Malpua

Ingredients:

Pancakes

• 1 cup premium flour
• 1/4 cup semolina
• 3 tbsp. dry whole milk
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• A pinch of ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons natural yogurt
• 1 cup of milk
• 1/4 cup ghee or canola oil, for frying (ghee preferred) (see Note)
• 1/8 tsp baking soda

Syrup

• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/4 tsp. cardamom seeds or 2-3 crushed pods
• 1/4 tsp saffron threads
• 2 tbsp. milk

Innings

• 2 tbsp almond needles
• 2 tbsp chopped pistachios

Preparation:

1. Pancakes:
   
   In a large bowl, combine all the flour, dry milk, fennel, and pepper. Stir in the yogurt and gradually add enough milk, stirring constantly until you have a smooth, pourable dough. Let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes while you prepare the syrup.
2. Syrup:
   
   In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, cardamom, and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until syrupy, about 8 minutes. Keep warm while the syrup is still. Meanwhile, soak the saffron in milk in a small bowl.
3. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons ghee over medium-high heat.
4. Meanwhile, add baking soda to the pancake batter and mix well. Once the oil in the pan is hot, add the batter (2-3 tablespoons per pancake); it should be spreadable. Reduce the heat to medium and fry the pancakes until golden brown, about 2 minutes.
5. Flip and fry until golden brown, another 2 minutes. Fry 4-5 pancakes at a time. Repeat with the remaining batter, adding more ghee between batches as needed. Transfer the pancakes to a paper towel-lined plate to drain off excess grease.
6. Warm the syrup if it has cooled. Add saffron and milk to the syrup.
7. To serve, dip the pancakes into the hot syrup using tongs and transfer to a serving platter. Sprinkle with almonds and pistachios and serve warm.
   
   Note
   
   Ghee is an Indian clarified butter. It can be found in specialty stores.