Strawberry Gulab Jamun

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Yields 44 to 48 jamuns

Ingredients:

Spiced strawberry simple syrup

• 1.5 cups sugar
• 1.5 cups water
• 10 large strawberries, hulled and chopped
• 3 to 4 cardamom pods, crushed
• a few strands of saffron
• 1 tsp rose water

Jamuns

• 2 cups khowa/khoya/milk powder
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup thick coconut cream
• 50/50 ratio of vegetable oil and ghee for frying

Directions:

1. In a saucepan, add sugar, water and chopped strawberries to make simple syrup. Heat the pan on medium. Stir until sugars completely dissolves and syrup gently simmers.
2. Stir and cook until syrup begins to thicken and strawberries softens, releasing juices. Keep syrup on the lowest heat setting on the stove so that it remains warm. Stir in cardamom pods, saffron threads and rose water.
3. In a medium bowl, combine milk powder, whole wheat pastry, baking soda and pinch of salt. Add in coconut cream and mix everything until combined into a soft dough. You want a dough that is soft and moist. If it’s too dry, add in more coconut cream. I’ve tried making jamuns with low-fat milk as well.
4. Meanwhile, heat a heavy bottomed nonstick saucepan on medium. Add enough vegetable oil and ghee for deep frying jamuns.
5. While oil heats, divide dough into equal portions, roughly the size of an average small coin. It might be too small, but while deep frying and soaking in simple syrup, the jamuns tend to expand.
6. Roll dough between palms and apply gentle pressure till the small dough balls are smoothly rounded. Make as many to keep ready for deep frying.
7. Dough balls should appear smooth and without cracks. If it’s too dry, add a little more coconut cream or milk in the dough.
8. Turn down the heat on deep frying to the lowest setting. Add a few dough balls at a time to avoid over-crowding.
9. Dough balls would be afloat after a few seconds of frying. Using a mesh strainer, move around the dough balls to lightly brown and cook all sides.
10. If dough balls browned too quickly, the oil is too hot. Lower the heat and redo the rest of dough balls.
11. Remove jamuns to drain on paper towels for 5 minutes. Then transfer it into warm strawberry simple syrup to soak for a few hours.
12. Continue frying all dough balls until done. Rotate soaked jamuns with jamuns that are awaiting to be soaked.
13. Serve jamuns with drizzles of strawberry simple syrup, garnish with chopped pistachios and fresh strawberries.