Zarda

2 cups rice
20 dates (pitted and quartered)
1/ cups sugar
1/2 tsp saffron, rose or kewda
tsp cardamom seeds essence
a dash of salt
1/4 coconut (sliced fine)
a few drops each of red, orange a few seedless raisins (of and green food coloring various colors, if possible)
4 tblsps cream I tsp shahjeera
25 grams each of almonds
4 tblsps ghee and pistachios (blanched, 2 rings canned pineapple. fried and sliced)
silver or gold foil
25 grams each of cashewnats,
a few fresh rose petals walnuts and raisins (fried and sliced)

METHOD:

Boil the rice in 5 cups of hot water until nearly done. Strain out the water. In a separate vessel, mix the sugar with 1/2 cup of water and cook till the mixture turns into a syrup of medium constancy. Into this add the cardamom seeds, salt and rice. Cover tight and cook over a slow fire until dry. Remove from fire and divide the rice into seven equal portions. Co lour one portion dark green, the second a light green, the third a dark red, the fourth a pink, the fifth an orange. and the sixth a very light orange. Leave the seventh portion white. After a few minutes mix all the portions together. Mix in the cream, nuts, dates, essence, coconut and raisins. Sprinkle the shahjeera on top and pour 4 tblsps of smoking hot ghee over the whole. Cover diced pineapple, with foil and garnish the zarda with them. Sprinkle rose petals an top and serve at once.