Coconut rose ladoos with gulkand

These coconut rose ladoos are the perfect after dinner treat. Soft ladoos with gulkand inside is such a good combination! Gulkand is a rose petal preserve from India. It is used in a wide variety of dishes and is also believed to have Ayurvedic properties. I was always a bit wary of eating food with floral based ingredients - I always got the feeling that I would be eating something that tasted like soap. However, Indian & South Asian cuisine contain a wide variety of recipes which use floral ingredients - and used in the right way they can really elevate dishes and give them the most amazing flavour. For example - think rosewater in a chicken biryani, kewra water in a rice kheer or recipes with jasmine or hibiscus. I personally just love all these flavours now. 

This ladoo recipe is similar to my coconut ladoo recipe I already have on the blog. I added some Rooh Afza (Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi rose syrup) to the ladoo mixture (this also gives it the pink colour) and then filled them with a teaspoon of gulkand. If you are not convinced about floral flavours - then these ladoos might just convince you otherwise! These ladoos are quick and easy and perfect for a last minute treat if you have guests over - they only take 15-20 minutes. 

Ingredients

Makes around 10 ladoos
1 1/2 cup / 150g desiccated coconut plus extra for rolling at the end
3/4 cup / 180ml condensed milk 
½ tsp cardamom powder 
1 tbsp rooh afza (Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi rose syrup)
10 teaspoons gulkand (rose petal preserve)
1/2 tbsp ghee or butter

Method
Time - 15-20 minutes

• Melt the ghee or butter in a frying pan on low-medium heat.
  
  

• Tip in the desiccated coconut and roast for around 3 minutes until lightly golden
  
  
• Turn off the heat and add the condensed milk, rooh afza and cardamom powder.
  
  
• Mix well until it comes together - this takes around 3-5 minutes.
  
  
• Turn of the heat and let the mixture cool for a few minutes. Don't leave it to cool completely otherwise you won't be able to shape them. Just let the mixture cool enough so that you can handle it.
  
  
• Grease your hands with a little ghee or butter and take a small portion of the rose-coconut ladoo mixture. Flatten it slightly across your palm and add 1 teaspoon of gulkand in the centre. 
  
  
• Bring the edges together to form a ladoo (sphere) shape. 
  
  
• Roll the ladoo in some extra desiccated coconut and enjoy as the perfect after dinner treat!