Gulkhand- A real tasty way to preserve roses.

Last year I tried to make rose petal jam and what I made was not jam, more like rose glass candy. The concotion that I made was poured into a glass jar and hours later, it was solidified into a glass like mass and I needed a pickaxe to break into it : ) And for this year I was all ready with a new recipe.

Then, Anita came with gulkhand. That was my first real education about gulkhand. Armed with her recipe and rose blooms from our garden, I made my first batch of gulkhand.

The gulkhand station

I have to admit that I was pretty skeptical. I like the fragrance of roses, but to eat something that would smell like roses was not an easy concept to digest. After bottling the petals, I forgot about them for the next 2 days. As soon as I remembered I left them in the sun for a day. After a night out and some time in the rain the next day, they were remembered and brought inside. A week later I took a small bite. And then a bigger bite and then a whole spoonful. The next day half the gulkhand and almost a whole loaf of Italian bread was gone.

As of today almost all the gulkhand is gone and I made small tea sandwiches to present my home made gulkhand to all of you.

This is one of the best things I have tasted and I wish I had made more. Thank you Anita for introducing me to this elegant preperation.

Layering the petals:

Layering with sugar

I didn’t do exact measurements. For 3 roses, I used a tablespoon of sugar.

Layer rose petals and sugar till all the petals are done.

I poured honey on the top layer.

I used regular sugar for this batch. But the results were spectacular. Next time, I am using honey.

Want a serving of butter gulkhand?

Happy Birthday, Meeta.

When summer comes, the roses in our garden steal the show. We have a climbing rose that blooms with a vengeance. Even better, once the summer blooms are gone, they bloom again around fall. What better flower to celebrate Meeta’s birthday. Her dishes are glamorous, her pictures captivating and sleek, and her writing is lots of fun. She has invited us over to celebrate, and I had to make something elegant! Got to keep up, right?

Original recipe: Here

I made this dish when I was really hungry, and so measurements are approximate.

Make the pasta according to package instructions. I only made enough for one serving.

While the pasta is cooking, you can assemble ingredients for the pasta. I took about 15 basil leaves, a tbsp of pine nuts, a garlic clove, generous splash of rose water and streamed in olive oil into the food processor to make a pesto. Then I added parmesan cheese (grated), salt and pepper to complete the pesto.

Once the pasta is cooked, mix it with the pesto and decorate the dish using rose petals. You can leave the petals as it is. I made confetti like pattern by just slicing the petals into thin strips.

I was very very skeptical about the dish, but I ate every bite of it and enjoyed it. The aroma of the rose water is not overpowering. I think the aroma of the basil leaves blends well with the rose water. A simple dish made elegant with the sprinkling of rose flower confetti!!

Meeta, I hope you enjoy the dish and wish you a very happy Birthday!!