Holi is incomplete without thandai. My Badam Thandai Barfi is a soft, chewy, delicious mithai, rich with the beloved flavours of thandai.
What is thandai
Thandai is a milk-based drink flavoured with an aromatic, traditionally stone-ground paste or masala of blanched almonds and pistachios, black pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, aniseed, poppy seeds, melon seeds, dried rose petals and sometimes a few strands of saffron. Thandai comes from ‘thanda’ in Hindi meaning cold. All the ingredients in the drink are meant to cool the body and thandai is always served chilled in clay cups. The ground paste was mixed with chilled water and a thick ‘milk’ was extracted by squeezing it through muslin. This flavourful extract was then mixed with sugar and milk.
To make this Badam Thandai Barfi, I made a dry thandai powder mixture, rather than a paste and used it to flavour the mithai. Here’s the recipe for thandai masala.
Tips to perfect your Badam Thandai Barfi
- Use homemade thandai masala. Fresh masala, ground at home is always more punchy and aromatic than store-bought masala. This thandai masala keeps well in the fridge for months when stored in an airtight jar. Recipe for thandai masala
- Cook your barfi mixture on low-medium heat. Patience is the key to getting it right, so keep the flame gentle to avoid browning/ burning the almond mixture. A slow flame also preserves subtle flavours like rose, poppy and saffron that are in the thandai masala and allows them to gently meld together.
- Keep stirring the Badam Thandai Barfi mixture so that it’s lump-free. When it is fully cooked, you should be able to fold the mixture over itself like soft, pliable dough.
- Take care to not overcook the mixture. This will make it dry and very sticky. To test if it’s done, pinch-off a small amount of the mixture and roll it into a ball. If it rolls easily without sticking to your palm, it is done.
- If the mixture is too mushy and soft, add a little extra milk powder to firm it up.
This Badam Thandai Barfi is wonderfully simple and fail-proof. It was a big hit with my dinner guests and the best part is that you can make a big batch ahead of time and have pure, clean, homemade sweets without breaking a sweat.
Click to find other thandai-based recipes like Thandai Kulfi, Thandai Shortbread Cookies and Thandai Mousse.
Badam Thandai Barfi
Ingredients
- 120 g almond powder (skinless)
- 4 tbsp ghee
- 75 g sugar
- 4 tbsp thandai masala
- 125 g milk
- 190 g milk powder
- A small pinch of saffron
- Gold leaf for decorating (optional)
Instructions
- Line a 8-inch, square ng tin with parchment and lightly grease with ghee.
- In a bowl, whisk together almond powder, thandai masala, milk powder and salt until well combined. Break up any lumps of almond powder.
- In a non-stick pan, melt the ghee on a low-medium flame, pour in the milk and add the sugar and saffron. Stir and heat the mixture till the sugar dissolves. The mixture will thicken slightly. Cook for 2 minutes.
- Now, add the dry the mixture, stirring continuously to prevent any lumps from forming. Cook for 4-5 minutes till the mixture thickens to a soft, dough-like consistency and leaves the sides of the pan.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin and spread evenly, pressing ensure it forms a neat square. Press the gold leaf gently on the surface that it sticks. Cool to room temperature, then chill in the fridge for 4-5 hours to allow the barfi to set. Cut into squares with a sharp knife and serve. Store these badam thandai barfis in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.