440 gm(2cups)castersugar
2 tspgroundcardamom
1 tbsprosewater
1 tbspbutter
100 gmsliveredalmonds
100 gmpistachios,50gm
coarselychopped,50gm
finelychopped
670 gm(6cups)full-cream
milkpowder
Handfulofslivered
pistachios, for decoratingSHIRPERA
Afghan milk fudge
SERVES 4
“Shirperais a nut-filledsweetwitha texturethatsitssomewhere
betweena crumblynougatandfudge,”saysAyubi.“InAfghanistan,
duringcelebrationssuchasEid,peopleusuallybuyshirperafrom
specialtysweetshopscalledqanadis.Thisis oneofmysister,
Fatema’s, recipes.” Start this recipe a day ahead.Pictured p92
1 Lightlygreasea 20cmx
30cmbakingtrayandlinewith
bakingpapersoit overhangs
eachend.Thiswillhelptolift
outtheshirperawhenit hasset.
2 Combinesugarand250ml
(1 cup)waterin a saucepanover
highheatuntilsugardissolves.
Bringtotheboilandcook,
withoutstirring,untilsyrup
thickensandreachesbetween
110°Cand112°Cona sugar
thermometer (5 minutes).3 Removefromheatandpour
syrupintoa largebowl.Add
cardamom,rosewater,butter,
almondsandcoarselychopped
pistachios.Combinewitha
woodenspoon,thenaddmilk
powder,inbatches,stirring
toincorporatebetweeneach
addition.It’simportanttowork
quicklywhenstirringinthe
milkpowderbecause,asthe
mixturecoolsbetweeneach
addition,it willbecomefirmer
andmoredifficulttomix.The
consistencyofthefinished
mixtureshouldbethickand
soft,butholdingitsform,rather
thanrunnyorveryhardwhen
poured from a spoon.“Foodwas neverstatic,butan
ever-evolvingwaytostayanchored
toourhistorywhile fillingoursails
with hopes for tomorrow.”4 Spreadmixtureevenly
overpreparedtraywith
a metalspatula,thendampen
yourhandsandsmooththe
surface.Sprinkleoverthe
finelychoppedpistachios,
gentlypushingtheminto
thefudge.Decoratewith
sliveredpistachios,thenset
asideovernight,uncovered,
atroomtemperaturetoset.
5 Traditionally,shirperais cut
intodiamondshapesorsquares
andpiledhighondecorative
platterstoserve.It canbe
refrigeratedinanairtight
container for up to 2 weeks.