RECIPES: Try these Diwali sweets which also double as great ideas for gifts.
Food blogger Pebbles Govender shares DIY gifting tips for Diwali that are both tasty and easy on the wallet.
Diwali; the Hindu festival of lights which symbolises the spiritual victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance; will be celebrated on 12 November.
Many families are busy with preparations ahead of the festive occasion.
Govender is one of the recipe developers who is featured in the POST Newspaper’s bumper five-page recipe pull-out, available in the latest edition of the paper, which hit the streets on Wednesday, 1 November and is available in stores.
It is packed with traditional sweetmeat ideas, Diwali macarons, designer banana puri and decadent biscuit recipes.
Govender shared these recipes with the POST by way of nifty gifting ideas that are also easy on the pocket:
* Rasmalai-Infused Jalebi Slabs
With hidden centres that can include almond, cashew, rose petal, roasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds, these chocolates also make for innovative Diwali gifting!
Ingredients
1/2 cup white chocolate
1/2 tsp ground elachi
1 tsp melted butter
store-bought mini jalebi
rose petals
coloured almonds
pistachio
Method
Add the chocolate, ground elachi and the melted butter and gently melt the chocolate. Mix until well combined.
Using a silicone slab mould, sprinkle some dried rose petals, sliced almonds and pistachio. Gently pour over the melted chocolate.
Top with mini jalebi, almonds and pistachio.
* Chocolate Slabs With Hidden Centre
Ingredients
chocolate slabs, melted (quantity depends on how many slabs you require)
roasted pumpkin, sunflower seeds
almonds
pistachio
dried rose petals
* All of the above quantities, for sprinkling into a mould for the chocolate’s centre
Method
Using a silicone mould, arrange the seeds, nuts and rose petals randomly.
Cover with melted chocolate and allow to set.
Use decorative boxes for gifting.
Meanwhile Govender also shared the following recipes, which bring together the best of both worlds - tradition in taste and modern in presentation.
*Burfee-Filled Gulab Jamun
The Indian doughnut (gulab jamun) is flavourful and delectable. The burfee-filled gulab jamun bursts with burfee gulab jamun flavours in one bite!
For the gulab jamun
1 tin condensed milk
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 cups flour
2 heaped tsp of baking powder
2 tbs of semolina
2 tbs of butter ghee
½ tsp each of elachi and nutmeg
For the syrup
Boil together 1½ cups of sugar and 1 cup of water with a teaspoon of rose water. Add a drop of lemon juice and keep warm.
Sift the dry ingredients and add the ghee, elachie and nutmeg.
Add the condensed milk and combine to make a soft dough.
Roll into the length and thickness of a forefinger.
Deep fry over medium heat.
Take care tht the temperature of the oil/ghee is lowered slightly to allow the jamun to swell and cook properly, until golden in colour.
Drain and steep in syrup.
For the burfee filling
Using the above burfee recipe, add enough fresh cream to the burfee to obtain a piping consistency.
lice the gulab jamun and pipe a generous amount of burfee cream into each one.
*Motichoor/Boondhi Ladoo
Ingredients
3 cups gram flour
2 tsp baking powder
450ml water
1 tsp egg yellow food colouring
For the syrup
2 cups sugar
1 tsp rose essence
3 ml red food colouring
3 ml yellow food colouring
1 cup water
* Boil the sugar and water together until the syrup becomes sticky. Add the food colouring and mix well. Keep warm
Method
Sift the dry ingredients together.
Add the liquid ingredients gradually to obtain a smooth pouring batter.
Heat the oil in a deep pot. Pour the batter through a colander held over hot oil. Tit-bits will fall into the oil. This is called boondhi. Stir until cooked and crispy.
Remove from the oil and allow the excess oil to drain on a paper towel.
Soak the boondhi in syrup and allow it to cool while absorbing the syrup. When cold, add 1 teaspoon ground elachi, 25ml dessicated coconut, 50ml chopped almonds and 50ml ghee.
Mix until well combined and shape into small balls.
Decorate as desired, including edible silver leaves / chandi vark (as in the photo).
For Govender’s tips on low cost decorative ideas for your Diwali sweets, get a copy of The POST’s bumper Diwali recipes edition on November 1. More info here.