One of the all time favourites. This Indian sweet is perfect to share with friend and family for the Diwali season. This recipe does use edible silver leaf but that is optional in this case. It stores very well and can be made 1 month ahead in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.
Recipe note: You do need a candy thermometer or a regular thermometer that can read up to 120°C.
Time to get your Diwali sweets ready!
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp. freshly ground cardamom
- 2 tsp. ghee
Method
- Place 2 large pieces of parchment surface. Pulse cashews in a food processor or grinder to a fine powder. Set a sieve over a medium bowl and sift cashew powder into bowl. Return any larger pieces still in sieve to processor and pulse again to break up further (but be careful not to turn into nut butter). Sift into bowl; set cashew powder aside.
- Heat sugar and 60ml water in a medium saucepan over medium, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved; stir in cardamom. Add thermometer to side of pan and bring mixture to a boil (maintain heat). Cook, stirring often, until thermometer registers 115°C about 3 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low. Stir in ghee and reserved cashew powder. Cook, stirring constantly, until dough begins to pull away from sides of pan and form, about 3 minutes. Be careful, as the sugar will make the dough very, very hot. (You can check if the dough is ready by carefully scooping out a small spoonful and letting it cool until safe to touch. If you can roll it into a ball and it holds its shape, it’s ready.)
- Transfer dough to 1 sheet of parchment. Let cool until safe to handle.
- Knead warm dough 1 minute, then top with the remaining sheet of parchment. Roll out to create an oval about 15mm thick. Peel away top layer of parchment and carefully apply silver leaf (if using) to surface.
- Using a paring knife and a ruler, cut dough into 25mm wide strips.
- Then make diagonal cuts across the strips to create diamond shapes. Separate out individual kaju katli.
- Enjoy!