After having decent success with the pistachio barfi and coconut barfi I posted about a few weeks ago, I decided to branch out to other flavors. Inspired by the current fall season, I thought that pumpkin might be a good start. However, I couldn't find a recipe that I was happy with, so I did a bit of experimenting and came up with my own. This came out fairly soft - so you might want to extend the cooking times a bit and allow the mixture to get quite thick before removing from heat and pouring out - but even if yo stick with the times listed below, you should come out with a soft, sweet treat!
Pumpkin Burfi (~ 48 pieces)
6 T. unsalted butter
2 lbs. part-skim ricotta cheese
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 tsp. spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.)
1. Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. When butter is melted, add the ricotta cheese and lower the heat to medium. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until liquid evaporates - about 20-25 minutes.
2. Add the sweetened condensed milk and pumpkin and continue cooking and stirring until the mixture begins to thicken and pull away from the sides of the pan - about 10 minutes. Add the spices and continue cooking until all liquid is evaporated - about 5 minutes.
3. Pour mixture into a 9 x 13 pan and use a spatula to spread into a smooth, even layer.
4. Refrigerate until completely cooled. Cut into square or diamond-shaped pieces and serve or store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for up to one month (use wax paper to separate the layers of cut barfi).
