Pear Payasam with Malpua

Methods

• To prepare pear  payasam, boil 2 cups milk in a non-stick pan.
• Meanwhile drain and grind the rice in a mixer with some water to a coarse paste. Add it to the boiling milk, mix and cook for a minute.
• Discard stem and bottom of a USA Pear, peel and chop finely. Add it to payasam mixture, mix and cook for 3-5 minutes.
• To prepare malpua, take flour in a bowl. Add baking powder and rabdi and whisk. Add some milk and whisk well to a smooth batter.
• Heat sufficient ghee in a kadai.
• Add saffron to the batter and whisk. Add ½ tsp cardamom powder and whisk well.
• Add castor sugar to payasam mixture and mix. Add remaining cardamom powder, mix and cook till sugar melts.
• Heat sugar syrup in another non-stick pan. Switch off heat.
• Put a ladle of malpua  batter in hot ghee and shallow-fry, turning sides, till evenly golden on both sides. Drain and soak in hot sugar syrup for a minute. Make more malpuas with the remaining batter.
• Finely slice blanched pistachios.
• Transfer soaked  malpuas onto a plate and halve. Put halved malpuas equally in 4 martini glasses and pour some pear payasam over them.
• Serve immediately garnished with sliced pistachios and saffron strands.