Pista Khaja

by Tarla Dalal

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Mithai khaja is a traditional sweet made with maida and ghee, sometimes stuffed with khoya or dry fruits, deep fried in ghee and then dunked into a fragrant saffron-flavoured sugar syrup. There are different kinds of khaja - depending on the stuffing. There's malai khaja, mawa khaja, pista khaja etc.

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Pista Khaja recipe - How to make Pista Khaja

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Preparation Time: 10 mins Cooking Time: 0 mins Total Time: 10 mins 8Makes 8 servings (8serving )
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Ingredients

32 thin samosa pattis cut into 3" x 2 1/2" pieces

For The Filling
3/4 cup blanched pistachios
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cardamom (elaichi) powder

For The Sugar Syrup
1/2 cup sugar
a few saffron (kesar) strands
1/4 tsp lemon juice

Other Ingredients
oil for deep-frying
1 tbsp plain flour (maida) , mixed with 2 tablespoon water

Method

For the filling

Peel and dry the pistachios on a tea towel.
Grind the sugar and pistachios in a blender coarsely.
Place this mixture in a saucepan, sprinkle a few drops of water and heat over a gentle flame till the mixture is cooked and leaves the sides of the pan. Add the cardamom powder and mix well.
Cool and divide the mixture into 8 equal parts.

For the sugar syrup

Dissolve the sugar with half a cup of water and simmer for 5 minutes till the syrup is of 1-string consistency.
Add the saffron and lemon juice and mix.
Remove from the fire and keep warm.

How to proceed

Place a portion of the pistachio filling in the centre of one samosa patti.
Apply the flour paste on the samosa patti around the filling, taking care to leave the edges dry, so that the layers separate while the khaja is being fried.
Place another samosa patti on top and press gently around the filling in order to stick the two pattis together. Apply a little flour paste in the centre of the stuffed khaja and stick another samosa patti. Turn it around and stick one more patti on it.
Deep fry in hot oil until golden in colour. Drain on absorbent paper.
Transfer the khajas into the warm sugar syrup. Drain on a metal rack to allow the excess syrup to drain.