Rave Laadoo - Sweet Semolina Balls

Tastes from childhood are often the most loved, and this delicious sweet treat, Rave Laadoo is one of them for me! Watching and helping my Mum as a kid is one of my favourite memories, so ofcourse it's one I love making now.

There are many versions of it, but I make the version without coconut - the crispness of semolina is more enjoyable without coconut in my view. However adding coconut still makes it a delicious treat.

Here it is, my version of RAVE LAADOO:

Ingredients (for about 12): 1 cup fine Semolina, 1/3 cup fresh ghee, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1 tsp cardamon powder, raisins & crushed nuts of your choice.

Make:

1. In a thick bottom pan (non stick is better), roast the semolina and ghee on medium flame. Stir continuously to ensure it doesn't burn, after about 10 minutes it should look well roasted and have a lovely aroma. Let it cool to room temperature.

2. Powder the sugar or use ready powdered sugar, mix in the cardamon powder, in a separate bowl. 

3. Add in the warm roasted semolina and mix with powdered sugar. 

4. In the thick bottom pan, add another spoon ghee and fry the crushed nuts & raisins until golden brown. Add this hot mixture into the semolina.

5. Mix well with a spoon as ghee will be very hot, then use hands to shape into small balls. It should come together nicely. If too dry, add a spoon of warm milk, if too soft, put the whole mixture in the fridge for 5 mins then try to shape into balls.

Let the Laadoos cool completely and serve or store in an airtight container. Enjoy!

Besan Laddoo

Some traditional sweets are so good that there's no point in trying variations of it. Besan Laddoo (chickpea flour laddoo) is one of those!

Whether it's festivities or just any occasion to enjoy these yummy treats, Besan Laddoo is always a good idea.

Here it is, my version of BESAN LADDOO:

Ingredients: 1 cup Besan flour, 1/2 cup powdered sugar or icing sugar, 1/4 fresh ghee melted, 1 tsp cardamon powder, chopped nuts for topping if desired.

Make:

1. In a heavy bottom pan, roast the besan flour with ghee, continuously stirring to avoid any burning. After about 10 minutes the mixture will start to turn from crumbly to a smooth paste.

2. Continue to stir in low flame for about 15 more minutes, the mixture will release ghee and turn more like a dough. There will also be a roasted aroma and will look golden brown. Turn off heat and stir a few minutes to help cool it.

3. Leave the mixture to cool to room temperature, should take about 15 minutes. At this stage, add the powdered sugar and cardamon powder and mix the dough well. It will be a smooth dough that can be rolled easily into balls. 

4. Roll into round laddoos and gently press on chopped nuts. Let it cool completely then reshape if needed. Serve ideally the next day as it will harden up and taste delicious. 

Enjoy these melt-in-mouth Besan Laddoos!

Rasmalai - Sweet Cottage Cheese Dumplings

It's no secret that Indian festivities go hand in hand with sweet treats (overload)! While there is not much you can do to avoid sugar at these times, you can opt for the healthier options. One such option is the very loved, very well known Rasmalai. A sweet dish originally from Bangladesh, I don't know of many folks from the sub-continent that would say no to Rasmalai.

With the soft and juicy textures that crumbles in your mouth, accompanied with sweet almond milk, cardamom and saffron flavours, this one is a celebrity in the world of sweets! Whenever I make this star in our home, it doesn't last long in the fridge at all!

Here it is my version of the RASMALAI:

Ingredients: 

For the dumplings - 2 cups of full cream milk, juice of 1 fresh lemon. 

For the sugar syrup - 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water.

For the sweet almond milk - 1 cup milk, few tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon almond milk powder, few strands of saffron, handful of flaked almonds, 1 teaspoon cardamom powder.

Method in pictures:

Make: First make the dumplings by heating the 2 cups of milk, then without boiling, add lemon juice bit by bit while stirring continuously. When the milk curdles completely, remove from heat and drain the paneer (cottage cheese) in a muslin cloth. Press to drain excess liquid and hang for 30 minutes.  

While waiting, make the sugar syrup by bringing to boil the 1 cup sugar with 1 cup water.  

Once the paneer is well drained, it should feel like a soft dough. Kneed gently with your fingers then make small dumplings as desired. Place these into the sugar syrup, cover and cook for about 10 minutes. 

You can prepare the almond milk while the dumplings are cooking. Just bring to boil the 1 cup of milk with sugar, almond powder, saffron, cardamom powder, flaked almonds. Let it cool before placing the cooked dumplings into it.

After putting the dumplings into the sweet almond milk, rest it in the fridge for a few hours and serve chilled :)