copy2: Thiratipal -conventional and unconventional methods

Milk Fudge Bonbons/ Toffees

Traditional Thiratipal

I kickstart to the festival of Gokulashtami, also names, Janmashtami, or Krishna Jayanti, a day to celebrate that bratty yet most adored blue boy, born to Devaki and raised by Yashoda with Thiratipal. Thiratipal is a sweet dish which has been a favorite of many south Indian families and in our home especially. I can still taste the deliciousness of my mom's preparation of this dish. While I have always taken the effort to celebrate all the Indian, Hindu festivals, I had scaled down the celebration for a while because year after year it us just us who enjoy the fruits of my hard labor - nothing wrong with that whatsoever. I have gone through waves of celebration when my older kids were younger and I dressed them up as Krishna. But then 4 years ago, a little girl with the naughty disposition of Krishna entered my life in the form of my baby girl and she regales anyone who wants to hear them with stories of krishna, having memorized the story CDs by heart. I am most always awe-struck at how much she understand and how perfect her intonation is when she tells the story! And she is just a 3 year old! She wakes up each morning and assumes different roles and confers upon me a role to play to - So I wake up each day as Krishna, Ganesha, Muruga or who ever the character du jour may be. And she always is the the lady of the story, be it Parvati, Radha or Yashoda OR Rapunzel, Peaches of Ice Age or Meera the girl monkey of Karadi Tales fame - She cracks all of us up with how genuinely she believes in the characters she plays and the sincerity she expects from us when we do our part. "Get in Character people!" Lol! But that is part of her immense charm and much like Krishna, she has us all wrapped in her little finger and fills our hearts and days with pure joy. So the posts related to this festival is dedicated to Kutty Lord Krishna and my very own Krishnas

When it comes to certain dishes, it is good to keep with the traditional - as least for me - The unconventional method I thought bombed until I was able to do a quick improv and make it a fancy bonbon. But I fell back upon good ole Meenakshi Amma, author of the treasured "Cook and See" books. She measures things funny, but I tell you, I'd give anything to taste just one meal prepared by this talented lady. Mom made the best, but as a child you enjoyed the snack and did not really take notes and when you get old enough to be interested in making it Mom's gone and then you rely heavily on your tongue to remember the taste and texture of the dish.

Method 1 using condensed milk yielded bonbons or milk fudge toffees

Method 2 using whole milk yielded something quite close to what my mom used to make -

I am sharing both recipes with you

Method 1 -

1 can condensed milk

2 tbsp yogurt

(optional) 1 tbsp of ghee

I did not do the MW method that is so popular now. I did the old school stove top method.

I stirred and stirred and stirred and while the color was getting sort of toffeeish I did not see the milk splitting to form the curdled look that authentic Thiratipal consists of. It was peeling of the sides of the pan and I knew it would harden too much if i let it go any longer - So I put it on a greased plate. It just sat there while the idea to wrap them up like toffees occurred to me. With the help of my ablest assistant, my older daughter, we made balls of the fudge and wrapped them in wax paper. end of story - The taste itself is super yummy, if a little toffee like - Here are some pictures:

Method 2

2 litres of whole milk

1 cup of sugar

2 tbsp yogurt

1tsp ghee

This takes a LONG time folks - I am being honest here - it takes milk a good long time to reduce to malai or cream. Add the yogurt and stir in the split happens dramatically. Add the sugar and stir in - the color changes from a white to an off white/cream and the frothing/bubbling intensifies. You turn this a minute or two then pour it into a greased pan. Voila - Thiratipal, a la mom and Meenakshi Amma is good to go

Pictures: