Qubani/Khubani ka meeta

Qubani ka meeta is one of "THE" famous desserts of Hyderabad. Qubani is nothing but the apricots.It is such an easy yet intricate dish, intricate with the taste buds. Today I will be sharing the recipe for this famous dessert of hyderabad.The apricots that I use for the dish are the great lake apricots(de-seeded), this is because of their easy availability in US. Traditionally it would require the Asian apricots. But by using these great lake apricots also the taste is comparable.

Ingredients:
1.)Qubani(apricots)-1/2 pound
2.)Sugar-1 cup(can be adjusted according to taste)
3.)Almonds-6(soaked in water)

Procedure:
Soak the apricots for about 2 to 3 hours. Soak the almonds for 1 hour. Remove the skin and chop them coarsely.Then pressure cook the apricots for about 3- 4 whistles. Seperate fruit and water carefully. Transfer the apricots into another container and try to crush it thoroughly(Do not use a blender to crush).

Now place the mashed fruit on the stove and keep stirring frequently to avoid burning of the fruit or sticking to the pan. Add coarsely chopped almonds. While stirring, try to crush till the fruit has no chunks. Do this till the fruit is cooked. It would take 20 minutes roughly.( this is not the exact time it would take. It may vary, so go by ur taste buds :). When the apricots are cooked ,generally it gives a little sour taste and has a strong apricot flavour with very little or no water content.)
Now add sugar to this mashed pulp. and keep stirring. If it gets too thick add a little water (water that we got after pressure cooking preferably). Cook till the sugar evenly dissolves into the apricots mixture.

The Qubani ka meeta is ready to be served. This goes best with cool whip or vanilla ice-cream.

Note:
Qubani ka meeta is always served hot. While cooking the apricots the most important thing is to make sure that the fruits doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan or burn, so keep stirring frequently.