Easy Makhana Kheer Recipe

 Makhaha Kheer Recipe

Makhana Kheer (Makhane ki Kheer) is a creamy Indian Dessert made using fox nuts, milk, dry fruits and sugar(I substituted it for honey).

This kheer is creamy, delicious and nutritious, and doesn’t take much time to prepare. It is light yet very indulgent. It makes delicious sweetdish which can be served on any occasion or for vrat or fasting.

The makhanas roasted in ghee and simmered in milk, sweetened  with honey and garnished with nuts and some saffron, it is perfectly balanced and a guilt free dessert option.
Detailed ingredients and recipe below

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons ghee
1 large bowl makhana (foxnuts)
1 litre whole milk
15-20 strands saffron
2 tablespoons slivered almonds
2 tablespoons slivered cashew nuts
2 tablespoons raisins
1/4 cup Honey

METHOD

1. Take one tbsp ghee, melt it in a pan and lightly roast the Makhanas on low flame for 4 to 6 minutes. The makhana should crack between your fingers when checked.

2. Now take half the quantity of makhana and dry grind it in the mixer to make a coarse powder.

3. In the same pan add another tbsp ghee and roast the nuts and raisins for two minutes till brown and aromatic.

4. Boil one litre milk in a pan, now add the saffron and boil on low flame for 5 to 8 minutes.

5. Add the makhana powder and rest of makhana nuts and boil further till it thickens

6. At the end add honey when about to switch off the gas and garnish with roasted nuts and raisins

7. Serve it hot or cold and relish this Makhana kheer.

Winter Special Sesame and Peanut laddoo

Winter Special Sesame and Peanut laddoo

 The yummy little balls of crushed peanuts and Jaggery, infused with the richness of Ghee and the heavenly taste of spiced ginger. 

Just pop one in your mouth when you’re feeling the need for some warmth and sugar, and smile as you go about savoring this delicious Winter Low Cal Laddoo. 

Ingredients 

•1 cup  crushed Peanut

•1 cup Sesame Seeds

•1 cup Jaggery 

•1 tbsp Ghee

•1 tsp Ginger Powder 

Instructions

1. First roast the crushed peanuts  in a pan for few minutes.  Make sure that it's on low heat, then set aside and let it cool.

2. In the same pan add the sesame seeds and roast until they start to pop. 

3. After it cools Down, powder the sesame seeds coarsely and transfer to the mixing bowl.

4. Coarsely crush the peanuts too and add this to the sesame seed mixture.  

5. Now add ginger powder,  jaggery and ghee. 

6. Mix well and now shape into laddoos. 

7. The laddoos can be stored in an air tight jar upto 15 days.  

Note. 

You can also add black sesame seeds to this laddoo of you wish. 

I have used less ghee in this recipe. If needed add according to your requirements it gets easier to bind together. 

Sugar Free Modaks for Ganesha with honey and tutti frutti

 

Sugar Free Modaks for Ganesha with Honey and tutti frutti 

This year let's enjoy Bappa this season  and gorge on modaks without any guilt.
So yes I put on my chef's cap and got my hands all messy and sticky with the purest of honey.
The honey is organic, raw and the best substitute for sugar in my recipe.  The recipe is simple to follow and the modaks  turned out delicious.

So note the ingredients for the recipe and get it done before Bappa arrives

Ingredients

For Modak

 
1 litre Milk
3 tablespoons Milk powder
2 tbsp Pure Honey
1 tsp Ghee
2 tbsp Tutti Frutti bits
1/2 juice of lime

For filling

1 cup assorted nuts ( almonds, walnuts, pistachios, cashews)
2 tbsp Honey

Method

1. For the filling, mix the nuts and Honey together and keep aside. You can give it a spin in the mixer.

2. Now add the Milk to a pan and boil. Squeeze the juice of half a lime.

3. Boil till the milk curdles and water separates from mawa.

4. Strain the whey and collect the mawa in a muslin cloth.
Remove all the water and transfer it to a dish.

5. Now add the Milk powder,  honey, tutti frutti and ghee and mix well to make a soft dough.

6. Now put this dough in the refrigerator for an hour, so that it gets firm.

7. To make Modaks, you will need a modak mould. Oil your hands, before you start making the modaks.

8. Now take the mawa filling and add to the greased modak mould, keeping the centre empty.

9. Add the filling in the middle of the mould.

10. Seal the modak mould, with mawa mixture and then press firmly before unmoulding.

11. Unmould the modak and make the rest of the modaks the same way.

12. You will make approximately 12 to 13 modaks  with this recipe. 

 

 

 

 

Now enjoy these modaks with Bappa. I hope liked my sugar free modak recipe.  Give this recipe a try to please Lord Ganesha. Do not forget to give your valuable feed back in the comments section.

Sukhdi or Goud Papdi - Traditional Gujarati Winter Sweet

 Sukhdi or Goud Papdi is a traditional Gujarati sweet which is made up of Wheat flour which is coursely crushed, jaggery & Ghee. 

"Sukhdi" happens to be a winter delicacy, no doubt but can be enjoyed in moderation all throughout the year.  We don't need any occasion or season to grab this desi gujarati sweet.

Like yesterday,  when we visited Ms Meena Parikh's home, she had especially prepared a fresh batch of these tasty treats.

