Instructions

• Place 400 ml buffalo milk, 400 ml fresh cream and 90 g sugar in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is hot but not yet boiling.
• While the milk heats, grind the 3 g mastic to a fine powder (use a mortar and pestle or crush between two spoons). In a small bowl, combine the 10 g corn flour, 50 g arrowroot and the ground mastic.
• When the milk mixture is hot, remove two or three ladlesful into the bowl with the dry thickeners and whisk until you have a smooth, lump-free slurry.
• Return the slurry to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and reaches a gentle boil — about 15 minutes. Continue stirring so it does not stick.
• Once the mixture comes to a boil, keep it boiling for 30 seconds, then remove the pan from the heat.
• Place a shallow metal baking pan directly over a medium–high burner. Ladle in about 1 cup (250 ml) of the hot pudding mixture — just enough to cover the bottom in a thin layer.
• Allow that layer to cook until it browns and chars on the bottom to form a dark, deeply colored layer. Occasionally shift the pan back and forth over the burner to promote even browning. Watch closely to avoid burning beyond the desired deep brown color.
• Meanwhile, if the remaining pudding in the saucepan has cooled, reheat it briefly until it is hot and pourable and comes back to a gentle boil.
• Pour the reheated pudding evenly over the burned layer in the metal pan and smooth the top with a spatula or spoon.
• Let the pan cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours (or until fully set and chilled).
• To serve, cut the set kazandibi into small squares and transfer them to plates with the burned side facing up. Dust each portion evenly with the 5 g ground cinnamon.