I remember going to temples or religious functions and being served this delicious sweet dish. It's so comforting even when you make and eat it at home, especially when it's cold outside!
To make it vegan, use vegan butter or coconut oil and a non dairy milk! I haven't tried it myself, but I've been told it works!
This recipe goes really well with any of my vegetable curries as part of a complete thali. Enjoy!
Sheera Recipe Cooking Time: 15 Minutes (Approx)
Serves 3 - 4 People as a sweet dish
INGREDIENTS
1/4 Cup Coarse Semolina
1/4 Cup Sugar
Just less than 1/4 Cup Ghee
1 Cup Milk
Pinch Ground Cardamom
2 TBSPN or 1/8 Cup Sliced Almonds
Pinch of Cardamom & some Sliced Almonds for Garnishing
METHOD
Place a fairly large saucepan with a lid on to heat on a medium heat. Add the ghee and let it melt.
Then add the semolina and give it a stir. The consistency should be as shown in the video: runny but not too runny nor too dry. If it's too runny, you'll have a lot of ghee in the Sheera which will make it too rich. If the mixture is dry & doesn't have enough ghee, it'll taste 'doughy' because of the semolina and the texture will not be right.
So add a little more the or semolina as needed. This will vary depending on the type of semolina you have and the age.
Roast the semolina well on a medium heat, stirring constantly so it doesn’t burn.
When it becomes a nice golden brown colour, REDUCE the heat to the lowest setting and add the nuts (and currants if using). Stir for a minute or two just until the nuts are toasted.
Warm up the milk at the same time. I put mine in the microwave for a minute. Warm milk reduces the amount of spatter that is caused when adding this to the hot semolina mix.
Then very carefully add the warm milk to the toasted semolina keeping the lid handy.
Once all the milk is added, remove the lid and give the mix a stir. Increase the heat to medium again and add a pinch of cardamom so the flavours can combine. If you are using saffron, you’d add it at this point.
Continue stirring until the mixture thickens quite a bit but isn’t completely dry (see video).
Then add the sugar and stir. This will make the mixture a little runny again. Stir for only a minute.
Then turn off the heat and garnish with another pinch of ground cardamom and some more sliced nuts. Enjoy this dessert warm.
To reheat any leftover sheera, you can place it in the microwave or, to reheat on the stovetop, add a little milk and reheat on a low heat breaking up any lumps.
If you'd like to increase the recipe, the basic formula is:
1 Part Coarse Semolina
1 Part Sugar
1 Part Ghee (adjusted as needed)
1/2 Part Sliced Almonds
4 Parts Milk
Cardamom to taste
