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Showing posts with label Sweet Tooth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sweet Tooth. Show all posts

Til kai Ladoo–Sweet Sesame balls

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Blogging Marathon # 14

 

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Sesame ladoos are made as an offering to the gods during the festival of Makar Sakranti. Various sweets made from sesame are enjoyed specially during winter season in Northern part of India.  
Sesame seeds are a very good source of copper, magnesium and calcium. In Jaggery the total mineral content is 5 times higher than brown sugar and 50 times that of regular sugar. A food rich in iron, it is a healthy nutrition choice for anemic patients.

These nutrition packed ladoos are quick and easy to make and they are healthy and can be consumed guilt free to relish.

 

Ingredients

 

  • 1 + 1 cup sesame seeds
  • 1 1/2 cup jaggery powder
  • 1/4th teaspoon cardamom powder(optional)
  • 1 tablespoon ghee

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Method

 

  1. Slightly dry roast the sesame seeds till the color slightly changes to pale brown. It will take approximately 2-3 minutes.
  2. Grind the 1 cup sesame seeds into coarse powder.
  3. In a pan add jaggery and 1 tablespoon ghee. Cook it till the jaggery melts and comes to a boil.
  4. Add 1 cup sesame seeds and the sesame powder in the jaggery syrup.Mix well and remove from the gas. Add cardamom powder.
  5. Allow the mixture to cool down slightly say for 2-3 minutes.
  6. You have to shape them into small balls while the mixture is warm.
  7. Grease the hands with the ghee and then wet your hands with water. start making balls from the mixture. It is difficult to make balls once the mixture is completely cool. so you have to be really fast.

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Variation

  • you can add roasted peanut, cashew or almond powder to the sesame seeds.
    Instead of jaggery you can use sugar.

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Badam Halwa- Almond dessert

14

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Blogging Marathon # 14

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Almond Halwa is an Indian delicacy - It's a dessert made up of almonds, ground to coarse texture and slowly cooked in clarified butter with a touch of saffron for color and garnished with almonds and pistachio. The aromatic fragrance of almond  is just heavenly and will pull you towards it and when you take the first bite. Your eyes start to close on its own and you experience the richness of this dessert, the ghee dissolves in your mouth and the heart goes uummm uummmmm. The feeling is just so good. Almonds are one of the most nutritious of all nuts but this recipe is definitely not for the weight watchers but they would definitely want to enjoy this on their cheat day.

Ingredients

  • 2 cup Blanched Almonds
  • 2 cup milk or as required for grinding the almonds.
  • 1.5 cup ghee(clarified butter)
  • 2 cup sugar or more as per preference of sweetness
  • 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
  • 2 - 4 pinch saffron

Method


  1. Grind the almonds into a paste using milk as required.
  2. Warm 1 cup ghee in a non stick pan or heavy bottomed vessel.
  3. Add the almond paste in the ghee. mix well.
  4. Add sugar. Once it starts to melt the paste will get thinner and starts boiling.
  5. Let the almond paste cook in it till it gets thick again.
  6. Add 1/2 cup ghee and cook till the paste get thicker and starts leaving the sides of the pan.
  7. In a 1 tablespoon warm milk dissolve saffron. Add saffron to the almond paste.
  8. Mix well. Garnish it with slivered almonds and serve hot.
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Note 
  • Cook the almond paste on low-medium heat.
  • Even though you are continuously stirring the almond paste, ensure to keep the gas on medium.
  • Even the slightest sticking or scorching of paste to the bottom of the pan will ruin your effort and give the after taste of burnt milk taste so keep an eye out.
  • Listen to some nice music and keep stirring the almond paste in rhythm to beats of the music. The whole process of stirring takes at least 25-30 minutes but the end result is well worth the effort.  

How to blanch the almonds ? 

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  • Soak the almonds for atleast 4-5 hours' or soak it overnight. Peel off the skin of the almonds. Just press the bottom part of almond with thumb and forefinger and the peel will slip out from almond.
                                                        or
    Place almonds in bowl of water. microwave it for 1 minute and slip the skins off.

