Celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi with traditional sweets

These easy-to-follow recipes are a gourmet's delight.

 

Kozhukkattai

Ingredients:

Coconut - 2
Jaggery or sugar powder - ¾ cup
Cardamom - 6-10
Rice, pounded - 3 cups
Salt to taste
Gingelly oil - 1 tbsp

Method: Wash rice thrice and soak for two to three hours. Sun dry the rice, turning it occasionally and grind into flour. Pass through a sieve. Coconut filling: Grate the coconut and keep it aside. Powder jaggery and add water. Heat the mixture till jaggery dissolves and the syrup thickens. Now add grated coconut to it and keep stirring over a slow fire till the water is fully absorbed and the filling becomes sticky. Remove from the fire and add powdered cardamom to it and let it cool. Take equal quantities of flour and water. Boil water with salt and gingelly oil. Add flour simultaneously little by little and keep stirring so that lumps do not form. Spread the rice paste on a soaked and rinsed cloth over a plate. Divide it into equal portions and stuff it with the coconut filling and press them between your palm and fingers and steam it for 10 minutes. To be served garnished with grated coconut.

Gujiya

Ingredients:

Khoya - 50 gm
Coconut, grated - 30 gm
Almonds, chopped - 1 tbsp
Pistachios, chopped - 1 tbsp
Raisins - 1 tbsp
Maida - 100 gm
Ghee - 30 gm
Water - 40 ml
Oil for frying
Sugar - 40 gm

Method: Knead maida, water and ghee to form a stiff dough. Grate the khoya and mix it with grated coconut, chopped almonds, sugar, pistachios and raisins. Divide the dough into 10 equal parts and roll. Stuff them with the above filling and mould them into the shape of a half moon. Deep fry them in moderate hot oil till they are golden brown in colour. To be served at room temperature sprinkled with castor sugar or dipped in thick sugar syrup.

Til ke laddu

Ingredients:

Khoya - 100 gm
Sugar - 70 gm
Green cardamom - 1 tbsp
White sesame seeds - 60 gm
Saffron - 1 pinch

Method: Slightly roast the white sesame seeds and grind it coarsely. Cook the khoya in a kadai for some time. Add the ground sesame seeds to the khoya along with sugar. Add the cardamom powder and saffron and cook. Let the mixture cool for some time. Make small balls of the laddus. To be served at room temperature garnished with silver foil.

Atte ke halwa

Ingredients:

Flour - 100 gm
Sugar - 125 gm
Almonds slivers - 1 tbsp
Pista slivers - 1 tbsp
Water - 250 ml
Ghee - 40 gm

Method: Cook the flour with ghee till it becomes light brown in colour. Dissolve water and sugar together in a bowl. Add the mixture to the flour along with almond and pista slivers. Cook it till it thickens. To be served hot, garnished with chopped pistachios and silver leaves.

Kuttu ki pakodi

Ingredients:

Kuttu flour -100 gm
Salt - 15 gm
Red chilly powder - 5 gm
Ginger, chopped - 1 tsp
Oil for frying
Water - 60 ml
Potato slices - 100 gm
Oil for frying
Sugar - 40 gm
Baking soda - 2 gm

Make a thick batter of kuttu flour, salt, red chilly powder, chopped ginger, water and baking powder. Beat the batter properly. Dip the potato slices in the batter and deep fry them in oil till they are done. To be served hot accompanied with mint chutney.