Colored Peda is an Indian sweet which is thick and soft in texture. It is made using evaporated milk, also known as Mawa or Khoya. Personally, I do not have a sweet tooth but this is one sweet dish I can have any day any time. Peda is a super hit with the kids of all ages because it easily melts in the mouth. In this recipe of colored peda, we have used only one food color but some people use more colors and make tri-colored pedas as well. Pedas are also used in religious offerings and are commonly distributed on happy or special occasions.
Ingredients:
- Full fat or full cream milk – 1 litre OR Mawa – 250 gms.
- Powdered sugar or Bura sugar – 1 cup approximately (Almost same quantity as that of Mawa)
- Melted Ghee – 1 tablespoon
- Finely chopped pistachios – 8-10
- Saffron strands – 15-20
- Yellow Food Color – 2 to 3
- Cardamoms, powdered – 2
- Silver Foil (Chandi Ka Vark) for decoration
Servings: 8-10 pieces
Preparation & Cooking time: 35 mins. if you prepare Mawa using milk; 10-15 mins. if you buy it from outside.
Method
As mentioned above, you can make Mawa or khoya at home or you can use store bought one. If you want to prepare it at home, take 1 litre milk in a heavy bottomed vessel and cook it on medium flame. Keep stirring in between and heat it till the milk thickens and eventually dries up. Mawa is ready.
Now take a pan and add ghee to it. Heat it and roast mawa on low flame, till mawa slightly changes color and starts releasing an aroma. Turn off the heat and let it cool.
Once mawa has cooled to a lukewarm temperature, add sugar to it. The temperature is key here because if mawa is hot when sugar is added, pedas will not take shape and if it is cold, the sugar will not mix well.
After adding sugar, mix and mash well.
Then take 1/3 portion of the above mix. Add the saffron strands and yellow food color to it. Roll this portion length-wise into cylindrical shape.
Now flatten the remaining white portion and set the yellow portion on it. Roll the whole thing again length-wise into a cylindrical shape such that the yellow portion is in centre. Cover and decorate with silver foil.
To cut the above into pedas, use a thread. Roll a thread around the cylinder on the point where you want to cut it and remove that circular portion. You can use a knife as well to cut into shape of peda but the shape comes out better with a thread.
Once all the pieces are cut, garnish the yellow portion of each colored peda with cardamom powder and pistachios.
Colored Peda is ready and can be stored at room temperature for 4-5 days. Relish it whenever you wish to.