Salted Gooseberry Kulfi (Serves 4-6)
with cumin, ginger & mint – Kulfi is an Indian style of ice-cream and something dear to my heart. Dad bought me my first kulfi ‘cone’ from a street-vendor in Connaught Circus, Delhi, back in the late ‘70’s. Bang; hooked!
What you need
Ingredients:
350g, fresh-picked gooseberries, top and tailed
50g white caster sugar
½ tsp fresh ground cumin
20g fresh ginger, finely grated through a micro-plane
½ scant tsp best sea salt, and a little more to garnish
1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted
1 tin, 397g condensed milk
250g, double cream
1 egg (large), white only, whipped to ‘stiff peak’ stage
Garnish:
Small handful fresh mint leaves, sliced thinly to ribbons
How to make it
- Pop the gooseberries into a small saucepan with the sugar, ground cumin, ginger and a splash of water, heat until they just begin to burst, then remove from the heat and mash. Add the salt, stir and set aside to cool completely.
- Take a large mixing bowl, add the gooseberry purée, condensed milk, cream and whip-up until you see ‘ribbons’ in the mixture, maybe 3 to 4 minutes; I’d recommend using an electric hand whisk if you have one.
- Fold the egg-white and toasted cumin seeds gently through the creamy mixture with a spatula until all ingredients are combined and you have a thick, sticky ‘mousse’
- Pour the mixture into a suitably sized bowl or tub, cover with a tea towel and set aside in your freezer to set for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Assembly
- Remove from the freezer and ball. Serve with fresh mint and the smallest pinch of sea salt. For added indulgence, dress the kulfi with a generous dollop of Greek yoghurt, lemon curd and toasted, chopped almonds.
- For the super adventurous, replace the ground cumin with a scant teaspoon of ‘Jal jeera’ spice blend. And for pure decadence, do not use the ground cumin adding a good pinch of saffron threads instead.