Coconut in any form, be it raw or cooked is delicious. The many products of coconut and the amazing health benefits derived from them is now widely known. It’s indispensable in Asian cooking.

I fell in love with this fudge when I was a little girl and my love for it is still the same. It just melts in the mouth. It’s called Barfi in India and it’s so easy to make. It has only five ingredients including the nuts. There’s no butter or ghee that needs to be added.

I usually use cardamom with this recipe. However, vanilla extract also works well. I also usually break the nuts into large pieces. It’s tastier this way.

A large coconut will yield about 3 cups when grated; sometimes a little more or less depending on the size. This recipe makes about 15 pieces of fudge.

PREP: 10 minutes COOK TIME: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 large coconut, grated
• 1 3/4^th cup sugar
• ½ cup water
• 1 tsp cardamom powder/1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ cup cashewnuts, broken into large pieces

Instructions

Butter an 8” square pan.

Process the grated coconut in a food processor or blender without adding any water. It should not be ground into a paste. It should just be a little smoother than it was before.

Mix the sugar and water in a large pan and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring it to boil, and using a sugar thermometer, boil it to the thread stage (106-112 C). Add the coconut and reduce the heat. Keep stirring continuously, until the mixture leaves the sides of the vessel. Remove from heat and stir in the cardamom powder or vanilla extract and the nuts. Mix well and turn it out on to the buttered pan. Cut into pieces while it is still warm. Enjoy!