Hyderabadi Qubani Ka Meetha/Hyderabadi Apricot Dessert

Wiki says Qubani ka meetha is an Indian dessert made from dried apricots originating from Hyderabad. It is a common feature at Hyderabadi weddingsKhubani or Khobani is Urdu for apricot; it is believed that apricots were introduced to the subcontinent by Central Asians.Dried apricots from Afghanistan are especially prized for their flavor. Khubani ka meetha is a very popular dessert of Hyderabadi cuisine.Preparation of the dish involves boiling apricots with syrup until they assume the consistency of a thick soup or compote. The dessert is topped with blanched almonds or apricot kernels, and is traditionally garnished with malai, an extra thick cream, ideally from buffalo milk, but also with custard or ice cream.

Qubani ka Meetha was in my to do list since a long, finally i just dished out this delicious Hyderabadi special dessert at home. During my stay in India, i was very adamant to get dried apricots just to make this ultimate dessert. Thank god, i got a packet of dried apricot and a week back i searched for a prefect qubani ka meetha through google and i landed to Mona's Zaiqa, her site is a place where you can find out fantabulous Hyderabadi dishes. I just followed her recipe and dished out this excellent dessert.Am running my second week of blogging marathon with Desserts as theme, hence am posting this popular Hyderabadi Qubani/Kubani Ka Meetha.

250grms Dried Apricots/Qubani
A pinch Saffron threads
1/4cup Sugar
5nos Almonds
Thick cream/Custard/Vanilla Ice-cream for serving

Wash and soak the dried apricots overnight in a deep bowl with enough water, so that the water covers them well.

The next day, slit the apricots to remove their seeds and keep them aside in a cup.

Take the slit apricots into a large  saucepan with the soaked liquid. Add sugar and cover the lid. Let it cook on medium heat  until the apricots are very soft.

Add more hot boiling water if needed. Once the done, let it cool down.

Soak the badam in a cup of water to loosen their skin. Remove the skin and chop it as small pieces

Once the apricots are cool, pour half of it into a blender  and blend till pureed.

Pour the pureed apricots and the other half of the cooked apricots back into the saucepan and let it cook until it has become thick in consistency.

Garnish with the badam slices.

Serve it chilled topped with fresh thick cream, custard or a generous dollop of  ice cream.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#57