438.peanut ladoos (jugu ladoo)

For my eldest Foi

My eldest Foi, my dad’s older sister, turned 85 this year. She is still strong and independent. A woman with talent, she has instilled a few values in me, like how to keep a home spic and span. At 85 she still goes around the house with a duster and hates to sit idle.She constantly keeps herself busy, reading both English and Gujarati magazines, newspapers, doing pooja, watching telly and chores in the house. She was a teacher for many years, knows how to knit, crochet, and embroider. Nowadays she does not do the latter two but still knits.New born babies in our family get a sweater or booties from her.She also taught me that when travelling with jewellery, be it real or fake, its best to put the earrings, chain link, and the bangle through a safety pin and then put it in its pouch or bag. This way even if the custom people go through your stuff, there are less chances of anything going missing. I haven’t seen anyone pack a suitcase so neatly. She is also a good cook. When we all were living under the same roof, (yes when I was younger we were nearly 15 and my other aunts families would be in and out of the house regularly) she would prepared steamed flour for us on Saturdays as a mid morning snack. It would be prepared with either wheat flour, millet flour or dokra flour in yogurt and spices.Saturday mid morning snack was something we all looked forward to. During Ekadashi she would prepare nice sweet and spicy peanut ladoos. I love the ladoos. She taught me how to make them. I make these ladoos every year as prasadam during Navratri and sometimes for Ekadashi.
These ladoos are yummy and easy to make. Why the name jugu? Jugu is actually a kiswahili word for peanuts, but most of the Gujaratis living in Kenya never say singadana. Even the new immigrants quickly learn to say jugu for peanuts, bakuli for small bowl, kisu for knife etc.

PEANUT LADOOS (JUGU LADOOS)
Makes about 45 – 50

2 cups coarse peanut powder (roast the peanuts and remove the skin)
1 cup desiccated coconut
4 tbsp poppy seeds (khus khus)
4 tbsp ginger powder
2 tsp cardamom powder (elachi)
1¼ – 1½ cups powdered sugar
⅔ – ¾ cup solid ghee (clarified butter)

1. Mix peanut powder, coconut, poppy seeds, ginger powder and cardamom powder.
2. Heat ghee in a pan over medium heat.
3. Add the peanut powder mixture and stir fry till you get the smell of coconut.
4. Take the pan off the heat.
5. Add sugar and mix well.
6. When the mixture becomes a bit cool, take a tablespoonful of the mixture and press it between your palm and fingers gently to make a ball.
7. Place it on a tray or plate.
8. Repeat steps 6 and 7.
9. Let the ladoos set. They will become a bit more hard.
10. Serve or store in an airtight container.

• Place the peanuts in a baking tray and let them roast at 100°C for 20 -30 minutes. When they become a bit cool, remove the skin.
• Grind the peanuts into a coarse powder.
• If you find the mixture too dry and cannot form a ball, then add a bit more ghee. Its better to add less at the beginning.
• If you don’t get poppy seeds then add roasted and coarsely ground sesame seeds.
• If you make these ladoos for Ekadashi or any other fasting period, do not use icing sugar as it contains cornflour. Make the powdered sugar at home by grinding normal sugar in a coffee or herb mill.

Please participate in the Diwali event hosted by me.

You may want to check out the following:

tal and mixed nuts ladoo

kalakand

kaju barfi (cashew nut barfi)