Kesar Kulfi (Indian Icecream)

Ingredients (Serves 6)

5 cups whole milk
1/4 cup mava (milk solids, see recipe here to make your own, omit if you do not have)
1 no 14oz sweetened condensed milk can
2 tbsp fine rice flour + 2-3 tbsp whole cold milk (to dissolve)
1/4 cup almond meal (or any nut of choice)
1 tsp heaping saffron threads+ 1.5 tbsp warm whole milk (to dissolve)
1/4 tsp green cardamom powder
Silvered almonds to serve 

Notes

This recipe yields a lightly sweet kulfi (which is how it should be) but you can add more condensed milk or sugar as per taste.
Addition of mava lends the kulfi both richness and a chewy texture but it can be skipped.
Ideally, kulfi is not creamy, rather lightly chewy and grainy.
You could use cornstarch in place of rice flour
Substitute almonds with any kind of nuts (pistachios, cashews)

Method

In a heavy bottomed pot, bring milk to a boil. Once the milk is boiling, reduce heat to low and let cook down with constant stirring. 
You do not have to stand by the stove but check and stir every 10-12 minutes so that the milk does not stick to the bottom or sides of the pot.
You will need to keep on scraping the side of the pot while you stir.  
Depending on fat/water content of the milk it could take 3-5 hours for the milk to reduce to half of its volume.

While the milk is cooking, crumble or grate the mava (if using),there should be no lumps. Set aside. 
Dissolve the rice flour in cold milk and let sit. Crumble up saffron threads between palms of your hands and dissolve in warm milk. Set aside.

Once the milk has reduced, it will be light brownish in color, much thicker in consistency. 
Add the rice flour slurry to the pot with continual stirring (so that no lumps are formed) and let cook for 5 minutes on low heat . 
The mixture will thicken further and become smooth. Add the mava next and cook for another 5-8 minutes so that it softens a bit.

Remove from heat. Add the condensed milk, almond meal, dissolved saffron and cardamom powder to the milk mixture and combine well. Let sit to cool down,

Pour into kulfi moulds or popsicle moulds. Freeze for 24 hours with lid on.

Once ready to serve, use a sharp knife to loosen the edges and unmold the kulfi. You could run the mould under a stream of water to loosen it. 
Serve as it is or sliced up with nuts and falooda (recipe here)