Hannukah Desserts from India: Ras Malai and Gulab Jamun

We are learning about Sephardic minhagim (customs) and halachot (laws) with a small group that is coalescing here. One of the things that surprised me was that, according to one of sources we studied, Sephardim don't generally share the Ashkenazik custom of eating fried foods throughout the Hanukkah holiday. Instead, the focus is on eating dairy to commemorate Judith, who fed the Greek general dairy and wine, and when he passed out drunk, cut off his head. Seeing their leader decapitated, the Greek troops scattered.

I haven't really found any traditional Iraqi dairy desserts, but giving to our family's connection to India, both past and present, I thought I would share a few classic Indian dairy desserts which are lovely this or anytime of the year.

Ras Malai: Sugar Poached Paneer

Ras Malai are a lovely and relatively easy to make treat. Paneer is formed into balls, poached in a simple syrup and then served in a thick cardamon and sugar cream sauce. They are a perfect way to end a festive meal, at Hanukkah, Shavuot, or any time.

Ingredients:

• Paneer (Indian pressed curd cheese)
• 1 quart full cream or whole milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cardamom
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced almonds or pistachios

Directions:

1. Mix the water and 1 cup of sugar in a pan. Bring it to a boil, and cook until all the sugar is dissolved. Turn off the fire and keep syrup aside.
2. Knead the Paneer on a board until it's very smooth. Form balls slightly about and inch in diameter, and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand.
3. Reheat the syrup until it's boiling. Reduce the heat to simmer and gently drop in the paneer balls. Poach the paneer in the syrup for about 10 minutes. Turn off the fire, and remove the pan from the heat.
4. In another pan boil the a 1 quart of full cream/milk with 1/2 cup of sugar, then reduce heat and simmer  until it is reduced to 75 percent of its original volume. Turn off the fire, add the ground cardamom and mix well.
5. Drain the paneer balls, reserving the syrup for a later use. Add the paneer balls to the milk mixture and and chill for at least 3 hours.
6. Before serving, garnish with slivers of dried nuts.

Gulab Jamun: Deep Fried Milk Dumplings in Syrup

These golden balls are a wonderful way to integrate the Sephardic dairy tradition with the Ashkenazic ideal of fried goodies. Though there is a bit of labor in these little gems, their light and airy texture complemented by subtle sweetness is worth the effort.

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp grounded cardamon
• 1 tsp rosewater syrup
• 1 cup nonfat milk powder
• 1/4 cup All Purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons room temperature unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup room temperature whole milk
• Pinch of baking soda
• 1 tablespoon sliced almonds and pistachio
• Oil for deep-frying

Directions:

1. To make the syrup, Mix the water, sugar, and ground cardamom in a pan. Bring it to a boil, and cook until all the sugar is dissolved. Add the rosewater syrup, and stir.  Turn off the fire, cover the pot, and let the syrup sit on the hot spot.
2. In a bowl, mix milk powder, flour and baking soda.
3. Add the butter and mix well.
4. Now add milk to make soft dough. The dough will be sticky.
5. Let the dough sit for 10 minutes. If the dough is dry, add more milk, because you want a soft dough.
6. Grease your hands with butter  and then knead the dough for about 5 minutes, then divide the dough into about 20 equal portions and roll them into round balls.
7. Heat the oil in a frying pan on medium heat to about 350. The frying pan should have at least 1 ½ inch of oil. To test if the oil is the right temperature, place a small piece of dough into the oil; it should take a minute to rise. If dough rises faster, oil is too hot; if dough just sits without rising, oil is not hot enough.
8. Place the balls in the frying pan, 4 or 5 at a time. Keep in mind that they will double in size as they fry, so don't be in a rush to over do it. [ Remember, adding things to the oil will also drop the temperature so overcrowding will not only interfere with rising, but will result in low temperature frying which means more oil absorbed by the dessert.] Roll the gulab jamun around while frying so they are evenly dark brown on all sides. It should take about 7 minutes to get there.
9. Remove the gulab jamun from the oil using a slotted spoon, and let them cool off 5 to 10 minutes before placing in the hot syrup. If they go into the syrup while they are hot, the gulab jamun will become chewy rather than delicate.
10. Let them sit in the hot syrup for at least 20 minutes prior to serving in order to absorb some of the delicate cardamon flavor. 
11. Gulab jamun can be kept at room temperature for about a week and up to one month when refrigerated.