And when I asked her for the recipe she instantly explained the entire recipe in detail. The basic three ingredients remains the same, Wheat flour, Ghee and jaggery. But you can add edible gum, coconut, sesame seeds, almonds, cashews, pistachios etc. 

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup jaggery

1 cup ghee (clarified butter)

1 tsp Cardamom powder (optional) 

Handful of nuts

Method

1. Heat 1 cup of Ghee in a kadhai

2. Now add 2 cups of wheat flour. Add in small portions.

3. Keeping the flame on slow, see that all the flour gets mixed well ensuring no lumps are formed.

4. Now patiently roast it until it changes colour, and the ghee starts getting separated. 

5. You will also get a delicious aroma at the time of Ghee separating. 

6. Here you can add the jaggery,  keep flame on low. 

7. Stir it until it starts melting and becomes smooth. When you notice bubbles forming keep stirring  and combine it properly.

8. After it is completely cooked take it out on a greased  plate and let it cool on room temperature. Remember take a flat surface plate and let the sukhdi set in it. 

9. Cut out the sukhdi into square/diamond shape. Top it with crushed nuts and press on the top. Keep it aside for an hour, allow it to dry completely.

10. Now you can separate the pieces and store in an airtight container. 

 

 

Note

You can add crushed Elaichi powder when it is cooking with jaggery. 

Now enjoy Sukhdi in winters or just any time of the year.

Indian PIneapple Halwa Recipe

Hello friends,

 Love is in the air with Valentine's Day round the corner. So lets cook up something sweet. An Indian desserts this time, a halwa that is super special. I remember savouring Pineapple Halwa at a Bohri friends place. The sweet follows and savoury in a Bohri Thala and Pineapple Halwa was what I truly relished that day.

Recently,I tried to make a Pineapple Halwa recipe that turned out quite good. I have cut down on using ghee in my recipe.  Sharing the easy recipes with all of you. The halwa  is a very popular Indian sweet dish made with Rawa and pineapple. It tastes sweet and sour and has bits of chunky pineapple pieces, really enjoyable.

Ingredients

1 cup Semolina (Rawa)
3/4 cup Ghee
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
1 tsp powdered Cardamon (Elaichi)
1 cup chopped Pineapple
1 cup Pineapple Puree
A few nuts and Raisins

Method

1. Heat half the ghee in a pan, when it is hot add one cup semolina and start roasting it.

2. Keep roasting on slow flame till the rawa turns brown and you get a good aroma. Turn off the gas and take out the semolina on a plate for using later.

3. In the same pan, add the pineapple puree and sugar and stir for 5 minutes.

4. Now add one cup pineapple pieces, cook the pineapple is soft and mushy.

5. Now add 2 cups water and bring to a boil. 

6. When the water boils, add the semolina back to the pan and mix it well. 

7. Add the cardamon powder to this mixture. 

8. Cook the halwa on low flame till the ghee leaves the side of pan. The mixture should be dry and rawa cooked through. 

9. Add the remaining ghee and roast for two minutes more. 

10. Garnish with chopped raisins and nuts.

11. Serve it hot or cold with a scoop of vanilla icecream. 

 

The video below has a step by step recipe so do refer and cook up a tasty pineapple halwa for all at home for Valentine's day. 

Bon Appitet 🍍🍍🍍🍍

Easy Gajar ka Halwa Recipe

Hello friends,

So I am back today with everyone's favourite winter preparation of sweet. It is the 'Gajar ka Halwa"

Gajar ka Halwa – is the most loved halwa in India. A ghee laden sugary Indian dessert that is made when the red carrot season arrives with the onset on winters. My blog covers a pumpkin and doodhi halwa uptil now. So let me add to my list of halwas with Gajar ka Halwa.

Sharing with you a  no fuss, no mess, simple and straightforward recipe that is easy to follow. 

Ingredients

2 cups grated carrot
1 cup milk
3 tbsps white butter/ ghee
2-3 tbsps sugar
1/2 tsp cardamom ( elaichi ) powder
Handful of  raisins, almonds, cashew
1 cup Mawa/khoya

Method

1. In a non stick pan add  1 tbsp  ghee. Roast the cashews/ almonds and fry until it emits a fragrance.  Do not brown to much. Keep aside. 

2. Now in a heavy bottom pan add carrot, milk, sugar and mawa. Keep this on high flame and allow it to boil and cook.

3.  Cook until the milk evaporates and the carrots are softened and cooked completely.

4. Keep stirring constantly  to avoid the carrots from sticking to the bottom and burning.

5. Once the liquid reduces add the cardamom powder and ghee. 

6. Keep stirring until all the water evaporates and ghee is seen on the side of the pot. The cooked carrot mixture should thickens. 

7. Now add the roasted cashews/ almonds and stir in on low flame. Keep some aside for garnish.

8. Keep stirring to avoid burning at tne bottom. The way to know Gajar ka Halwa is done is to check the mixture. If the carrot mixture thickens and comes off the pan as one mass it is done.

9. Now garnish with nuts and raisins before serving.

10. Always serve warm, even if you serve it with a scoop of ice-cream

Note

1. You can totally avoid ghee in yr halwa to make a diet version.  But ut will definitely vary in taste.

2. Mawa is optional. You can add a cup of fresh malai or condensed milk.

3. If you adding condensed milk then lessen the sugar quantity.

4. Some cooks add saffron too. However I don't like mixing too many ingredients. The cardamom ( elaichi ) is the best when it comes to a halwa.