Kesar-Elaichi Shrikhand

This is 21st century, which means no one is "allowed" to spend more time on anything than absolutely necessary. So how can we not implement this principle in cooking? And the new alternatives available for traditional cooking make it even more easy to make something great in a jiffy! So, "Ring out the old, ring in the new, when you run out of yoghurt, sour cream comes to your rescue"(yup, I'm an established poet too:)!!!)

Shrikhand(photo courtesy gujaratplus.com) is a well-known and highly-loved dessert in India that is simple to make and tastes very nice. You don't need to be an Indian to enjoy it. And saffron(kesar) and cardamom(elaichi) are the best friends of anything sweet! Traditionally, Shrikhand is made from hung curd, which used to be a lot of pain as it took hours. But this recipe of mine uses Sour Cream instead of yoghurt, which gives it a better texture and flavour, and you can make a perfect dessert in a very short time! The idea sparked when we had a pot-luck party during my grad school days, and I was informed about it only when I returned half an hour before the party, tired and depressed from my Engineering class. My fiance had promised everyone we'd get dessert, and by some stroke of good luck, I was struck by the inspiration to use sour cream and make Shrikhand out of it! Now when we reflect back, we are really greatful for this as this recipe has become an absolute favourite of my family and my friends.

Ingredients
2 cups fresh sour cream
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp saffron strands
1 tsp cardamom powder
1/3 cup sliced pistachios/almonds mix to garnish
2 tbsp plain yoghurt (optional)
1 tbsp milk

Method
Take the milk in a cup and microwave it for 15 seconds. Mix the saffron strands in this and rub with your fingers to extract the orangish/yellow colour and saffron flavour. The more you rub, the more colour you'll get. Keep this aside. Mix the sour cream, yoghurt, cardamom powder and sugar in a large bowl. Slowly mix the saffron milk to this mixture and keep stirring to spread the colour throughout the sour cream. Transfer the shrikhand to a serving bowl and keep to referigerate. Garnish with the dry-fruit mix before serving. There, a delicious and healthy dessert is ready to dazzle your family or friends!

Tip: You can add your favourite fruits like Mango to turn it into Fruit Shrikhand