Originally published on Tuesday, 2nd June 2009

 

Fereni (Milk Pudding with Pistachios and Rosewater)

Serves 3-4

One night on my way home accompanied by my ‘cousins’, we were stopped by the ‘morality police’. Demanding to know what a foreign girl was doing out late at night with Iranian men, they gestured towards their car and wanted to take us all to the police station.

Fortunately my friends managed to calm them down and after some cursory passport/visa flashing the episode was over within a few minutes. It was my first experience of the police in Iran and I was understandably a little nervous.

On hearing of my drama, my friend’s mother insisted on making me a bowl of Fereni. A comforting, soothing dessert made of rice flour and milk and scented with rosewater, Fereni is often made for infants and small children. Mothers are the same the world over - my own mother would have made me cream of wheat with brown sugar had we been in Canada.

Ingredients

4 heaping tbsp of rice flour
4 tbsp caster sugar
200 mls cold water
250 mls whole milk
2 tsp rose water or a pinch of ground cardamom
a handful of toasted pistachios or almonds, coarsely chopped
a pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)

Instructions

Place the rice flour and sugar in a small pot and stir in the water, milk and rosewater or cardamom.

Place the pot on medium heat and cook it stirring constantly to avoid it scorching for 5-6 minutes or until the mixture is thickened. Add a splash of boiling water to thin it slightly if it is too thick. Set aside and allow to cool slightly. Taste and add a little more rosewater or cardamom to taste.

If the Fereni is to be eaten warm, ladle it into serving bowls and decorate it with the chopped nuts and cinnamon if using and serve. Alternatively, ladle it into the serving bowls and cover them tightly with cling film and place them in the fridge to chill. Decorate with the nuts and cinnamon just before serving.

Next recipe…

Jennifer Klinec from Eat Drink Talk has kindly agreed to provide Urban Junkies readers with mouthwatering recipes and foodtips.

To learn more, classes at Eat Drink Talk are held in Jennifer's beautiful loft in Clerkenwell, packed with information and useful tips, and you'll get to sample all of the delicious dishes prepared during class.

 

by JK

In collaboration with Eat Drink Talk