Lagan Nu Custard, Wedding Custard, Parsi Baked Custard, Nowruz Recipes

Lagan Nu Custard or Wedding Custard is a traditional dessert that’s an essential part of Parsi celebration menus in South Asia, not just weddings but all happy occasions, specially Nowruz, the Persian new year. The recipe is again a happy fusion of British and Indian cuisines, flavours and cooking techniques.
Creamy, sweet and caramelised, garnished with nuts and raisins, this fragrant baked custard can be a rich and indulgent weekend treat too.

Most recipes add condensed milk, evaporated milk or cream to this preparation but I keep my recipe simple and basic to just mixing up milk, sugar and eggs. Reducing the milk does take a little time but you don’t need to stand there and keep stirring the milk the whole time. I put the milk and sugar on the lowest heat possible and walked away to finish some chores, when I came back after half an hour the milk was reduced to the required level.

This delicious custard can be served hot or cold. I usually don’t get a chance to chill it, because the ravishing aroma of this custard makes my family come running to the kitchen and they attack it as soon as it’s out of the oven.

For Lagan Nu Custard, Wedding Custard :
1 litre full cream milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground green cardamom
A few threads saffron ( optional )
1 heaped tablespoon semolina
6 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon rosewater
Butter to grease the pan
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup almonds
Or any nuts of your choice
Brown sugar to sprinkle on top

This Is What You Do :

Heat milk in a nonstick saucepan.

Add sugar, reduce heat to low, stir to dissolve.

Add cinnamon, cardamom and semolina.

Keep cooking till the milk is reduced to half.

Turn off the heat, stir in saffron and rose water, let the milk come down to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 175 degrees C.

Add beaten eggs and half of the nuts and raisins to milk.

Grease an oven proof dish, pour the milk and egg mix in the dish. Sprinkle brown sugar on top.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or till a knife inserted in the centre comes out clean and the top is caramelised.

Sprinkle the remaining nuts and raisins on top.

Refrigerate till chilled, cut into squares before serving.

Makes 9 squares