Dulce de leche peda

“Each of these recipes is meaningful to me, but this one is especially close to my heart. Peda, a creamy Indian milk fudge flavoured with cardamom, was my late granddad’s favourite sweet. This is his recipe, but with a twist: I’m swapping out condensed milk for dulce de leche, which gives this fudge a toffee-like flavour.”

1. To make the dulce de leche, remove the label from the can of condensed milk and place the can in a big casserole. Pour in enough water to cover the can. Place the casserole on the stove on high heat and bring the water to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 3 hours. Keep topping up with water as it evaporates. After 3 hours, remove the can and let cool completely. I like doing this step the night before.

2. To make the peda, toast the milk powder for 4-5 minutes in a non-stick pan. Keep stirring to toast it evenly and prevent it from burning.

3. Pour about half of the dulce de leche into the pan and stir through, mixing until everything is combined. Add the ghee, milk, salt and ground cardamom.

4. Stir continuously for 5 minutes, or until the mixture starts leaving the sides of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and cool the dough for 5 minutes.

5. Grease your hands with ghee, then roll 1 tablespoon of the dough into a ball, and gently flatten it with your hands to make a peda.

6. Press a roasted pistachio in the centre of each peda. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Find more Diwali recipes here.

Photograph: Toby Murphy
Production: Khanya Mzongwana
Food assistant: Thandi Mamacos