1.5cupsmilk (use warm milk)12 oz + more as needed to make thick pouring consistency batter
oil or gheefor frying
nuts, for garnishing
Instructions
Make the sugar syrup
Make the sugar syrup by mixing 1 cup sugar with 3/4 cup water in a pan. Switch on the heat on medium, add crushed cardamom pods and saffron strands.
Let the sugar dissolve, this take around 2-3 minutes. Once the sugar dissolves, add lemon juice and let the syrup simmer for around 3 minutes more until it becomes sticky.Don't look for any string consistency here, simply make the syrup sticky and you will be fine. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
Make the malpua
To make the batter for the malpua, add flour, milk powder and desiccated coconut to a large bowl.
Add crushed fennel seeds, sugar, pinch of salt and pinch of baking powder and mix well.
Start adding warm milk, little by little and whisk to form a smooth batter. The batter should have no lumps. It should be a thick batter of pouring consistency. If your looks very thick, add more milk to have a pouring consistency. Let the batter rest for 15 to 30 minutes.
Heat enough oil or ghee in a wide pan on medium heat. You don't need to submerge the entire malpua in oil. Pour a small ladle full of batter into the hot oil. The batter will form a round shape on its own, you don't need to shape it. I filled with pan with oil and then added 2 tablespoons ghee to it. You can fry entirely in ghee.
Lower the heat to low-medium and fry the malpua until golden brown from both sides. When you are frying one side, splash oil over the other side (which isn't dipped in oil) with a spatula so that it gets little cooked too at the same time. Flip and then completely fry the other side.
Remove the malpua from oil carefully, drain the oil.
Dip the malpua in prepared sugar syrup (make sure sugar syrup is warm, if its cold just place the sugar syrup pan on low heat to warm it up before soaking the malpua). Soak each side for 30 seconds.
Remove malpua from the sugar syrup and place on serving plate. Garnish with nuts, edible silver leaves (optional) and serve warm.
Notes
You may use khoya (dried milk solids) in place of milk powder.
Lemon juice is added to the sugar syrup to prevent crystallization.
You will get 8 to 9 malpuas from this batter. Remember to fry them at medium-low heat.