Talniche modak : Anant Chaturdashi special

In my last post of Hartalika which i posted a day prior to the start of Ganesh festival, i had mentioned that i will make modaks and write a post the next day. Unfortunately, am writing this post on the last day of the festival, since last few days were very busy. For those who know my profession, i was surrounded with 3 mischievous babies past 10 days, and there was just no time to edit pictures or write a post :) But modaks are so delish that one can eat it anytime, right? We don't really need a festival for that!!!

Anant Chaturdashi is the 10th or last day of Ganesh Utsav. On this day, Ganesha is given grand farewell and the idols that were placed in homes or colonies for the festival are immersed in a nearby waterbody. Since a lot of the idols were made of POP (plaster of paris) earlier, immersing them in water bodies would only pollute it and the next day we could see broken idols floating on top or on the banks of sea or river. This was really saddening, and though the practise continues at a lot of places, there are people who for eco-friendly Ganeshas and also immerse the idols in man-made temporary water bodies. Well, Ananta in Sanskrit means eternal (The immortal Lord Vishnu) and chaturdashi is 14th day of the bright fortnight. 

Although Ganesh festival is celebrated across India, mostly in the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, most of the other states also worship Lord Vishnu on this day. There is a very interesting mythological story about this day. Sumant was a Brahmin and had a daughter Sushila with wife Diksha. When Diksha died, Sumant remarried but the stepmother would torture little Sushila. So, when she grew of age, she eloped in the forests with a young man named Kaundinya. One day, when Kaundinya went for a bath in the river, Sushila met some women on the way worshipping Lord Ananta and got to know about the pooja and 14-year vow. It is said that if one fasts and does pooja on this day for 14 years in a row, one is blessed with Lord Vishnu's blessings to regain lost wealth or well being for family. Sushila took the oath, tied the sacred vow-thread to her hand and followed all the tradition religiously. Indeed they became rich and successful. 

One day when Kaundinya got to know about the vow, he got angry as he believed he is self-made man and his riches are not due to any vow. He throwed away Sushila's vow-thread in fire and soon after, they became poor. Kaundinya understood the power of the Ananta and took the 14 year vow restoring his belief and regaining his lost wealth. 

Well, such stories are always interesting to hear, ain't they? Coming back to the modak post, there are two types of modaks popularly made : One is Ukadiche (the white steamed ones with rice flour) and one is Talniche (deep fried ones). On my paternal side, and my in-laws side, they make Talniche modak as prashad for Ganesha. On my maternal side, though, the Ukdiche modaks are made. Here, i am posting the deep fried ones (yes, they are easy as compared to the others), and hubby's favourite! :)

It is a tradition that always with modaks, one karanji is made or vice versa. Modak represents male and karanji is female, so to signify it is "shubh" (auspicious) that the male and female stay together :) Just as we make one Kadbola with Chakli or one puri with shankarpale :)

Preparation time : 25-30 minutes

Cooking time : 30 minutes 

Serves : 2-3 people

Recipe type: Sweets and dessert

Ingredients:

For dough : 

Maida/All purpose flour - 1/2 cup

Atta/ wheat flour - 1/2 cup

(You can also make the dough with only wheat flour or only all purpose flour)

Salt - a pinch

Ghee/oil - 2 tbsp

For filling :

Grated fresh coconut - 1 cup

Grated jaggery/ sugar - 1/3-1/2 cup 

Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

Ghee - 1 tbsp

If you are adding sugar, you can also add 2 tbsp khoya or fresh cream (optional).

Addition of nuts is optional and as per choice too

Oil - for frying the modaks

Recipe:

Mix the wheat flour and all purpose flour and add in salt. 

Heat the 2 tbsp ghee/oil (make it real hot - this is what we call 'Mohan'). Add this to the flour mixture, and mix it with a spoon. Remember it's hot, so don't use hands.

Now add water little by little and knead it into a nice smooth soft dough. Cover the dough and keep aside for 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, lets make the filling:

Take 1 tbsp ghee in a kadhai.

