Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup ghee plus 3 tablespoons
- 1/2 cup organic chickpea flour / gram flour (known as besan in Hindi, can be found in ethnic Indian grocery stores)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated coconut (you can find frozen grated coconut in ethnic Indian grocery stores)
- 2 Tbsp raw cacao powder (I used Healthworks Raw Certified Organic Cacao Powder that I ordered on Amazon.com)
- 1/2 cup organic whole milk
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 tsp powdered cardamom (optional)
Method:
- Grease a 9x9 inch pan with ghee and set aside
- In a heavy bottomed saucepan, heat 2 Tbsp of ghee on low heat
- Add the chickpea flour and roast on low heat for around 5 to 7 minutes stirring constantly so that it does not turn brown
- Add the grated coconut and stir for another 5 to 7 minutes till the nutty smell of coconut fills the room
- Mix in the raw cacao powder
- Bring the milk to room temperature and add to the saucepan
- Add the sugar and mix to dissolve
- Add the ghee. Also, add the powdered cardamom if using
- Set the candy thermometer in the saucepan
- Keep stirring on medium to low heat until the mixture reaches soft-ball stage or around 235-240F on the candy thermometer. This could take anywhere from 15 to 25 minutes.
- When it reaches soft-ball stage immediately switch off the heat and scoop the mixture in to the greased pan and smooth the surface with a spatula
- After around 30 minutes, use a sharp knife to make incisions to cut the barfi in to squares
- Let it cool completely, then break off the barfi bars and store in an air-tight container
Notes:
- You can make barfis with ground cashews or ground almonds instead of grated coconut using the same proportions