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Falooda

Falooda is a layered sharbat variety of Persian origin, but popular in several parts of India and typically served by street vendors and in ice cream parlours as it takes some work to get all the ingredients for each layer ready. Its tastes are predominantly of rose, almonds and pistachio. I’ve tried to stay true to the spirit of the falooda in this recipe, but with no artificial colors or flavors added in and far less sugar than is customary in commercial versions.
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Equipment

  • Idiappam press with the finest noodle attachment or a sevai nazhi

Ingredients
  

For the jelly layers

  • 1 packet of agar agar
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 3-4 fresh pandan leaves
  • ½ cup rose syrup
  • 3-4 cups of water

For the falooda sev

  • 1 handful of fresh hibiscus and butterfly pea flowers
  • Squeeze of fresh lime juice
  • 3 cups water
  • 1 cup of cornflour
  • 2-3 tablespoons sugar
  • Banana leaves or parchment
  • Oil to grease the leaves/parchment

For the Falooda assembly (about 8 servings)

  • 2 cups of rose syrup
  • 8 large scoops of rose ice cream
  • 4-5 teaspoons of sabja or basil seeds
  • Ice cubes or shaved ice
  • Chopped nuts and shredded rose petals to garnish

Instructions
 

Make the Pandan and Rose Jellies

  • Keep a pan in which to set the jellies ready. They will get chopped so the shape of the pan is up to you.
  • Juice the pandan leaves in 1 cup of the water. Strain out the leaves, pressing to get as much color and flavor as possible.
  • Add an additional 1/2 -1 cup water to the pandan juice and transfer to a saucepan.
  • Add 3 tablespoons sugar and ½ the agar agar packet and stir to dissolve both. The agar agar will take some time to dissolve
  • Bring this to a rolling boil—then switch off the flame, and pour the liquid into a pan to set.
  • Once the pandan has set (about ½ hour or so), make the rose jelly.
  • Add the ½ cup rose syrup to 1½-2 cups of water (test for sweetness and add either more syrup or a little sugar if needed), add the agar agar, stir to dissolve over a medium flame, bring to a rolling boil.
  • Now pour the rose jelly liquid gently over the pandan jelly. Cover and leave to set—on a countertop is fine.
  • Refrigerate after the jellies have set. These can be made 3-4 days in advance.

Make the Falooda Sev

  • Line a plate or small baking tray with parchment or banana leaves. Grease the leaves/parchment with a neutral flavored oil. Set aside.
  • Immerse the flower petals in 2 cups of hot water, leave to steep for 10 minutes or so, and strain to extract the color.
  • Add a squeeze of lime juice to the colored water to turn it a nice, bright red.
  • Place the cornstarch in a heavy-bottomed pan, add the colored liquid + 1 additional cup of water, and the 2-3 tablespoons of sugar. Whisk well to dissolve. The mixture should now look red-salmon colored but will become pink as it cooks.
  • Keep a little extra water handy just in case. Now turn on the heat to medium-low and whisk the cornflower mixture. It will thicken very quickly, so don't leave it unattended even for a moment. Add extra water in case it thickens too fast; the mixture is forgiving & will tolerate water additions mid-stream, provided you keep whisking vigorously.
  • Once the paste is turning translucent, stop. Transfer to an idiappam press (with the finest sev attachment) or sevai nazhi and press while hot into fine noodles, making small circles, on to the greased leaf/parchment. Don’t handle the noodles with your fingers as they will fall apart at this stage.
  • Continue until all the dough is used up. If any remaining dough cools too much while you’re pressing the falooda sev, then add a little water and re-heat—mix very vigorously to remove any lumps—and then continue with the pressing of the hot dough through the sevai nazhi.
  • Leave the falooda sev to set, covered, on the kitchen counter.
  • In about a half hour, you should be able to touch the noodles with lightly greased hands without them sticking to your fingers. At this point you can lift them gently and store in boxes, refrigerated, for 3-4 days. Remember to grease the base of the boxes or simply use the same greased parchment/banana leaves to line their bases.

Assemble the falooda

  • Keep the 4-5 teaspoons of sabja seeds in a bottle which you can then store, refrigerated. Fill with water, just a little more than the level of the seeds. Let them bloom. You can do this up to 1 day and a minimum of 1/2 hour ahead of assembling the falooda.
  • Chop the pandan-rose jellies into small cubes.
  • Place 2 tablespoons of the pandan-rose jellies at the bottom of a tall or other ice cream sundae glass.
  • Add 2 tablespoons or so (up to a ¼ cup) of the rose syrup.
  • Add ice or shaved ice—as much or as little as you like.
  • Add a teaspoon or two of bloomed sabja seeds.
  • Now place 1-2 portions of the falooda sev on top of the ice/sabja.
  • Add a generous scoop of rose ice cream—or two smaller ones.
  • Finish by sprinkling the chopped nuts and shredded rose petals on top.
  • Serve immediately with a spoon tall enough to reach the bottom of that glass!

Notes

There’s no right way to assemble a falooda. Do what you feel works best for visual presentation. Ice creams and kulfis come last, jellies are usually tucked below, along with the falooda sev. Shaved ice is preferable texturally to whole ice cubes. Aside from these guidelines, the rest is up to you.