Add the coconut and saute for a minute, stir continuously to prevent sticking/browning.

Now add the sugar or jaggery. It will melt and become liquid. Let it cook till all the liquid is absorbed and a nice aroma comes.

Now mix in the cardamom powder and nuts. You can also add a pinch of jaiphal (nutmeg) powder for taste.

Switch off the stove and let this filling cool down.

To make modaks:

Knead the dough again for a while, and divide it in equal sized balls. (This proportion makes 12 - 11 modaks and 1 karanji).

Now roll these balls in small sized puris. Roll them as thin as possible, especially the sides of the puri. You can dust some flour to roll the puris, but i didn't need it. The mohan made the dough so soft, that the puris rolled very well by itself.

Now, take the puri in your palm and add a spoonful of the filling in the centre.

Now pinch the edges of the puri one by one and then bring all the pinched ends together in the centre. Seal it well.

Repeat the procedure for other modaks. For karanji, roll a puri and fill the filling in the centre. Now life one side of the puri and roll it on to the other side and seal it with your fingertips. (I think the next time i make modaks, i have to click pictures of the procedure too).

Now heat oil for frying in a kadhai and gently fry modaks one by one till golden brown on all sides. Remove on a tissue paper and let it cool.

It is said, that one should not taste the filling or modak before giving it as "Prashad" to the God. So, do your pooja and then pop them in your mouth :) It will be full of goodness :)

Happy Anant Chaturdashi to all of you :)

Happy Cooking :)

Happy Hartalika: Celebrating female friendships!!

I love this part of the year... there are so many festivities and celebrations one after another, that it truly brings out the joy of life. Smiles, food, laughter, shopping, meeting families and friends and the age-old traditions that are followed along with it. One such interesting mythological story is that of Hartalika. Hartalika is observed one day before the Ganesh Chaturthi. (Bhadrapadh Shudh Tritiya)

On this day, girls and women pray to Goddess Parvati. Unmarried girls do pooja to get that prince charming they have always been dreaming about and married women pray to get the same husband in all the lives, also for happy successful married life. It is a belief that once you take the oath of Lord Shiva, you shouldn't break it, hence women continue to do this pooja each year till they are alive.

Parvati was the daughter of Himvan (the king of Himalayas). "Parvat" means Mountain, hence being the daughter of the king of mountains, she was named Parvati. It is said, when Parvati grew of age, Narad Muni brought in the message of Lord Vishnu to marry her. Himvan was very happy to hear this, but Parvati had secretly loved Lord Shiva. Hence, without telling her parents, she ran off with her female friend into the forests. Harit ( = Haran =abduction) and Alika ( = alichya = friend). Hence the name, Hartalika.

On the banks of the river, Parvati made a "Shivling" of sand and started meditating and praying to Lord Shiva. Initially, she ate raw leaves, but later on even left that. This we call as "Upvas" meaning fast. Seeing this, Lord Shiva was pleased and agreed to marry Parvati as per her wish. 

Seeing his daughter's willpower and faith, even Himvan agreed to get Parvati married to Lord Shiva. So, since all this was achieved by the help of Parvati's female friend, girls and women(known as suvasini's) fast all day long on this day and then do pooja together of idols of Shiva and Parvati made of sand. The fast is then broken the next day as the Suvasini's stay awake all night long playing games such as Jhimma, Phugdi, Tiprya etc.

This day also celebrates the friendship among female friends. Having a friend to tell your secrets to, and one whom you can count on in moments of need is a part of life. So lets say cheers to all our women friends as they are our true support and let us decide on this day, to cherish the relationship for lifetime. 

