Kesar Badam Kulfi

It is summer, and what could be better than a lick of ice cream in the comfort of your home? My today’s recipe, Kesar Badam Kulfi, is a much-loved dessert in my home. Every summer, it’s almost like a tradition to make a batch of this authentic Indian ice cream and relish it when the day temperature peaks and all you want is something to cool your body and soothe your senses!

Ice cream is famous and popular worldwide. In summer, it is the go-to dessert for many. Kulfi is an Indian-style ice cream. It is quite distinguishable from other ‘regular ice creams’ because of its typical shape, achieved by the special moulds in which it is set.

The mould looks like this:

Kulfi is rich and creamy and comes in various flavours. Some of the popular Kulfi flavours are Malai (Creamy with mild flavours), Pista ( with pistachios), Badam (with almonds), and Aam (with seasonal mangos).

Today’s recipe, Kesar Badam Kulfi, combines badam, i.e almonds and kesar, i.e., saffron. It is a tried-and-tested recipe that I use year after year, and I can guarantee you that if you follow it accurately, you will get fantastic results.

If you are looking for other dessert recipes, check out my dessert recipes page for many more sweet treats!

Now, let’s start with the recipe for Kesar Badam Kulfi. At the end of the recipe, I have shared some notes about ingredient sourcing in Germany.

Equipment Needed:

Thick Bottomed Cooking Pot: I used the biggest one from this set.
Knives and Cutting Board
Pan
Silicon Spatula
Kulfi Moulds

Ingredients for Kesar Badam Kulfi:

2 lt Milk with at least 3.5% Fat
200 gm Heavy Cream
6 tbsp Milk Powder
200 gm Refined Sugar
2 Handfuls Almonds
1 tsp Kewda Water
2 Pinches Saffron
8-10 Green Cardamoms; pounded

Method to make Kesar Badam Kulfi:

Take about a cup of milk (from the 2 lts milk) in a bowl. Add milk powder. Whisk it together get a lump-free mix.
In a big, thick-bottomed cooking pot, combine the rest of the milk and heavy cream. Also add the milk mixed with milk powder. Mix with a spatula.
Add saffron strands and cardamom powder. Now, turn on the heat to high and let it come to a boil.
Cook this milk on high heat, constantly mixing with a spatula to ensure that it doesn’t stick to the base. Cook till the quantity gets reduced to half. It will easily take about 45 minutes.
Once the quantity is reduced to half, add sugar. Mix and turn off the heat. Let the mixture come to room temperature.
While the mixture cools, toast almonds on medium heat in a pan. Constantly turn and mix with a spatula so that the skin of the almonds doesn’t burn.
When the skin starts cracking, turn off the heat. Transfer the almonds to a plate and let them come to room temperature. Once the almonds are cooled, chop them.
When the milk mixture cools, add chopped almonds and kewda water. Mix.
Transfer the mixture to kulfi moulds. You can even choose a bigger glass box with a lid.
Cover and freeze for at least 5 hours.
To serve, take out the kulfi mould from the freezer. Run it under room-temperature tap water for a few seconds. Then roll the mould between your palms so that your body heat warms it, making it easy to de-mould the kulfi.
Invert the mould on a plate, and the kulfi will easily come out. If it doesn’t, use a knife to loosen the edges.
Serve cold.

Some Notes about Ingredient sourcing in Germany:

Milk: Use frische Milch 3,5% Fett. Read more about milk varieties in German Supermarkets here.
Heavy Cream: Use Crème Fraîche. Read more about Cream-based products in German Supermarkets here.
Milk Powder: Use Nido Milk Powder. It sis easily available in Indian shops.
Refined Sugar: Use Raffinade Zucker. Read more anout sugar varieties in German Supermarkets, click here.
Almonds: These are called Mandeln. You can get them easily in supermarkets.
Kewda Water: This is easily available in Indian shops.
Saffron: Available in Indian shops.
Green Cardamom: Available in Indian shops.

Here is the recipe in printable format: