DIWALI Specials...

MASALA CASHEW
Preparation Time : 35 minutes
Serves : 6
Ingredients :
• Whole big Cashew Nuts – 500 gms
• Ghee – 3 tbsp
• Citric Acid Powdered – 2 pinches
• Red Chili Powder – ½ tsp
• Garam Masala – 3-4 pinches
• Salt - to taste
Method :
• Heat ghee in a deep frying pan.
• Add cashews few at a time.
• Fry till light brown on low flame.
• Drain, keep aside in a colander.
• Repeat for remaining cashew nuts.
• Sprinkle all other ingredients over them.
• Toss with hand till masalas are well blended with cashew nuts.
• Cool completely to room temperature before storing in airtight container.



SOAN PAPDI
Preparation Time : 50 minutes
Serves : 6
Ingredients :
• Gram flour – 1 ¼ cup
• Maida – 1 ¼ cup
• Ghee – 250 gms
• Sugar – 2 ½ cup
• Water - 1 ½ cup
• Milk – 2 tbsp
• Cardamom seeds crushed coarsely – ½ tsp
• 4" squares cut from a thin polythene sheet
Method :
• Sift both the flours together.
• Heat ghee in a heavy saucepan. Add flour mixture and roast on low till light golden.
• Keep aside to cool a little, stirring occasionally.
• Prepare sugar syrup simultaneously. Make syrup out of sugar, water and milk. Bring syrup to 2 ½ thread consistency.
• Pour at once into the flour mixture. Beat well with a large fork till the mixture forms threadlike flakes.
• Pour onto a greased surface or thali and roll to 1" thickness lightly.
• Sprinkle the elaichi and gently press down with palm.
• Cool, cut into 1" squares, wrap individually into square pieces of thin plastic sheet.
• Store in an airtight container.

BESAN KI BRAFI
Preparation Time : 60 minutes
Serves : 8
Ingredients :
• Gram Flour - 1 kg
• Sugar - 1 kg
• Water – ½ litre
• Ghee - 1 kg
• Pistachios & Almonds, sliced – to garnish
Method :
• Fry gram flour in ghee on low flame for about 30 minutes till it becomes pink and ghee separates.
• Mix sugar and water to make sugar syrup.
• Add this syrup to the flour and mix well.
• Pour this mixture into a greased tray.
• When it cools cut into cubes and garnish with the nuts.



MALPUA
Preparation Time : 45 minutes
Serves : 5
Ingredients :
• Wheat Flour – 1 ½ cup
• Yogurt or curd – 4 tbsp
• Whole Peppercorns – 10 -15
• Milk -1 cup
• Water - 1 cup
Method :
• Make a batter of all of these dry ingredients and the curd, using 1/2 milk and 1/2 water till it is thick and of pouring consistency, similar to pancake or dosa batter.
• And whip till smooth.
• Add the 10 peppercorns. Keep aside and allow it to rise for about two hours.
• Heat oil in a frying pan on medium flame.
• Drop large ladlefuls into the oil to form circles of 6-8 inches.
• Typically the dough will sink and line the bottom of the karhai and rise up in the shape of a disc.
• Fry till golden. Drain and pat off the oil.
• Serve with cream or garnished with pista.



KARANJI
Preparation Time : 60 minutes
Serves : 8
Ingredients :
• For Filling:
• Dry Coconut, grated – 1 cup
• Powdered Sugar – 1 cup
• Nutmeg Powder – a pinch
• Dry Ginger Powder – a pinch
• Cardamoms- 4
• Refined Flour – 2 tsp
• Poppy Seeds – 2 tsp
• Mixed Dry fruit pieces – 2 tbsp
• For Dough:
• Refined Flour – 1 cup
• Ghee – 1 tsp
• Salt - to taste
• Warm milk - to prepare dough
Method :
• Roast dry coconut.
• Roast the flour in ghee.
• Roast poppy seeds.
• Mix all the above ingredients & grind them.
•
• For Dough:
• Mix all the dough ingredients & prepare dough (a little hard).
•
• For Karanji:
• Make small oval shaped puris from dough.
• Fill the prepared stuffing inside.
• Apply some water or milk so that it will seal properly (don't apply too much of water as it will not seal properly).
• Deep fry it till it becomes brownish colour on low flame.
• Serve it hot or cold.
• Karanjis can be stored for weeks.

RAVA LADOO
Preparation Time : 60 minutes
Serves : 6
Ingredients :
• Semolina – 1 cup
• Sugar – 1 cup
• Milk – 1 cup
• Currants – 1 tbsp
• Cashew nuts – 1 tbsp
• Ghee – 3 tsp
Method :
• Break the cashew nuts into 4 pieces.
• Wash and dry the currants.
• Heat up a little ghee and lightly fry them. Keep aside.
• Heat up ghee in a deep pan and fry the semolina on low flame till it turns light brown in colour.
• Then mix in sugar and milk and stir fry till the mixture becomes sticky.
• Mix in the fried cashew nuts and raisins to the mixture.
• Take the pan off the flame and form the dough into small balls.
• Serve when cool and dry.