Unfortunately i don't have any recipe of Modak on my blog yet, so i am going to make some tomorrow for Ganesh Chaturthi and post one. Meanwhile, if you don't want to go traditional and enjoy some other lip-smacking sweets, here are some ideas :

1. Gulkand Chocolates : http://cookininpajamas.blogspot.in/2013/11/gulkand-chocolates.html

2. Coconut ladoos : http://cookininpajamas.blogspot.in/2013/10/coconut-ladoos.html

3. Pajama "Pop in the mouth" Ladoos : http://cookininpajamas.blogspot.in/2014/02/pajama-pop-in-mouth-ladoos-rose-day.html

4. Naaralachya Vadya : http://cookininpajamas.blogspot.in/2014/10/dusshera-special-naralyachya-vadya.html

Happy cooking and wish you all a Happy Ganesh Chaturthi :) Let us all say, "Ganpati Bappa Morya" :)

Gazarachi kheer : Carrot Kheer

I'm on a carrot-cooking spree!!! Gajar halwa, Gajar pickle and i even made gajar chutney of which i will post the recipe soon. Guess, it's just the season (or the fact that i got 1 kg carrots at a steal price at the Sunday market :)). Whatever the reason, can't deny the fact that carrots are good for health and hence, a little overdose of them won't do any harm. Of late, my sweet cravings have increased that after every meal, i at least need a bite of chocolate if not anything, just to satisfy myself. So, every other day a dessert is made in the kitchen! Me and hubby both are kheer lovers. So, i digged into my refrigerator and found half a can of milkmaid and carrots! There! My dessert recipe was done!

Carrot kheer can be made with or without addition of rice. I have added rice, just because i wanted something wholesome to our otherwise light dinner of Maggi and egg :

Have any of you tried this combination?It's unbeatable, right? 
So, you can make the kheer without rice. Also i have added milkmaid, but you can replace it with sugar or add both according to personal preference. We like it a little less sweet and since i had milkmaid in the fridge, i decided to make with the same. Addition of milkmaid also gives it a thick consistency - somewhat like pudding. 

But trust me, whichever way you make it, you are going to lick the bowl clean. It tastes absolutely delicious!!!

Ingredients:

Carrots - 3

Milkmaid - 3 tbsp

Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

Almonds - a few

Raisins - a few

Ghee - 2 tbsp

Rice - 1/4 cup

Full cream milk - 1/2 litre

Recipe:

Soak 1/4 cup rice in a little water for about 15 minutes and then drain. Set aside for another 15 minutes.

Boil the milk and simmer it. Keep stirring in between so it doesn't stick to the bottom and also scrape the malai from the sides of the vessel.

Wash, peel and grate the carrots.

Heat ghee in a pan, add carrots and saute for about 3-4 minutes. Don't saute it a lot till they change colour (like we make halwa), this is just so they turn a little soft. Now add the rice, mix and saute along with the carrots for about 4-5 minutes.

Add this to the simmering milk and mix well.

Keep stirring in between and cook till milk starts to reduce (it almost reduces to half). By that time, the rice is cooked too and the carrots become soft and one with the milk.

Now add in the cardamom powder and raisins.

Crush the almonds with a mortar and pestle (just so it breaks uneven) and add to the milk.

Lastly, add in milkmaid. Check the sweetness. If desired, add more milkmaid and/or sugar and cook till sugar dissolves.

Garnish with chopped almonds.

Note: If you are adding sugar instead of milkmaid, add it to the milk before adding the carrot and rice. If you feel the kheer has thickened a lot, add little milk. I added homemade cream (saay, as we call it in Marathi - the cream on top of milk boiled). Or you can refrigerate it and have it as a pudding.

Happy Cooking :)

Pajama "Pop in the Mouth" ladoos : Rose Day special

Peanut Urad Daal ladoo : I have already posted the recipe of Peanut ladoo earlier :
http://cookininpajamas.blogspot.in/2013/10/peanut-ladoos.html
This time when my mother visited me, she gave me this idea of adding Urad daal to peanut ladoos. This, i suppose is a south indian combination and one of her office colleagues had mentioned about this to her.

Grown in southern parts of Asia, Urad daal ( also known as Black gram or Black daal ) has numerous health benefits. Its extremely high protein content makes it a hit with workout-enthusiasts. It is rich in fibre, and hence easy to digest too. It boosts energy in your body, and it's good amount of iron content, makes it a must-have for women!!!

