Tag: Diwali

Besan Halwa

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Besan Halwa1

It’s the first day of Diwali today and every Indian household is preparing to kickstart the festivities in a gala way. This year it’s our first Diwali outside India, every year we fly down to home to celebrate it with friends and family. However this year around Mum-in-law decided to come and visit us.

It’s really special having her around. She is working with me on spring cleaning the house, having the lights decorated in the small balcony, making sweets and savories, shopping for new clothes and jewellery. It’s like we have a Santa in the house way before Christmas.

Today is a very auspicious day for Hindus, it’s called Dhan Teras. We offer our prayers to Goddess of wealth – Laxmi for success, prosperity and peace. It’s a traditional custom to buy jewellery or utensils for good luck.

Rangoli

Rangoli is made at the entrance of the house welcoming the Goddess. Rangoli is hand made designs using colored powders and flowers. Deeyas (oil lamps) are used to enhance the decoration and also lighted as a traditional way to welcome the festival. Deepawali or Diwali is also known as a festival of lights.

Besan Halwa

I’d be featuring some of the family favaorites in the coming days, starting with Besan Halwa. You can also read about Sooji (Semolina) Halwa and Rava Nariyal Laddoos (Semolina & Coconut Balls) I posted last year.

Prep Time : 5 minutes
Cooking Time : 25 mins
Serves : 6 persons

Ingredients

1 cup besan (chickpea flour)
1 cup sugar
3 cups water
1 tsp eliachi powder
3/4 cup ghee (clarified butter)
1/2 cup mix chopped nuts

In a saucepan, heat water on medium heat and add sugar and crushed cardamoms. Adding the elaichi to the sugar syrup makes it fragrant and allows the sugar to blend in the cardamom flavors.
In a thick bottom kadai (wok), heat ghee and add besan. Please ensure that you keep stirring the besan so that the mixture does not have any lumps.
The color you are looking for is a pale golden and do not let the besan brown or stick to the bottom. While roasting the besan in the ghee, it gives out a very nice aroma. It is usually is good after 5-7 minutes.

Add the coarsely chopped nuts,  I used cashews, almonds and pistachios.

In a different pan, heat some ghee and add the raisins and let them bloom a bit. Add the raisins to the mixture.

Now add the sugar syrup to the mixture. Be careful with this step and ensure that the burner is on low heat since the syrup will start to bubble and will sprinkle all over.

Blend in all of the mixture with the sugar syrup evenly and keep folding the mixture so that it does not stick to the bottom of the saucepan.

After a few minutes, you will see the mixture thicken and almost start leaving the sides. Take it off the heat and transfer it in a bowl and garnish with some more chopped nuts.

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On this sweet note, here’s wishing you and your family a Happy Diwali! I hope the festival of lights illuminate your lives with happiness and contentment 🙂

Rava Nariyal Ladoos

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I’d like to begin this post by wishing everyone a Belated Happy Diwali. I hope it is a good year filled with fun times ahead.

With Diwali nearing, every Indian household kitchen buzzes with energy. Homes are cleaned, utensils are scrubbed and cleaned, dryfruits are stocked up and savories and sweets are made days before the festivities begin.

My childhood memories include having Mathri, Shakkarpaare, Namakpaare, Pooris, Chakli, Gujiya, Besan Badam Barfi, Kaju Katli and Sooji Ladoos being made painstakingly by my grandma and Mom. I was assigned the task of crushing dry fruits, cutting the shapes for these goodies.

I loved how after sweating for hours on end while making these sweets and savories, it was relished with gusto by the ladies over a cup of masala chai. Ahh Bliss!!

I usually try and make these while going back home for Diwali. Last year I managed to make Mathri, Besan Badam Barfi and Ladoos. Being jobless helps at times. This year though I was just able to make some ladoos. Here’s sharing the recipe for them. Excuse the images taken by my humble iPhone4S camera 4.30 in the morning before my flight.

                                                                                        Rava Nariyal Ladoo

Ingredients

2 cups semolina
1 and half cup powdered sugar
1 cup dried coconut powder
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup pistachios
1/4 cup cashew kernels
50 ml condensed milk
1 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 cup raisins
200 ml clarified butter

Dry Roast semolina on medium heat until it acquires a pale golden color.Ensure that it does not stick to the pan or get burnt.

Allow it cool down and powder the semolina slightly. In a saucepan, add around 3/4th of the clarified butter on low heat and add the powdered semolina and cook for 15-20 minutes until it is a beautiful golden color.

Add cardamom powder and powdered sugar and mix well for another 2-3 minutes. Keep stirring the mixture continuously, if you feel that you need to add more clarified butter add another 2tsp. Up next add the dried coconut powder and crushed dry fruits.

In a different pan, heat 1tsp of clarified butter and add raisins to it. Cook it for 1 minute and it will bloom and this step enhances the flavor of raisins in the ladoos. Add the raisins to the mixture. Blend all the indregeints well and take it off heat. Allow it to cool for a couple of mins.

This recipe should give you close to 36 ladoos.

Now grease your palms with little clarified butter and start making ladoos. You will be required to apply pressure and lightly roll the mixture. Heap dessicated coconut powder in a plate and roll the ladoos lightly. You can place the ladoos at room temperature in cute looking paper cups. Garnish them with nuts. I have garnished them with pistachios since the green looks lovely against the pale white/ off white of the ladoos.

If the mixture does not stick well, heat around half a cup of full fat milk and add the same to the mixture and blend well. You can avoid adding milk as it decreases the shelf life of the ladoos. The ladoos stay well for a week’s time if kept in an airtight container.

If milk is not added then usually the ladoos last for around 15 days unless they get polished off the plates earlier!!