Mango Peda- Indian Diwali Sweet

Mango Peda

Mango peda is a luxurious, rich, flavorful sweet that is perfect for festive occasions. Since it is the festive season, I am here to share some easy to make Diwali sweets. I like to make a few Diwali sweets every year, to share with friends and family. As you know sweets for Diwali are sugar-loaded. But the beauty of this recipe is that you can control the amount of sugar. Reduced milk is naturally sweet and also there is sweetness from mangoes.

Peda is a bite-size popular mithai or sweet made with milk. It is a known fact that lots of Indian sweets are made with milk or milk solids and so is the ever-popular peda. The richness and flavor of this sweet are truly divine. Along with the richness of milk, this sweet is gently laced with the flavor of cardamom and saffron. This Indian fudge is so addictive and the best you can ever imagine with a creamy melt in the mouth texture. The peda recipe I am sharing today has the added sweetness and taste of mangoes. If you are a mango lover, here is a delicious treat for you!

Milk peda is my all-time favorite Indian sweet. When compared to many Indian sweets peda is easy to make if you have store brought mawa or milk solids, which is one of the main ingredients in making pedas. Halwais or traditional sweet makers make yummy pedas that are a die for! It is very hard to recreate it at home-I wish I could!. Now you make ask why does it taste irresistible? Well, the halwais make everything from scratch including making khoya with fresh milk and it takes hours to reduce the milk. But for a home cook store brought mawa is a lifesaver especially if you have guests. Now there are many many varieties of peda out there and you make it with milk, cream, nuts, chocolate, and fruits. I have always stuck with my favorite-the traditional milk peda, but recently tried to experiment with mango. I am so glad I tried. The mango peda was beyond what I expected! Try this recipe, you will surely love it. I would love to hear from you, so let me know how it turned out for you :)

Ingredients to make Mango Peda

The ingredients to mango peda are very simple, khoya/mawa, fresh paneer/chena, sugar, cardamom, saffron and mango puree

1) Mawa- The most important ingredient to make peda is mawa or khoya. Mawa has reduced milk or milk solids. I used store-bought mawa. You can find mawa at Indian grocery stores in the freezer section. Alternatively, you can also use milk powder or condensed milk. If you are making with milk powder select full-fat milk powder. You can find mawa milk powder in the Indian grocery store which I have found works perfectly well for this recipe. Peda made with condensed milk has a slightly chewy texture which some of you may find interesting.

2)Chena/fresh paneer- Fresh paneer is optional. It adds body and texture to the peda-a semi-soft grainy texture. You can use both homemade or store brought paneer. I have used a homemade paneer for this recipe. You can make fresh paneer at home. The first step is to boil the milk let it cool down for two to three minutes and then curdle it using lemon juice or vinegar. Once the milk curdles you drain the water using a muslin cloth and you will get milk solid. If you do not have mawa or paneer, you can still make peda, substitute it with milk powder and ricotta cheese.

3) Mango Puree - You can use fresh mango or canned or frozen mango to make this recipe. The best one with real intense mango flavor is Alphonso mangoes. It is very sweet and has a rich creamy texture. It is easily available in supermarkets during summer. This summer we got ripe, juicy mangoes that are perfectly sweet and I had frozen a batch to use for smoothies. So for this recipe, I used frozen alphonso mango puree.

4)Cardamom and saffron- These pedas are beautifully laced with the flavor of cardamom and saffron. If you are not a fan of cardamom just use saffron and rose water. Nuts like almonds and pistachios can be used to garnish.

How to make Mango Peda

Cooking time- 20 -25 minutes
Recipe type- Sweet/dessert
Cuisine- Indian

Ingredients
Mawa- 12 oz. (350 grams)
Paneer/chena- 3/4 cup
Mango pulp- 1 1/2 cup

Condensed milk- 1/3 cup
Sugar- 1/3 cup ( according to sweetness of Mango)
Cardamon Powder - 1/2 tsp
Saffron- a pinch
Almonds or pistachios for garnish

To make chena or fresh paneer

Boil 2 cups of milk and set aside for two to three minutes. Add lemon juice and let the milk curdle. Let it cool down and allow the milk to separate.

Place the cheesecloth on a kitchen mesh strainer and strain the milk. Rinse it under running water to remove the taste of lemon juice and squeeze off the excess liquid. Let it sit for half an hour, you can also hang it so that all the excess water drains off.

Remove the chena or milk solid into a bowl and knead until smooth for 3-4 minutes.

Mawa

In the same way, you have to process the mawa. The mawa will be frozen. Let it defrost and knead the mawa till it is smooth. If you are using mawa milk powder, knead it along with the paneer.

Cooking the peda

In a nonstick pan or a heavy bottom, pan cook mango puree till it is cooked and reduced. Set this aside. Add mawa and paneer mixture to the pan. Stir and cook in medium flame for about eight or ten minutes till the mixture starts leaving the sides of the pan. Add the cooked mango puree and blend well. Soak saffron in warm milk and add along with condensed milk. Cook for another 4-5 minutes till it is smooth and comes together like a soft lumpy dough. Allow it to cool completely and add in powdered or granulated sugar and cardamom powder and knead it gently just like a dough. Grease your hand with butter or ghee and roll into balls and flatten gently to form a round disc. Garnish with chopped nuts. You can store this for up to a week in the refrigerator.