Badam Mysore Pak – Almond Fudge

Besan Mysore pak is popular but did you know that mysore pak can be made using nut powder as well. Nuts like almond, walnut, peanut can be used to make this delicacy. Even Coconut Mysore pak is delicious as well.
For those who don’t know Mysore pak, Mysore pak is an Indian sweet prepared in ghee from Karnataka, India. It originated in Mysore. It is made of generous amounts of ghee, sugar, gram flour, and often cardamom. The texture of this sweet is similar to fudge. Now, usually Mysore pak made with Gram flour (Besan) is popular and well known but these days Mysore Pak can be made with other ingredients such as Badam (Almond), Niriyel(Coconut), Mumphali(Peanut) and so on.
Mysore pak was first prepared in the kitchens of the Mysore Palace during the regime of Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV, by a palace cook named Kakasura Madappa. Madappa made a concoction of gram flour, ghee and sugar. When asked its name, Madappa had nothing in mind, simply called it the ‘Mysuru pak’. Pak (or paka, more precisely) in kannada means sweet. It is traditionally served in weddings and other festivals of southern India, and is very popular in baby showers as well.

Paaka shastra (short paka) in Kannada means ‘cooking procedure’ or ‘cooking techniques’. Also paka in Kannada refers to sticky sugar syrup obtained by simmering sugar with equal amount of water; specifically for Mysore Pak, the simple syrup is heated to the soft ball stage. The syrup is used as the primary sweetening agent in various Indian sweet dishes like Jalebi, Badam puri, Mysore pak and others. The syrup is flavored with various spice essences like cardamom, rose, honey etc. Paka syrup preparation is a skilled art mastered by few cooks, some of whom keep their methods secret.
I think ingredients like badam and coconut were introduced to prepare this delicacy to offer God as a Parasadum or Prasad. This sweet can be eaten during Vrata or Upvas (Fasting).
To prepare Badma Mysore pak, you will need following ingredients:
2 cups Badam Powder(Almond Meal)
2 cups Ghee (Clarified Butter)
3/4-1 cup sugar
8oz (1 cup) Cream or fat milk
Ground cardamom can be added for flavor.
To prepare the Mysore Pak, one can follow two ways of making it. Traditionally, sugar syrup is of 1 string is made using water and sugar. Then roasted Besan is added and finally warm ghee is added at intervals. But That process is so difficult for me so I now mix all ingredients straight into the pan, cook till ghee separates and pour into perforated tray to remove access ghee. Cut while still the mixture is soft and let it cool completely till hard.