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July 6, 2013

Kaju Katli Recipe - Cashew burfi - Munthiri Cake With Video

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How to make Kaju katli recipe at home with step by step photos, video and tips - Easy method of making cashew burfi. It is known as Munthiri cake in Tamil, Kaju barfi in Hindi. 

Kaju katli is my family’s favourite sweet recipe.Every time we used to buy it from AAB sweet shop Bangalore & Tamil nadu even though it is costly in price. So I wanted to make it perfect just like sweet shops and tried it many times during Diwali and other family occasions ;) Kaju katli recipe is a very simple Indian sweet with very less ingredients. I heard milk powder, saccharine or mawa/khoya is used in sweet shops to yield more in quantity.But I don't think it is necessary.Homemade kaju katli tastes way better and healthy as well.This was the first sweet I tried on my own ( without my MIL’s help) after my marriage for Sendhil & Raksha.
Kaju katli
Long back I had posted this recipe without much details along with some other sweets & savouries during diwali. But I want to have a separate post for kaju katli in my blog with step by step pictures, video and some tips for easier understanding especially for beginners. I have tried this recipe several times and it comes out perfect. After I got the confidence of preparing kaju katli , I started making kaju lotus sweet which tastes very similar to kaju katli but it looks colourful. Both the sweets are very easy to prepare once you know the knack and tips for troubleshooting. So when you try this recipe , don’t forget to try kaju lotus. U’ll love it. For 1 cup of cashews, you can get 10 pieces using this recipe.

Check out my Easy Badam Cashew Burfi if interested !

I have updated this recipe with a full video for beginners reference. Hope you find it useful :) Please watch the video below !


Kaju katli



Kaju Katli recipe


Kaju Katli recipe How to make Kaju katli - Diwali sweets recipes
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Sweet
Serves: 8-10 nos
Prep time: 5 Minutes
Cook time: 10 Minutes
Total time: 15 Minutes


INGREDIENTS
1 cup = 250ml
  • Cashew nuts – 1 cup
  • Sugar – 1/2 cup
  • Water – 1/4 cup
  • Ghee – 1 tsp ( to grease the tray)
  • Milk – 1-2 tsp (optional, only if needed)
METHOD
HOW TO POWDER CASHEWS
  • Cashews should be dry. If u have kept in the refrigerator, bring it to room temperature by spreading them in a towel or paper to absorb all the water. OR Dry roast the cashews in a broad hot kadai in low flame without changing the color.Switch off the stove and put the cashews in the hot kadai for 10-15 mins till it becomes crisp & dry. I have followed both the methods & it works.
  • Grind cashews to a fine powder. U can do this by two methods.One is :Run the mixie at low speed for short intervals , stir in between to get a fine powder. Repeat the same for 2-3 times till u get a nice powder. Make sure u do not over grind them . If over ground , cashews will leave oil & becomes a sticky paste..
  • Second method is : Run the mixie continuously for one minute till u get a fine powder. U should be careful . Do not grind for more time. Cashew will release oil and becomes a sticky paste.
I have tried both the methods .. They work very well. U can try any.
When u grind 1 cup of cashews u’ll get  2-3 tbsp more than 1 cup of powder. U can use the same quantity and proceed further. No need to measure 1 cup of powder. 1/2 cup of sugar would be enough. After grinding, sieve the cashew powder through a wire mesh. You will get very fine cashew powder. Grind the leftover coarse ones and mix with cashew powder. This is the basic method of making cashewnuts powder. Once you have this powder in hand, making kaju sweets is a breeze :)
How to make kaju katli

HOW TO PROCEED
  • After grinding the cashews,set aside.Grease a plate with ghee & keep it ready.
  • In a kadai , take 1/2 cup of sugar & add 1/4 cup of water just to cover the sugar. Allow it to boil till frothy. Switch off the flame. Check if it reaches one string consistency.ie.take a drop of syrup from the back of ladle and test it between your thumb & fore finger. When u release it , u’ll get a thin,uncut single string.( oru kambi padham)
How to make kaju katli
  • Now switch on the flame to low. Add the ground cashew powder & mix well till u get a whole mass.ie, Keep stirring until the mixture starts to leave the sides of the pan and becomes thick.  It takes maximum of 4-5 minutes in low to medium flame.Do not wait for the dough to become too thick like chapathi dough. It should be soft and sticky. Test the consistency by making a small ball from the dough using ghee greased fingers. U should be able to roll a soft, non sticky ball out of it.
How to make kaju katli
How to make kaju katli

