I know, I know! It’s not green beer but it tastes SO good! Almond Kulfi for St Patrick’s Day is perfect for any green gathering. It was supposed to be a pistachio kulfi (for the natural green colour) but I kept forgetting to buy the dang things so I just dyed the kulfi green :).

I am quite certain the patron saint of Ireland would approve of this very rich and decadent dessert without all the extravagance of a rich and decadent dessert. It is very simple and quite rustic in its preparation and also happens to be very easy to make. 

St Patrick was a Christian missionary and a bishop in Ireland who lived and taught around the fifth century. He died on March 17 and St Patrick’s Day is celebrated on this day around the world. March 17 around the world has become a celebration of Ireland itself with St Patrick’s Day parties with Irish food and all things green.

Of course, Ireland is not known for Indian food but being across from the British Isles where there is plenty of great Indian food, I am sure it has found its way to Ireland. I never had a chance to visit Ireland and I regret not going now. My father visited County Kerry once and he said it was beautiful. Ireland is on my list of places to visit.

Typical Irish food back in the day, was simple and homey. Potatoes were a staple and fresh meat was an indulgence only for the affluent. Any meat that was acquired was usually cured to extend its life. The countryside provided greens, mushrooms and berries and foraging was encouraged. Ireland being an island, seafood was easily available.

Nowadays, every cuisine has made its way to Ireland and even traditional Irish food has had a revival with emphasis on fresh vegetables and seafood. The production of some great Irish cheeses and of course the potato, has seen a resurgence in popularity of great traditional Irish food like Irish stew, colcannon, the full Irish breakfast.

Anyway, my kulfi (Indian ice cream) is hardly traditional Irish fare but it can be  a new tradition representative of the cultures that cross the borders. More than anything, it’s really delicious. 

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Almond Kulfi for St Patrick’s Day

Prep time:  30 mins

Total time:  4 hours 30 mins

Serves: 8½ cup servings

Ingredients

• 2 cups/473mL heavy cream
• 2 cups/473mL milk
• ½ cup/115g raw turbinado sugar
• 8 cardamom pods
• 1 cup/170g ground almonds
• food colouring, optional

Instructions

1. In a heavy bottomed pan, bring the milk, cream and cardamom pods to a simmer.
2. Simmer for about 20/30 minutes until there are about 2 cups of the mixture left.
3. Fish out the cardamom pods.
4. Add the raw sugar and stir until dissolved.
5. Add the ground almonds and stir until combined.
6. Allow to cook a little until the mixture thickens.
7. Pour into small ½ cup/118mL custard cups or even a large container.
   
8. Freeze until set, about 4 hours.
9. To unmold, dip the bottom in hot water to loosen the kulfi and then place a plate on top and flip over.
10. The kulfi should pop out, shake if needed.
11. If you have frozen the kulfi in a large container, let it soften a bit and then scoop out like ice-cream.

Notes

You can use cardamom powder but to me it doesn't smell like fresh cardamom. You can always take out the seeds and grind them, but it's just as easy to fish them out of the milk mixture. I like my kulfi dense with lots of almonds. I used ground almonds and you can whiz them in the processor if you like it really fine. Just be careful not to make almond butter. I also like a lot of cardamom, if you are not fond of cardamom, I guess you can use vanilla but then it wouldn't really be kulfi.

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Hope you all have a great week. Make some almond kulfi for a mid week treat if you aren’t planning a St Patrick’s Day celebration.