Strawberry Shrikhand

Blogging Marathon# 29: Week 1/ Day 3
Theme: Cooking with Colors
Dish: Strawberry Shrikhand -- Red

For the final day of this week's BM, I made a delicious and colorful Shrikhand with Strawberries. Shrikhand  is nothing but sweetened strained yogurt that is usually made in Maharashtra and Gujarat. At one point in my life, I would have said a "BIG NO" to Shrikhand because I considered yogurt savory and it was sacrilege to add sugar to yogurt. Now that I'm older and wiser I know how tasty this combination could be.

To add some color and sweetness to plain shrikhand, I added some strawberry pulp to yogurt and then to make it even more fancy, I layered yogurt with strawberry puree. This combination was so amazing -- both in the looks department and also in the taste department.

Recipe adapted from Ashwini's recipe.

Ingredients:
For Strawberry Shrikhand:
Yogurt - 1½cups (I used 2% Greek Yogurt)
Sugar - ¼cup (or adjust as per taste)
Honey - 2tbsp
Strawberry Pulp - 6tbsp (Blend ½cup of fresh/ frozen strawberries)
Ground Cardamom (Elaichi) - ¼tsp
Pistachios - 2tbsp, lightly toasted for garnish

For Strawberry Puree:
Strawberries - 1cup
Balsamic Vinegar - 2tsp
Sugar - 3tbsp (or adjust as per taste)

Method:

• Prepare the Yogurt: Place the yogurt in a cheese cloth lined sieve on a bowl to catch the liquid. Set this aside for 1-2 hours in the fridge.
• To make Shrikhand: Whisk all the ingredients in a medium size bowl and refrigerate at least for 2 hours before serving.
• For Strawberry Puree: Combine all the ingredients listed in a small sauce pan and cook on medium flame until the strawberries are mushy and the sugar is dissolved. Cool completely and store in a clean airtight container, use as needed on pancakes, ice creams etc.
• To Serve: Strawberry shrikhand is delicious as is, but tastes great when topped or layered with the strawberry puree. Garnish with toasted pistachios on top and Enjoy!!

Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 29.