Gulab Jaman!!!!

For mothers day this year, I made an indian feast for my mother, my boyfriend's mother and of course the dads! We had balti beef curry, fish masala curry, butter chicken, naan, eggplant sambal, mint raita, rice, indian spiced potatoes, mango lassi, tomato and onion salad and off course, gulab jaman!! I have loved gulab jaman since I was a kid, but had never made it before! Much to my surprise it turned out really good!! And was pretty easy to make!! The hardest thing was finding rosewater!! But after 4 shops, I finally did! Can't wait to use it in other recipes too :)

Dough balls waiting for the fryer:

                                          Getting sizzled:

                                          Draining

                                          Into the syrup:

                                          Syrup waiting for the delicious balls:

The great thing about gulab jaman is that it can be made a day ahead, which was super handy!!

All the recipes I used for this mothers day feast can be found on taste.co.nz.

Ingredients

• 2 cups (440g) caster sugar
• 2 cups (500ml) water
• 8 cardamom pods
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 3 star anise
• 1 teaspoon rosewater
• ½ cup (75g) self-raising flour
• ¼ cup (25g) full-cream milk powder
• 100g spreadable cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon water
• 24 raisins
• vegetable oil for deep-frying
• NOTE: This recipe can be made a day ahead.

Method

Combine the sugar and water in a medium saucepan, add the cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks and star anise. Stir over heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the rosewater; cool.

Combine the flour and milk powder in a medium bowl, stir in the cream cheese and water, and mix to a soft dough. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.

Divide the dough into 24 pieces. Hold a piece of dough in one hand and flatten slightly. Place a raisin in the centre and roll into a ball. Repeat with remaining dough and raisins.

Deep-fry the balls in hot oil until golden brown and cooked through; drain on absorbent paper.

Add balls to syrup and stand for at least 1 hour before serving.

Not suitable to freeze. Not suitable to microwave.