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Do Check out what my fellow Blogging Marathoners are doing here:

    Lapsi : Sweet Porridge of cracked wheat

    11

    Category: , , , , ,

     
    Blogging Marathon # 14


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    Lapsi is a sweet cracked wheat delicious delicacy. This is the most auspicious offering to the God in all the religious rituals and ceremonies of the Marwari's and Rajasthani community. Lapsi is to western Indian states (especially in Rajasthan and Gujarat) as sweet pongal to Tamilnadu.
    Whenever I prepare this I remember my mother's advice that each grain of wheat should be visible as pearl. The following recipe is a quick and fool proof recipe cooked in the pressure cooker.

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    Ingredients



    • 1 cup coarse cracked wheat
    • 1 cup Jaggery
    • 1/2 cup ghee (clarified butter)
    • 2.5 cup water
    • 1/4th teaspoon cardamom powder
    • For garnish- slivered almonds and coconut
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    Method


    1. In a pot add water and jaggery. Let it boil till the jaggery melts and mix in the water. Strain the syrup if you see any impurities of jaggery floating in the water. Keep this jaggery syrup aside.
    2. Heat the ghee and cracked wheat in a pressure cooker and roast them on medium heat till it turns golden brown.
    3. Add the jaggery syrup in roasted cracked wheat and pressure cook it to 4-5 whistles.
    4. Let it rest for 5 minutes then open the pressure cooker.
    5. Add cardamom powder,almonds and coconut and serve hot.
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    Variation-

    1. You can use sugar instead of jaggery
    2. You can replace some portion of water with milk if you like to eat is as milky porridge.
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        Anjeer khajoor ki Burfi-Fig & Dates Fudge

        12

        Category: , , , ,

        Blogging Marathon#14

         

         

         

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        The health benefits of figs and dates are far too many. Figs are a good source of dietary fiber, potassium and manganese. The date fruit pulp is very sweet something similar to honey or sugar syrup. Dates gives instant energy and revitalizes the body instantly.
        The adding of almonds, cashew. and pistachio makes it more healthy and increases its nutritional value. This is a healthy nutrition packed sweet without any added sugar. I usually make this sweet during winter season.

         

        Ingredients

         

        • 20 pieces of figs soaked for 3 to 4 hours
        • 20 pieces of dates soaked for an hour.
        • 1 cup chopped assorted dry fruits
        • 1/2 cup ghee (clarified butter)
        • 1 edible silver foil (optional)

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        Method

         

        1. Make the puree of soaked figs and dates. You can add little water if needed.
        2. Add the ghee in a non stick pan.
        3. Add the puree and cook it on the medium heat till the moisture evaporates from the puree and it started leaving the sides of the pan, approximately 10-15 minutes.

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                 4.  Add dry fruits. mix it well and set it in a pre-greased tray. apply sliver foil on top of it.

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               5.Let it set. In winter it will set outside in 2 hours but in summer you would want to keep it in the refrigerator for an hour to set.

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                  6. Cut in the desired shape and serve.

         

        Do Check out what my fellow Blogging Marathoners are doing here:

        Kesar Pista Shrikhand-saffron cardamom yogurt

        16

        Category: , , , , ,

         
         

        Blogging Marathon # 14

         
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        Shrikhand is traditional Indian dessert made with hanged or stained curd. It is very popular in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh in India.
        I always make this as an offering to Lord Krishna on the occasion of Janmashtami. It is one of the summer time favorite desserts among my family and friends.

         

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        Ingredients:

         

        • 1 kg (2 Lbs. approx.) curd
        • 1.25 cup powdered sugar
        • 4 pinch saffron
        • 1/2 tea spoon cardamom powder
        • 1 tablespoon chopped pistachios
        • 1 tablespoon chopped almonds

         

         

        Method:

         

         

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        1. Hang the curd in a muslin cloth for 5-6 hours or overnight.
        2. Dissolve saffron in a teaspoon of warm milk or you can put saffron in one table spoon of water and microwave it for 30 seconds, see the result strands will be double of there original size
        3. In a big bowl mix all the ingredients. Refrigerate.
        4. Serve chilled.
          Quick Tip-

           

          You can use Greek yogurt which is already very thick instead of the hung curd.