MINI SAMOSA
Preparation Time : 50 minutes
Serves : 6
Ingredients :
• All Purpose Flour (maida) – 2 cups
• Oil – 1 cup
• Moong Daal (soak 6-8 hrs in Plenty of water with baking soda) – 2 ½ cup
• Red Chili Powder – 1 tbsp
• Garam Masala – 1 tbsp
• Coriander Powder – 1 tbsp
• Dried Mango Powder -1 tbsp
• Asafoetida - 3-4 pinces
• Cumin Seeds – 1 tbsp
• Oil - for frying
• Salt -1 tbsp
Method :
• Grind the moong daal with minimum quantity of water.
• Add oil in heavy pan.
• Add cumin seeds, asafoetida powder and daal paste in it.
• Stir it properly. Add salt, garam masala, coriander powder, chili powder and dry mango powder.
• Stir it until the mixture dries very well.
•
• Preparation for cover
• Sieve all-purpose flour, add salt.
• Add vegetable oil (so that you can make bowls) and mix it very well.
• Then add small quantity of water and make smooth dough.
• Make small round rolls with dough.
• Roll it like chapatti (chapatti should be around 4-5 inches in diameter).
• Cut it into 2 equal halves along the diameter.
• Put small water along the diameter.
• Join and press together to make a cone.
• Place a tbsp of filling in the cone and seal third side.
• Make five to six such cones.
• Put in hot oil, deep fry on low to medium till light brown.
• Do not fry on high, or the mini samosas will turn out oily and soggy.
• Drain on rack or kitchen paper.
• Serve hot with green chutneys.

KHOYA-TIL LADOO
Preparation Time : 65 minutes
Serves : 6
Ingredients :
• Khoya ( Dried whole milk) – 2 cups
• Coarsely powdered roasted Sesame Seeds (til) - 1 ½ cups
• Powdered Sugar - to taste
• Saffron Threads – to garnish
• Chopped Almonds and Pistachios - for decoration
Method :
• Roast the khoya on low flame till it is very light golden yellow color.
• Let is cool for few minutes.
• Then add coarsely powdered roasted sesame seeds and mix it.
• Add powdered sugar when the above mixture is lukewarm.
• Mix well and shape into small balls. If the mixture is too hot then the sugar will melt so care has to be taken that mixture should not be hot.
• Arrange in a plate and decorate with saffron, chopped almonds and pistachios.
•
• Method for Making Khoya in Microwave:
• Take three cups of full cream milk powder in microwave oven proof casserole.
• Add sufficient water to make a thick paste.
• Add 2 tablespoon of ghee.
• Cover with plastic cling film and microwave for 3 minutes with in between stirring. (Time depends on power of Microwave oven.)



MYSORE PAAK
Preparation Time : 25 minutes
Serves :
Ingredients :
• Milk powder - 200 gms
• All-purpose flour (maida) - 60gms
• Ghee or butter - 500 gms
• Sugar - 200 gms
Method :
• Mix milk powder, all-purpose flour together with 50 gms of ghee and keep aside.
• Add sugar, 1/2 litre of water in a pan and boil until the syrup gets string consistency.
• To the syrup, add milk powder mixture and mix well with no lumps.
• Now add remaining ghee and stir until the mixture thickens.
• Grease a plate with ghee and pour the above mixture into the plate.
• Allow to cool, cut into pieces and serve.



FIG BURFI
Preparation Time : 15 minutes
Serves : Makes 12
Ingredients :
• Dried Figs - 12
• Chopped dry fruits (almonds, pista, cashewnuts, walnuts) - 1/3 cup
• Cardamom (elaichi) powder - 1/4 tsp
• A few saffron strands
• 2 Edible silver leaves for garnishing
• Ghee or butter - 1 tsp
Method :
• Blanch the figs in boiling water for about 2 minutes. Drain and puree them in a food processor.
• Combine the fig puree, dry fruits, ghee, cardamom powder and saffron to make a soft dough.
• Roll out into a rectangle of 100 mm. x 75 mm. (4" x 3").
• Garnish with silver leaves and cut into 25 mm. x 25 mm. (1" x 1") squares.

DATE BURFI
Preparation Time : 30 minutes
Serves : 4 - 6
Ingredients :
• Sweetened condensed milk - 400 gms
• Dates, de-seeded & chopped - 500 gms
• Ghee - 2 tbsp
• Water - 1/2 cup
• Maida - 2 tbsp
• 2 silver leaves
Method :
• In a pan heat the ghee, add the maida and fry for a minute.
• Add the water mixing well and allow it to boil.
• Add the dates, condensed milk and cook well, till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan.
• Remove from fire and cool and cut into squares.
• Serve garnished with silver foils.

COCONUT SANDESH
Preparation Time : 20 minutes
Serves : 3
Ingredients :
• Condensed milk - 1/2 tin
• Fresh paneer, crumbled - 250 gms
• Milk cream powder - 2 tbsp
• Milk - 2 tbsp
• Coconut powder - 200 gms
Method :
• Combine all the ingredients in the mixer grinder, except the coconut powder.
• Heat the ghee. Add the mixture and fry for 10 mins.
• Add the coconut powder and cook for 15 mins or till the mixture is dry. Then cool.
• Shape the mixture into desired shapes.
• Store at room temperature.