  • Transfer the mixture to the greased plate, spread the dough with a spoon, add a tsp of  ghee ( optional)  and leave it for 5  - 10 minutes. It will be hot but good enough to handle it. Grease your hands with little ghee & Knead well like chapathi dough. 
  • Initially u’ll feel dry & hard but as u knead well, cashews release oil and becomes soft, smooth. ( If u have missed the right consistency, the mixture will become very hard & crumbly. In that case add 1 -2 tsp milk and start kneading. U’ll get a soft ball like this at the end. But adding milk reduces the shelf life of the sweet.Add milk only if u feel the dough is too hard to handle. Else add a tsp of ghee for kneading. )
  • In a plastic sheet or butter paper,grease it with ghee, roll the kneaded dough using a rolling pin. Trim the corners and cut them into the desired shapes. Please note color of cashew burfi may vary based on the purity of sugar. If the sugar is with more impurities, katli comes out in pale white like u see in the picture below. But its color improves the next day !  So try to use pure, white colored refined sugar :)
How to make kaju katli
It just melts in ur mouth. Enjoy !! Stays good for 2-3 days  if store in an air tight box without refrigeration..Smile Enjoy !

Trouble shooting tips 

In case, you missed the right consistency and if the dough becomes crumbly and hard, just break them into pieces. Grind in a big mixie jar adding little water or milk and make a smooth paste. Transfer the mixture to the kadai and again cook it till you attain the correct stage.You can easily identify the right stage as you had experienced where you went wrong. So do it patiently and remove it at the right stage. Its always better to cook in low flame for safer side.
Note
  • Cashews should be completely dry before grinding.While powdering the cashews please be careful in running the mixie. Over doing it makes the cashews sticky & wet.U wont get the perfect smooth powder.
  • One string consistency is very important. If sugar reaches more than one string consistency , katli will become hard. So as soon as the sugar syrup becomes slightly thick and frothy, switch off the flame.Check for one string and then continue.
  • If the dough become hard, you have to add more milk to make it soft. Adding more than the required milk makes it wet & sticky.It reduces the shelf life of the sweet. So remove the dough at the right time. 
  • U can check the consistency of dough by making a small ball out of it.The ball should be non-sticky.Suppose if u over mix the dough and if it becomes hard,no worries.Just keep the dough in a plate and let it warm.Add little milk to it and knead it well.It will become soft.Then u can roll it and make pieces as mentioned above.
  

Enjoy this kids favorite Kaju Katli for Diwali  & have a great celebration !!
Kaju katli recipe




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22 comments :

AparnaRajeshkumar said...

My long term wish need to try !

Shama Nagarajan said...

yummy dear

Unknown said...

perfect looking kaju katli...

Unknown said...

perfect and i will try this soon.

Gajus kitchen said...

Delicious katli well explained

great-secret-of-life said...

yummy and delicious sweet

meena said...

nice clicks.perfect diwali gift to dear ones.

Laxmipriya said...

have always wanted to try this.. thx for the tips.. nice clicks.. will give it a try..:)

Sayantani Mahapatra Mudi said...

wow perfect kaju katlis. love the neat edgings.

Nisha said...

perfectly done

Anonymous said...

pearly perfect sweets,love their creamy color,our favorite,canisters look great
indiaandworldcuisine.com

Shree said...

they are so perfect and melt-in-mouth !

Lifewithspices said...

beautiful preperation..

Priya Suresh said...

Congrats Chitra..Kaju katli looks very prefect and elegant as well.

Unknown said...

congrats chitra...kajus looks so delicious and mouth watering

AJ said...

Looks superb! Yum I love kaju kathli!

MJ Delights said...

Looks yum..

http://www.mjdelights.in/index.php/kids-delight/eggless-chocolate-cupcakes-a-giveaway/

Priya Anandakumar said...

Congrats Chitra and super duper kaju katli...

subavenkat said...

very nice .....

subavenkat said...

very nice ...

Harini said...

Hi can this recipe to tried with walnuts

Chitra said...

Hi Harini, Sure you can tr. Powder it finely.