My husband is not much of a urad daal fan, if cooked in a normal way ! So i thought this is a great idea to incorporate Urad daal in our diet, as ladoos are a favourite sweet of his and can be popped in the mouth anytime of the day!!!

Now what's the "Pajama twist" to it is, i added "Gulkand" to it...That makes it extremely healthy, nutritious and more yummmyyyy.... Everyone loves Gulkand and it has some good health benefits too...You can make and store this for a week at room temperature in winters, and in summers, keep them in the refrigerator after 2-3 days ( lasts for about a week or so )

Ingredients :

The ingredients are same as peanut ladoos, the only addition is gulkand and urad daal.
Peanut Powder - 1 cup ( Dry roast peanuts till light brown, remove their skin and then grind it to a powder in mixer. Make sure you grind it slowly and check in between, otherwise it starts oozing oil and powder turns sticky. You can make ladoos even with the sticky mixture, but a course powder tastes better than the sticky one )

Jaggery - 1 cup ( If you are adding powdered sugar, add 3/4 cup or according to taste. The powdered sugar has to be little coarse and not too smooth )

Urad daal powder - 1 cup ( Dry roast Urad daal till it turns brown. Grind to a fine powder after cooling. Sieve the powder.

Cardamom powder - 1 tsp

Ghee - 3 tbsp

Gulkand - According to taste ( to stuff in the ladoos )

Recipe :

Mix Peanut powder and Urad daal powder well. If needed, give a pulse in the mixer-grinder together.

Now add the jaggery ( or powdered sugar ) and cardamom powder.

Now add the ghee and mix it all well.

Make small round balls ( ladoos ). While rolling the ladoo, make a small hole in the center with your finger... Add little gulkand and then press it well inside ( so it doesn't come out ) 

Pajama Pop in the mouth ladoos are ready !!!

Happy Cooking :)

Basundi : Sweetened Milk

Anytime Dessert : Usually Basundi is made during festive time, but since hubby dearest is a big fan of this dessert, this has become an "Anytime Dessert" for us. We usually make it once a month ! It is made by reducing the milk to half. Basundi is a typical Maharashtrian dessert, and also made in some parts of Gujrat. In North India, the milk is further reduced and thickened and is served as Rabdi. Both Basundi and Rabdi taste delicious, the only difference being Basundi is a drink-based dessert and Rabdi has to be eaten with a spoon. 

The best taste of Basundi comes out when you make it with Full cream milk. Skimmed milk won't give you that better a taste, but if you have no option but to use skim milk, then add a little bit of cream ( Saay - the thick layer of cream on top of milk ) on top. 

This dessert does require a lot of time and patience to make, as the process is really slow. You have to reduce the milk to half on low flame. This takes about 45 minutes to an hour. And make sure you stir the milk in between, so it doesn't stick to the bottom or sides. 

Ingredients :

Full cream/ Whole Milk - 2 Litres

Sugar - Add according to taste, add little by little, taste and add more if required. We use around 1/2- 3/4 cup

Milkmaid - ( Optional )... you can put around 50 gms of Milkmaid to thicken it more and add sweetness. If adding Milkmaid, put only 1/2 cup sugar

Sliced almonds - For garnishing ( You can also add sliced pistachios )

Charoli - a few ( These are added traditionally, but if you don't have them, add any dry fruits or fruits of your choice - grapes,custard apple etc )

Kesar ( Saffron ) - a few strands ( This is also optional to get the colour )

Cardamom Powder - a pinch ( Optional )

Recipe :

Bring milk to boil in a non stick pan. Now reduce the heat to sim, and keep stirring it in between and reduce the milk to half. It will start thickening, and changing colour.

Now add the sugar. Keep stirring till the sugar dissolves in the milk.

Now add the saffron ( keep the strands soaked in warm milk beforehand )

If adding Milkmaid, add now and stir well and boil for some more time. If not, add the charoli and cardamom powder ( if adding ).

Basundi can be served warm or cold. Garnish with sliced almonds or Pitachios or both.

Easy to make, but require lot of time for the milk thickening. Slurp it up :))

Happy Cooking :)