Diwali Special Recipes – Sweets and Snacks
Diwali, the festival of lights, is one of the biggest Indian festivals that is celebrated across the length and breadth of the country with much fun and fervor. Every home is lit up with diyas and decorated with colorful rangolis during this festive season. However, like every Indian festival, Diwali is no exception when we make traditional sweets and namkeens at home for our guests and loved ones. Since Diwali is just a few days away, you must be gearing up with all the decorations and preparations. For our Mesmara readers, we have curated a few authentic Diwali special recipes to satiate your taste buds.
Recipe 1: Motichoor laddoo
Motichhoor laddoo is one of the most popular Diwali sweets. Of course, you can buy them from Mithai shops, but the thrill of making them at home is altogether a different experience. Not to mention, the taste you get will be much better and authentic too. So, if you are ready for this little adventure, here is the recipe for you.
Ingredients
For making the sugar syrup, you will need:
- Sugar – 1 cup
- Water – 1-/2 cup
- Crushed saffron – 1 pinch
For making the boondi, you will need:
- Besan or gram flour – 1 cup
- Water – ¾ cup
- Saffron – 1 teaspoon
- Magaz or melon seeds – ½ tablespoon
- Cardamom powder – ½ teaspoon
- Mesmara extra virgin olive oil – for frying
Method
For the sugar syrup:
To make the syrup, take a deep bottomed vessel and add water in it. Bring it to boil. Add the sugar and boil it, stirring until the sugar dissolves completely. Bring it to medium sticky consistency and then switch off the heat. Keep it aside.
Making boondi:
Now to make the boondi, make a free-flowing smooth batter by mixing the gram flour with water. Ensure there are no lumps. Now add oil in a pan and heat it. Take a perforated ladle and hold it above the oil. Now pour the batter through it. The batter in the oil will start solidifying taking the shape of the boondi. Take another ladle to remove the fried boondis from the oil. Don’t over fry the boondis otherwise you won’t be able to make the laddoos.
Take out the boondis and add them directly into the hot syrup. Ensure the syrup is hot enough. Add all the fried boondis and let them soak in the sugar syrup. Add cardamom powder and magaz seeds. Now apply some oil on your palm and give shape to the laddoos. It would be hot when you shape them, once then cool down, they will become hard. Garnish them with some additional magaz seeds. Your yum motichoor laddoos are ready to be devoured.
Recipe 2: Naamak para
Diwali celebration is incomplete without some “namkeen” to munch on. Namak para serves the purpose well. These crispy and fried savory snack is a perfect munch-on recipe for a Diwali evening. The best thing about namaak para is, it could be made well in advance and stored in an airtight container for later consumption. Let’s get started with the recipe without any further ado.
Ingredients:
- Wheat flour – 1 cup
- All-purpose flour – 1 cup
- Carom seeds – 1 teaspoon
- Crushed black pepper – 1 teaspoon (optional)
- Baking soda – ¼ teaspoon
- Mesmara groundnut oil – for frying
- Salt – to taste
Method
- Make a dough out of the wheat flour, all-purpose flour, carom seeds, pepper powder, and baking soda. Ensure the dough is firm and not soft.
- Roll the dough on the dusted flour and cut into shapes with a sharp knife.
- Heat oil in a pan and start frying them. Once they turn golden brown, take them out and store in an airtight container.
Serve with tea or just have it, the choice is yours!
Mesmara believes in holistic living and offers a range of herbal products for your hair and skin health. We also offer cold-pressed cooking oils. Read our blog posts for more recipes and beauty tips.
Wish you a very happy Diwali… From our family to yours!