan.

Remove from heat and serve hot or at room temperature.