Apple Custard with Strawberry Sauce

Ingredients:

For Sauce:

2 cups (500 grams) strawberries, rinsed, green tops removed (frozen will work)
1/4 to 1/3 cup sugar (depends on sweetness of berries)
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved into 2 tbsp water

For Custard:

2 cups milk
3 tbsp custard powder ( I used vanilla flavor.)
3/4 cup sugar
10-15 roasted chopped almonds
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1 1/2 cup chopped apple (you can use chikoo, banana, grapes too)
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
Method

For Strawberry Sauce:

Mix strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and water in a pot.

Heat the mixture in medium flame for 13-15 mins.

Keep the pot covered (occasionally stir).

When the strawberries are tender and can easily cut by spoon, this is the time to add the corn starch dissolved in water. Stir it nicely and turn off the heat. Let the mixture cool for 10 mins.

Put the mixture in blender and make a puree. Strawberries has seeds on sides. Strain the sauce to remove these seeds. Keep the sauce in refrigerator.
for Custard

Take some (3-4 tbsp) milk and mix custard powder to it.

Heat rest of the milk at medium flame, add sugar to it.

Just before boiling add the custard powder mixture (made in step 1) to the milk. Add the cardamom powder.

Keep stirring the milk till it boils. After boiling take the pot away from heat. Add roasted chopped almonds. Let it cool for an hour.

Add the fruits to custard.

Keep the mixture in refrigerator.

While serving add 1 tsp strawberry sauce at bottom of the bowl. Add the fruit custard and top it with the strawberry sauce.

Recipe by Kamakshi Kshirsagar