Sheermal

1. Heat milk, do not boil, and sprinkle yeast and sugar over it.

2. Sieve flour, salt in a large bowl. Add eggs, raisins, khoya and half the ghee with yeast mixture. Mix well and knead to a smooth dough.

3. Add essence. If the dough is stiff, then sprinkle little extra milk and knead again. Cover with a damp cloth and keep in a warm place to rise for 8 hours. For best results leave it overnight.

4. Punch down the dough and knead again.

5. Divide into eight equal parts. Shape them into round balls. Place each round in a floured board, roll out into round thick circle. Leave aside for 20 minutes until it becomes double its size. Each circle should not be bigger than size of a dinner plate.

6. Prick all over the roti with a fork, leaving 1-inch margin around the edges.

7. Brush melted ghee or butter and saffron solution over the roti and sprinkle sesame seeds.

8. Bake in a pre-heated moderate oven (180°C-350°F-Gas Mark 4) until the roti turns light brown in colour.

9. Sprinkle a little cold milk over them when they are half done, then put them back to the oven for a few minutes more. Remove from oven and sprinkle cold milk well over both sides, as this makes the roti soft.

10. Wrap with foil or butter paper and don’t remove them until required. Reheating can be done with the foil. This roti can be kept for 4-5 days.