Double ka Meetha (Hyderabadi Bread Pudding )

What cannot be cured must be endured- so the saying goes, this is very true as my love for sweets & chocolates is getting worse & worse. Staying off them completely increases the misery and I get back to gorging on them with a vengence. If there is nothing at all to satiate my sweet tooth, a spoon of sugar works like a charm.With no cure for this sweety addicition in sight, all I do much to the chagrin of my weight watching goals is endure & indulge. I try & cut my intake with little measured quantities, but what do you do when the dessert in question is the absolutely to- die for sweet like Double ka Meetha ??? Its a sinful indulgence 

The 4th week of Radhika's Blog Hop Wednesdays # 4 sees me paired with Vaishali @ Ribbons to Pasta. I loved the stunning array of dishes in vaishali's space as well as the various creative art work. The Nawabi dishes from her hearth was especially inviting. Indulging my sweet teeth,I made Double ka Meetha & followed her recipe fully.Though I have heard a lot about this dessert, my hearth was yet to see action on this front. So it was happy hoots when this yummy milk pudding beckoned me from vaishali's blog.

Double ka Meetha is a very famous Hyderabadi Dessert and is often called as the King of Bread Puddings. Usually served at weddings & get-togethers, the dessert is a definite party pleaser. The reason why it is called as Double ka Meetha is amusing. Meetha means sweet & bread is called as double roti because of Mr.Yeasts' action over the dough which leads  to its doubling. Hence it is literally 'The Bread Sweet'. The milk for the pudding is spiced with saffron & cardamom powder,sweetened with sugar & thickened along with milk solids/khoya till it reduces to almost half its original quantity. Khoya/Khoa/Mava is the milk solid that can be homemade or store bought. For the homemade milk solids, reduce the milk till it thickens & coagulates to a doughy and almost granular like texture.This concentrated solid forms the base for many an Indian Sweets & Desserts like Gujiya,Barfi,Kalakand etc.This dessert is similar to Shahi Tukra which is a more richer version of this pudding.

What's in it :-

• Bread Slices -4
• Milk - 500 ml (I used Full Cream Milk)
• Khoya/Milk Solids -1/4 cup - grated
• Sugar - 1/2 cup - to taste
• Mixed Nuts - 1/2 cup (mix of cashews,raisins,almonds & pistachios)
• Ghee - to deep fry - as required
• Cardamom & Saffron - a generous pinch or two

How :-

Cut off the edges of the bread & slice them in to quarters. In a pan, heat the ghee & deep fry these slices till golden brown. Take care not to burn them. Put the slices on an absorbent paper & set aside. In the same pan roast all the nuts till they are golden brown. Set aside. In a separate milk pan, add the milk & bring it to a boil.Add the cardamom & saffron strands to it as it simmers and add the required sugar.Now add the grated milk solids/khoya and let it simmer till the quantity reduces to half & thickens.

Arrange the bread pieces in a tray/plate/deep dish. Pour the sweetened & spiced up milk little by little till the fried beauties are completely soaked n drenched.Sprinkle the roasted nuts and let it sit out for some time till the milk mix is absorbed by the bread pieces. If the milk still remains un absorbed you can put the dish in a preheated oven & bake @ 180 C for 5-7 minutes. I didn't have to put them in the oven as within minutes the bread pieces beautifully soaked up the thickened milk mix.

Verdict:- Delicate & absolutely yummy & very very divine !

Useful Pointers & Serving Suggestions

1.	Frying the bread pieces in ghee/clarified butter gives the dish a very exquisite taste; alternately you can also fry them in canola oil or any vegetable oil. Once in a while indulgences merits a true taste of this regal hyderabadi dessert which the ghee adds, so go ahead & indulge!
2.	Adding khoya to the simmering milk heightens the taste of the dessert.No need to fret if you don't have khoya/milk solids, the milk that is thickened well is good enough for the pudding. Or how about using Milk Maid (Condensed Milk) to give that thickening as well as oozing that oomph ?
3.	Cut the bread slices in to quarters or triangles and let them rest for some time (like an hour or so) - this enables the evaporation of all the moisture content in the bread and it dries completely.This is done so that the bread pieces do not absorb oil/ghee while frying and is relatively light. Also take care not to burn the raisins while roasting them, else they leave  a slightly bitter taste.
4.	Serve the dessert warm or keep it refrigerated for a few hours and enjoy this cool treat; also a scoop or two of your favourite icecream along with this pudding adds to the zing !

Linking it to Nancy's YBR-September