TilGul Poli / Gul Poli / Sweet Jaggery Flat Bread

 

Mission Gul Poli Accomplished!!! 

Traditional recipes can be intimidating. I had never tried making Gul Poli. The trips to India in December would always treat us with mom-made delicious Gul Poli as well as some packed for the journey back ...and so we never made it after coming back here in January. But this year is different. No travel to India and no mom-made Gul poli :(

So to statisfy the cravings and to take us back home to enjoy the super delicious Gul poli, decided to give it a try! Phone calls with mom and few friends provided some great tips and tricks to accomplish this mission succesfully 😊 To make things tad bit simpler, I used the Udipi Jaggery Powder instead of grating the Gul (Jaggery) to make the Poli. The Poli's came out great in terms of taste, texture and color. I could have rolled them out a bit thinner, but that was just me being novice. 

Recipe (This makes about 12 Gul Polis)

Dough:

3 Cups Whole wheat flour

1/4 cup Besan roasted till brown in 1 tsp ghee

3 tsp hot oil

Warm water

Sweet Filling:

2 Cups Udipi Jaggery Powder

1/2 cup Sesame seeds (white Til ) roasted till golden brown

1/2 cup Besan roasted till brown in 2 tsp ghee

2 tsp Cardamom powder

1/2 tsp Nutmeg powder

Method

Dough:

1) Roast the besan in ghee till golden brown. Let it cool. Mix the whole wheat flour, roasted besan and massage with hands till all besans crumbs are broken. Add hot oil. Mix. Add little warm water at a time and knead into a dough. Dough should be stiffer than chapati dough. Keep the dough covered with wet cloth for 1hr. After 1 hr, knead the dough again with oiled hands and make large marble sized 24 balls. Keep the dough balls covered with wet cloth till ready to use.

Sweet Filling:

1) Roast the besan in ghee till golden brown. Let it cool.

2) Powder the roasted sesame seeds. Add the roasted besan and Jaggery powder to the mixer and blend till well combined and the mixture starts to come together. Add the cardamom and nutmeg powder and mix.

3) With oiled hands divide and press the mixture into 12 equal sized balls. The oil in the sesame seeds and roasted besan should help with the binding.

4) Roll out 2 of the dough balls into small pooris. Sprinkle some flour on the roling board to avoid sticking. Place the sweet filling mixture ball in the center and gently press to break it and spread it to cover almost the entire poori, leaving little space on the sides.

5) Place the second poori on top to make a sandwich and gently press the poori with palm of your hands to make the jaggery mixture and dough stick together. Do not seal the sides.

6) Gently roll out the two pooris stuffed with the sweet filling into a poli with a rolling pin. Sprinkle some flour as necessary to avoid sticking. Remove the excess dough on the sides with a dough cutter. (Like the one used for Shankarpalis)

7) Warm a non-stick pan on low flame ( On  Scale of 1-10, 10 being the hottest, I kept the flame on 3 to roast the Gul Polis. Roast with little oil/ghee on both sides till golden brown. The Polis will be soft when you roast them due to the jaggery melting, but will become the correct texture on cooling.

8) Serve the Gul Polis warm/ room temperature with Ghee and Saffron milk.

TilGul Ghya Goad Bola!

Tilgul Ladoos- Quick and Easy

Tilgul Ghya Goad Bola!!!

Made these quick and easy Tilgul ladoos yesterday. No sugar syrup and no cooking!

Recipe- Makes 20 small ladoos 

1/2 cup Roasted peanuts (I used store bought)
1/3 cup Roasted sesame seeds 
1/3 cup dry coconut powder 
1/3 cup finely chopped almonds
4 tsp jaggery powder
3 tsp fine sugar
1 tsp ghee
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg powder

In a blender, blend together peanuts and half of toasted sesame seeds till they are powdered and everything starts to slightly stick and come together. Don’t overgrind! 
Add rest of the toasted sesame seeds and the other ingredients and knead with light hands. Roll into small ladoos. Done! 

Other traditional Tilgul recipes:

http://my-kitchens-aroma.blogspot.com/search/label/Tilgul?m=0

TilGul / Tilachi Vadi

 TilGul Ghya Goad Bola!!! 

Every year...I am trying out new TilGul recipes...some I have liked....and some I need to improve on and practice. Couple years ago, when Mummy was here, she made these Soft,Sweet 'Sesame-Peanut' vadis. They had a perfect texture/ softness to them yet holding their shape properly. Lazy me...I forgot to note down exact ratio of what she added. I asked her today..and like all 'Pro' cooks...she says...just add the ingredients by your judgement. No Mummy..I am not as great cook as you are..I am still under training...I need exact ratios:)

But here is the recipe with Mummy's and my friend Soniya's guidelines:

Ingredients:
1 Cup coarse ground roasted sesame(til) seeds
3/4 Cup coarse ground roasted peanuts
1 and 1/2 cups grated Jaggery
1tsp Ghee + little to coat a plate
1tsp water
1tsp Cardamom powder
2tsp grated coconut for garnish
Few Pistachio pieces for garnish or dry edible rose petals 

Method:
1) Lightly roast the sesame seeds. Make into coarse powder after cooling
2) Heat a pan, add ghee and the jaggery +1tsp water.Let it melt completely
3) Butter a plate to make vadis
4) Add the sesame powder, peanut powder, cardamon powder and mix till everything comes together.
5)Press this mixture onto the buttered plate with a  buttered steel bowl/vati.
6) Sprinkle dry coconut powder and press again
7) With a sharp buttered knife, cut into small squares.Press a pistachio piece onto each vadi or decorate with dry edible rose petals. Let it cool completely
8) Cut again with a sharp knife

Happy Makar Sankranti to All! 