           

          Variations

          Add any flavor or fruit of your choice like rose, gulkand, thandai, mango, strawberry, peach, blueberry, raspberry etc. etc.

           

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          -

        Lychee Gulla

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        Category: , , , ,

         

        Blogging Marathon # 14

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        It is spring time again !!  I thought of making something refreshing to match the season. As the temperature warms up, cool desserts soothe and quench your thirst. I am delighted to share a recipe of my own “Lychee Gulla” with you all. It has the looks of an Indian dessert rasagulla, hence the name lychee gulla. It is a quick and easy mithai or dessert. You can make it with either fresh lychees or canned ones. Nowadays lychees are in season so I would suggest to make it with fresh fruit.

         

        Ingredients

         

        • 20 lychees
        • 1 cup rabdi
        • 2 tablespoon of Chopped blanched Almonds
        • 2 tablespoon of Chopped blanched Pistachio

        Check out the rabdi recipe here-

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        If you have time you can make rabdi at home or you can use store brought or ready mix packet rabdi, the choice is yours.

        Quick tip

        -Instead of rabdi you can use kulfi or any ice-cream.

         

        Method

         

        • Peel and deseed the lychees.
        • Add the almonds and pistachio to 1/2 cup of rabdi to make stuffing.
        • Stuff the lychees with rabdi and dry fruit mix.
        • Serve chilled with a dollop of rabdi on it
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          Use your imagination to present it in your style either in traditional way like a mithai or in modern chic style like party shots.

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          Churma ke ladoo

          17

          Category: , ,

          "Blogging Marathon" BM#6 Day 1 
          Churma ke ladoo / Sweet wheat flour balls  is a delicious wheat flour, desi ghee(clarified butter) sweet which just melts in your mouth.It is a festive sweet also. A Rajasthani will never make dal bati without churma. It is the default sweet with the dal bati. I have grown up seeing that whenever we have guests at home dal bati Churma is the fixed item on the menu. In Rajasthan it is a traditional custom to serve sweets in the beginning of the meal.


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          Ingredients

          • 2 cup wheat flour
          • 1.5 cup powdered sugar
          • 1/4th cup sooji/rava/semolina
          • 1 cup ghee
          • 1/4th cup mix of dry fruits and mishri (tiny sugar cubes)
          • 1/2 tea spoon cardamom powder
          • Ghee for frying

          Method

          • In a big bowl mix wheat flour, sooji and 2 tablespoon full of ghee.
          • Knead well with the help of water and make a stiff dough.
          • Keep aside for half an hour and then make 8 balls from the dough.
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          • Press the ball in between your palm and fingers to give a fist shape.
          • In a frying pan, fry the fist shaped dough in ghee on a slow flame till it reaches the golden brown colour.
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          • Break the fried fists into the pieces and allow them to cool for 10-15 minutes.
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          • In a food processor grind the pieces into the powder(churma) of coarse texture.
          • Sift the powder through the sieve so that coarse powder is separated from the fine powder.
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          • Grind the coarse powder once again in the food processor and sift again.
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          • In a big frying pan add 1/2 cup ghee and the powder (churma) and roast it slightly for 5 min on simmering heat. This will give a nice roasted smell to the powder and it will increase the shelf life of churma also.
          • Add sugar, cardamom and the dry fruit mix to the powder.
          • Add 2 tablespoon ghee + 1 tablespoon ghee (if required) and bind the powder into the ladoo (round shape).
          • Once the ladoos are ready, store them in an air tight container.
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          Note-


          1. Some people don't roast the fine powder(churma), they directly add the ghee and sugar to the powder and bind them into the ladoo. However, from my experience, the slight roasting gives a nice aroma and delicious taste to the ladoo.
          2. Some people like to make churma ladoo with the jaggery instead of sugar. For jaggery churma ladoo :
            • Take 2 cups powdered jaggery instead of sugar.
              In a pan add 1 tablespoon ghee, jaggery and 1 tablespoon of water and cook till jaggery dissolve.
            • Let it cool slightly.Add this dissolved jaggery to the powder and bind the ladoos.
          Have a look what my fellow Blogging Marathoner's are doing.
          Sending to "Flavours of Rajasthan" event, guest hosted by Sonu, event by Nayna.