Gluten Free Soft Mithai
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
A sweet treat made by frying spiced dough then coating with a sugar syrup
Author:
Recipe type: Gluten Free
Cuisine: Caribbean
Serves: 8-10 Servings
Ingredients
For the dough
  • 2 cups of Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour
  • 1 cup of potato flour
  • 3 teaspoons of baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon of salt
  • 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar or coconut sugar
  • 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon of ground cloves
  • ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg
  • ¾ cup of coconut milk
  • ¾ cup of water
  • 1 cup of grated coconut
  • ¼ cup of coconut oil
  • 4 cups of oil suitable for frying
  • Parchment paper for rolling the dough and shaping
For the sugar syrup
  • 1½ cups of sugar
  • 1½ cups of water
  • 2-3 cardamom pods (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Make the dough
  1. In a large mixing bowl combine the gluten free all purpose flour, potato flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, ground cinnamon, ground cloves and ground nutmeg and mix together
  2. Then rub the coconut oil into the dry ingredient to form a crumbly texture
  3. Next add the grated coconuts and mix into the dry ingredients, then set aside
  4. Combine the coconut milk and water. I used cold coconut milk and water
  5. Then add the water and coconut milk mixture to the other ingredients and press together to form a soft dough. I add the liquid a little at a time until all the milk-water mixture and other ingredients combine to form a soft dough that I press into a log or ball with my hands
  6. Cover the dough with a damp paper towel and let it rest for 30-40 minutes
Shaping and Frying
  1. After the dough has rested divide the dough into 4 large balls
  2. Place each ball between two sheets of parchment paper, then using a rolling pin roll each dough out until it is ½ inch thick
  3. Then cut away the rough edges and cut the dough into triangles. Alternatively you may cut the dough into 3 inch by 2 inch strips and then roll them into thick logs
  4. Next, to fry the dough, add 4 cups of oil to a large pot on medium-high heat and bring up to temperature
  5. When the oil is hot add a batch of cut out or rolled out mithais to the oil and fry until mithais are golden brown, stir as often as needed to ensure even frying
  6. Remove from the heat and place in a bowl lined with paper towels to drain any excess oil
  7. Repeat until all of the mithais have been fried
Making the syrup
  1. Combine the sugar, water and cardamom in a small saucepan then mix together until the sugar dissolves
  2. Then place saucepan on medium heat and bring to a boil
  3. Boil uncovered for 5 minutes then remove the cardamom pods
  4. Continue to boil until the syrup reduces and is at the soft ball stage or 235 °F (see notes for testing soft ball)
Coating the mithai
  1. When the syrup reaches the soft ball stage, pour the syrup over the fried mithai and toss until the sugar crystalizes. I do this in small batches to ensure that all of the mithai are evenly coated with sugar. Additionally the gluten free soft mithai is more tender than regular mithai and therefore more likely to fall apart during this step if you are not gentle
Notes
Testing Soft Ball: "At this temperature, sugar syrup dropped into cold water will form a soft, flexible ball. If you remove the ball from water, it will flatten like a pancake after a few moments in your hand." Taken from The Science Of Cooking

Flour combination:
You may also skip the potato flour and only gluten free all purpose flour. I prefer the texture of the mithai with the potato flour but just all purpose or measure for measure gluten free flour also works really well.
Recipe by Metemgee at https://metemgee.com/2020/05/21/gluten-free-soft-mithai/