Indian Guava Cheese

Instructions

1. Step 1

   Gather the ingredients. 

2. Step 2

   Thoroughly wash the guavas and pat dry. Remove the stems and any brown spots. Peel and cut in half.

3. Step 3

   Use an ice cream scooper or a spoon to remove the pulp and seeds. Place the seed in one bowl and the thicker part of the fruit in another.

4. Step 4

   Blend at high speed all the seedless fruit pieces and set aside.

5. Step 5

   Place a sieve on top of a bowl. Place spoonfuls of the seed-containing pulp on top of the sieve and add a few tablespoons of water to help you extract the most pulp and discard the seeds. Rub and press the seeds down using a flat spoon or spatula so as to extract the pulp surrounding the seeds. Repeat the same process until you're done with all the pulp and seeds.

6. Step 6

   Add the thinner pulp you extracted from the guava seeds to the puree of fruit you had set aside and mix well. Measure how much of this mixture you have, as the amount of sugar you need depends on how much fruit puree you have.

7. Step 7

   Add one cup less of sugar than the number of cups of guava pulp you obtained. If you have 6 cups of pulp, add 5 cups of sugar to it. Mix well.

8. Step 8

   Put all the sugar and pulp into a large, flat, heavy-bottomed pan on a medium flame. Because of the amount of sugar and the naturally occurring sugar in the fruit, this mixture burns easily, so keep an eye on it at all times.

9. Step 9

   Cook, stirring frequently until it thickens enough so it doesn't stick to the sides of the pan. The color of the mixture will go from bright pink to a dark reddish-brown, and it will get difficult to stir as the cooked sugar will thicken the paste.

10. Step 10

    Grease one cookie sheet or shallow dish with butter or margarine and spoon the guava paste onto it. Spread into a thick layer.

11. Step 11

    Allow to cool off almost completely and while still warm, cut into diamonds or squares.

12. Step 12

    When completely cooled, wrap in wax paper and store in an air-tight container.