Turns out, the moon wasn't sighted in SA yesterday, but the good news is that tomorrow is definitely Eid! Today has been quite challenging... maybe it's because I couldn't wait for this day to end and it seemed like it had been going on FOREVER...
Onto other things, this is what we (my family) call Boeber (pronounced Boo-ber). That's what people in the Malay and Mixed cultures here in SA call warmed milk with almonds and vermicelli or sago/tapioca. It's less of a dessert and more of a sweetened nourishing drink that we have on our holy days and nights or whenever we feel like it. It's our version of eggnog, only there's no egg and there's definitely no nog.
Now some of the Indians/Asians here call it Eid Milk or Vermicelli Milk or Badaam/Almond Milk. Someone even suggested that Boeber is the same as Kheer, but it isn't because Kheer is of a much thicker consistency and made with rice or wheat. I seriously don't know what other nations or cultures call it. Anyways, this is dedicated to Michelle although I highly recommend anyone try it. The main ingredient here is Full Cream Milk. Every other ingredient serves to add flavour or substance to the drink.
Put two litres of milk (a little more than half a gallon) on the stove, add a few cardamom pods and cinnamon sticks and bring to a boil (I use about 3 pods and 3 sticks per litre but its subject to your preferences).
Then, put a handful or two of vermicelli pasta into a separate dry pot or pan and let the thin strands roast on the stove (I use a small handful per litre of milk). Vermicelli is a very very thin fragile type of pasta. It looks like Spaghetti's anorexic cousin and it cooks really quickly.
Once the milk comes to a boil, add a cup of sugar (for 2 litres- again user discretion is advised), as well as the the roasted vermicilli strands and about two heaped table-spoons of condensed milk and stir. Lower the heat considerably and let it boil on the minimum heat so that the vermicelli cooks thoroughly. Add a handful or two of sliced almonds and sultana raisins to the milk, let it simmer for a while until the vermicilli is cooked, pour into a mug and enjoy!
Tip: The condensed milk is optional but flavourful. So are the almonds and sultana raisins. These can be inter-changed with a handful or two of desicated coconut or precooked sago/tapioca pearls. Some people omit the vermicelli and substitute it with sago/tapioca instead. I've had Boeber many many times in almost every conceivable variation. In some instances I've had it with all of the ingredients cooked together i.e. almonds, sultanas, coconut, vermicelli and sago/tapioca. Some people don't like it very sweet and don't add much sugar while others like it very sweet and will have you sweating saccharine by the time you're done savouring a serving of the stuff. Either way, it's a lovely way to warm up the insides, particularly on a cold winters day and it's probably what I'll be having tomorrow for breakfast ;)