Diamond Sheera

A popular sweet snack in an easy to eat form

• CuisineIndian
• CategorySweet
• CourseSnack

Ingredients

• ½ cupGhee
• 2 cupsSemolina
• 6 cupsHot water
• 2 cupsSugar
• 6cardamoms
• 1 pinchSaffron strands
• ½ cupRaw cashews
• ½ tspSultanas

Preparation

1. Soak saffron strands in a small amount of hot water
2. Crush cardamoms
3. Melt some of the ghee in a pan and fry raw cashews till slightly golden
4. Remove and fry sultanas till swollen round
5. Remove, add remaining ghee and roast semolina mixing constantly till heated through
6. Add hot water carefully to avoid spattering and mix for a few minutes
7. Add crushed cardamoms, saffron and the sugar
8. Mix constantly till completely blended and there are no lumps of semolina
9. Add fried cashews and sultanas and mix in


10. Place a sheet of butter paper on a flat plate
11. Put about 2 cups of the sheera on it
12. Put another sheet of butter paper on top and use another plate to flatten it to a centimetre thick
13. Remove the stack of the butter papers and the flattened sheera and do a few more batches till all the sheera has been used up
14. When cool, cut into diamonds with a sharp knife

Sheera is made all over India. It is sometimes called Halwa in the north and of course sheera means something else in some places. A simple dish made with semolina and sugar, there are a few variations of this dish. Some use milk and some even use crushed bananas. The main ingredient is semolina. It comes in coarse or fine and either should be OK for this dish, although fine is preferred.

Although it is sweet, it is seldom eaten as a dessert at the end of meal. It is usually served as a snack. Cub loves this as a snack, especially in its easy to eat form - formed into diamond shapes, more commonly used for sweets like burfi.

For it to be rolled into a flat shape to be cut into diamonds, the sheera has to be quite soft. This is done by adding more water than usual. Be very careful adding the hot water to the roasted semolina - it spatters heavily. Add the water in small quantities and start mixing when it has all been added. The mass gets quite thick and mixing it is a bit difficult. Strangely, when more than the usual water is added, it does not look any different - it is as thick as before and you begin to wonder if there is enough water. It all changes when you add the sugar - it turns almost liquid. Adding the extra water also gives it a paler colour. What looks like a very fluid mass soon turns a bit more solid once it cools down. That is why it is important to get it all flattened before it cools down. Once cool, it can be cut into their characteristic diamond shape. The diamond shape looks good but the cook has to resist eating every other piece that is not a perfect diamond shape - there are too many of those for that.

A more common way to have sheera is to just have it crumbly and served in a bowl. For this, go with just 4 cups of water. The amount of ghee is also something you may want to vary according to your taste. This has just the amount for it to be discernible but not overpowering. It is probably on the lower side than most. The sugar is again a personal taste - I don't think it can be too sweet but Cub prefers less sugar as in this recipe. You could go lower for a nearly bland sheera or as I prefer it, higher. Cooking it for longer after the sugar is added gives it a slight caramel-like taste.