Coconut Burfi | Low Carb Indian Sweet

Coconut burfi (also spelled barfi) also known as Thengai Burfi is a delicious sweet, fudge like snack that originated in South India. It’s commonly served during Indian festivals like Diwali but is very high in carbs.

Recipes can vary but coconut burfi is usually made with coconut, regular milk or condensed milk, sugar, cardamom powder or other spices like saffron.

Luckily, if you are concerned with your health, it is possible to make a low carb version of this sweet treat by substituting the refined sugar with low carb sweeteners such as erithrytol or stevia.  Coconut milk or heavy cream can be used instead of regular milk or condensed milk.

Related reading: 6 Damaging Effects Of Sugar On Your Body

Here’s an easy to make delicious ow carb coconut burfi recipe you can try. For this recipe, Hetel of EasyToKeto used erythritol with a couple of packets of stevia and monk fruit as a zero carb substitute for sugar.

She uses packets of stevia and monk fruit to counteract the slight bitterness some find with the erythritol on its own.

Related reading: 4 Best Natural Low Carb Sweeteners

The recipe yields 24 pieces and each piece contains only 1g of net carbs.

Desiccated coconut

Desiccated coconut is made from finely grated coconut flesh finely which has been dried out in hot air. It is high in fiber and contains a good array of minerals such as manganese, copper, selenium, phosphorous, iron, zinc and potassium.

It is about 89% fat and that is what makes it so good for a keto diet. The fat is mostly healthy medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) which provides energy and has been shown to increase HDL (good) cholesterol. Researchers have found that it can help with weight loss.

Coconut Burfi

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp grass-fed ghee
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 2 cups dry dessicated coconut
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cup erythritol
• 2 packets Stevia & Monk fruit sweetener
• 1 tsp cardamom powder

Directions

1. Prepare a small baking pan by lining with some non-bleached parchment paper.
2. In a non-stick skillet, heat the ghee.
3. Add the almond slices and cook, stirring until they turn golden brown.
4. Reduce heat to low and then add the desiccated coconut.
5. Continue to cook with the almonds until the coconut becomes lightly toasted. Move them to one side of the skillet and pour the heavy whipping cream into the space you created.
6. Add the erythritol, cardamom, and the stevia and Monk Fruit sweetener and mix well.
7. Once the sweetener has melted, combine the wet and dry ingredients. turn up the heat to medium again and cook until the moisture is fully absorbed and the ghee starts to separate. This takes about 4-5 minutes.
8. Next, pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan and flatten it out.
9. Place the pan in the fridge and allow it to solidify. This should take around 1 to 2 hours.
10. Cut the burfi into desired slices and serve.
11. Store any leftover in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge.

Check out Hetel’s video demo of how to prepare this low carb coconut burfi.