Event: FoodieMonday/Bloghop
Theme: 178- Harvest Harmony
Recipe: Til Gud Ke Ladoo
Til Gud Ke Ladoo is an easy recipe whereby roasted sesame seeds are mixed with powdered jaggery, peanuts, coconut, spices and ghee and rolled into balls. Perfect recipe for the harvest season or Makar Sankranti. The best part of this recipe is that you don’t need to make the jaggery syrup. Making jaggery syrup perfectly can be a challenge.
Festivals In India
Festivals are always a memorable part of my travels to India. Last year we missed celebrating Makar Sankranti, Lohri and Pongal in India as we left before the 14th of January. However, what I remember is that whichever market area we passed by in Mumbai, the whole scene was a feast for the eyes. Colourful kites of all sizes, heaps of sesame seeds, varieties of gur or jaggery, ready made til gud sweets dotted the whole lane. We even got an opportunity to sample til gud chocolate barfi.
Memories – Visa Applications
At the moment I’m in Nairobi trying to get our visas for US and Thailand. After all the tonnes of papers we carried from Mombasa in case they ask for some proof or the other, the US embassy didn’t even ask for one paper except for the passports. Now that in reality is scary as that means they probably know you better than you know yourself. We got the visas on Friday.
Today we headed to the Royal Thai Embassy, thinking that applying for visas there would be a breeze! Well not exactly. They require a confirmed return airline ticket which we had from Bengaluru to Bangkok and back. However, they insisted that we should have the one for India too, i.e. the Mombasa Mumbai one! How silly! We showed our OCI card but that didn’t matter to them. What difference does it make to them when and how we get to India as long as we leave their country before the visa expires. So much drama!
This Week’s Theme
I wasn’t sure I would be able to post a recipe for this theme, but when I got back home(a proper bachelors’ pad), I wanted to divert my mind from the morning events so decided to cook something. Looked for ingredients to make some til gud ladoos and found all of them in the pantry! Both father and son cook so quite a number of ingredients are found in their pantry. One is a vegetarian and the other a meat lover. Extremes in one kitchen.
Makar Sankranti | Uttaran |Lohri
What is the importance of having sesame seeds and jaggery during the Makar Sankranti/Lohri or the different harvest festivals that are celebrated all over India?Well, both til or sesame seeds and gud or jaggery is considered to be perfect winter foods as they help to keep the body warm and increases immunity. Jaggery is rich in iron and Vitamin C. Also it is believed that one should eat til gud and speak well or say good things to others.
Some More Makar Sankranti Recipes You May Want To Check Out
Gulachi Poli or Tilgul Poli is a famous Maharashtrian flatbread usually prepared during the festival of Makar Sankranti to offer to God as prasadam.
These Tal And Mixed Nuts Ladoos are made in a jaggery syrup.
Til Gud Ke Ladoo
Coming to the ladoos that I made, I read quite a few recipes before making them. Number one, one needs to add ghee to bind the ladoos. Without that it was not possible. Two, half a cup of gud was not sweet enough or I guess it all depends on the type of gud you get. I added a few dried cranberries to give the ladoos a slight sour taste.
Enjoy some Til Gud Ladoos, share them neighbors, friends and relatives and speak well throughout the year.
Ingredients Required For Til Gud Ke Ladoo
- Sesame Seeds – til, tal. I like to use the slightly creamish ones with the husk. Roast the sesame seeds, in a pan over low heat till they begin to pop. Must keep on stirring them all the time so that they don’t get burnt. Cool the sesame seeds in a wide plate or tray.
- Jaggery – need powdered jaggery. Jaggery powder is easily available in most Indian Stores. However, if you don’t any, simply break up the jaggery lumps with a pestle into a powder form. Or you can grate the jaggery lumps. For this you would need to use jaggery that is a bit hard and not very moist.
- Peanuts – need peanuts where the skin has been removed. I usually roast the peanuts in the oven at 150°C for 30 minutes. Once they cool down a bit I rub them between my palms to remove the skin. Store in an airtight container, ready for use whenever required.
- Coconut – I have used desiccated coconut. If you choose to use freshly grated coconut, you may need to roast it a bit more to remove the moisture.
- Ghee – I have used the solid part of ghee. You may need more or less.
- Dried Cranberries – I added them for extra flavour. You can omit them or replace them with other dried fruits like raisins, dates, apricots, figs, etc.
- Cardamom Powder – add according to your taste.
TIL GUD KE LADOO | SESAME JAGGERY BALLS
Ingredients
- 1 cup sesame seeds
- ½ - ¾ cup jaggery powdered
- ¼ cup peanuts
- ¼ cup desiccated coconut
- 2 - 4 tbsp ghee solid
- 10 dried cranberries
- ½ tsp cardamom powder
Instructions
- Roast the sesame seeds in a wide pan over low heat, stirring constantly, till they begin to crackle or pop.
- Remove the seeds into a wide plate or tray.
- Add the peanuts to the pan and roast them over low heat. Stir them constantly till they begin to split.
- Remove the peanuts. Add the coconut and roast, stirring constantly till it gives out aroma.
- Remove the coconut from the pan.
- Put all the roasted ingredients, cardamom powder, jaggery powder, ghee and cranberries in a food processor.
- Process till the whole mixture is fine and comes together like a paste.
- Take about a tablespoonful of the mixture and by pressing it in your fist, make a ball or ladoo.
- Work as fast as you can as its easier to form the balls. If the mixture becomes cold and doesn't shape well, just put it in the microwave oven for 30 secs or less.
Notes
- Use a combination of white and black seeds.
- Add jaggery according to your taste.
- Can omit the dried cranberries.
- If the mixture is too dry, add more ghee.
- Can replace dried cranberries with 2 large soft dates or chopped figs. Or with an equal amount of raisins.
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If you do try this recipe then please either
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