"Sweet Treats" - Puran Poli

Since 'Makar Sankranti' was last week, I had made big plans to make TilGul (Sesame sweets) and the typical dish for Sankranti  i.e. GulPoli or Puran Poli. I am actually not a big fan of Gul Poli and to tell the truth haven't tried making it yet. So my goal was to make Puran poli for Sankranti.
After making the tilgul, I had hardly any energy left to make this- time consuming novelty.So postponed it untill the weekend....with the hope that 'M' can take care of 'E' and give me ample time in the kitchen.
The Puran Polis came out delicious, nice and soft, moist on inside (how I prefer, rather than the dry powdery Puran) and we ...including 'E' ate till our hearts content!!!
The Puran Polis are typically eaten in Maharashtra with lots of ghee, milk (either saffron flavored or plain or sometimes coconut milk even) and a 'Special dal' called 'Katachi aamti'. This dal is made from the left over dal stock, left after boling the Chana Dal for Puran. The flavor combination of Puran Poli along with this dal and the 'aroma' of this meal is just very festive and heavenly...instantly it brings you  back to your home in India.....

Ingredients: (Makes about 12-14 Polis depending on size and thickness) 
For Puran:
1.5 cups Chana dal soaked overnight
1/2 cup grated jaggery (adjust as per sweetness desired)
1/4 to 1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp Cardamon powder
1/4tsp nutmeg powder
1/4tsp turmeric
1/4tsp salt
1tsp Ghee

For Poli:
2 cups Whole wheat flour
1tbsp all purpose flour
1/2tsp turmeric
salt
oil
Mix everything together and knead into soft dough with warm water.Use oil liberally to make the dough soft.

Method:
1) Pressure cook soaked chana dal till well cooked. Drain all the water and keep aside for 'Katachi aamti'.
2) Mash the dal well in a 'Puran machine' or blender.No lumps to be seen.
3) Heat 1tsp ghee in non stick pan.Add the chana dal paste, jaggery, sugar, spices and cook while stirring continously.The mixture will felt become loose due to melting sugar and then start to come together.Come till the mixture is consistency of 'Mashed potato' .Do not let it dry out.

4) After it cools, make lemon size balls of the 'Puran' and also the wheat dough.
5) Roll out the dough and then place the puran in the center.Close from all sides.

6) Roll out the dough into thick 'Poli'...kind of like 'Aloo paratha.

7) Roast on warm skillet with drizzle of oil. Roast on both sides.

8)Serve the warm Polis with Saffron flavored milk, ghee and 'Katachi Aamti'

Katachi Aamti

2 cups dal stock

1/4cup fresh coconut

2 cloves

1 small cinnamon

1 bay leaf

1 tsp tamarind pulp/ amsul

2tsp Goda masala( maharashtrian masala)

5-6 curry leaves

1/2tsp turmeric

Chili powder

Jaggery

cumin, mustard seeds

salt

oil

cilantro

Method:

1)Heat oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, cumin, curry leaves, all the spices.

2) Add the daal stock, salt, tamarind, jaggery, goda masala and coconut.

3) Simmer for few minutes.

4) Garnish with cilantro.

5) Serve warm with Puran Poli/ Plain Rice.

"Sweet Treats" - TilGul / Sesame Brittle / Sesame Ladoo

So the other day, I was telling 'E' that we are going to make sweets for 'Sankranti' and say 'Tilgul Ghya god Bola' (Custom in Maharashtra meaning:Take these sweets and talk sweetly!). After that, when I go to drop him off at school, first thing he tells his teacher is 'Laloo'( Way he says 'Ladoo"/Sesame ball) and then...'TilGul Ghya god bola'!! It was sooo cute!!!! Obviously his American teacher did not understand exactly what he was saying, but when I told her.....it did put a smile on her face!
Yesterday I made two types of TilGul/ sesame sweets. One was kind of diamond shape brittle made with Light brown sugar and sesame and the other one with sesame,Jaggery, Peanuts, Chana dalia....called Ladoo.
Both had kind of crunchy /crispy texture.I used to love this kind as kid and even now....But there is a way to make softer ladoos too.Haven't tried that yet though.

Til Vadi/ Sesame Brittle

Ingredients:
1.5 cups Light brown sugar / can use jaggery/ white sugar as well
1 cups roasted sesame seeds
1/2 tsp ghee/ clarified butter
1/2tsp Cardamom powder

Method:
1) Lightly roast sesame seeds.Let them cool.
2) Lightly grease a flat baking sheet with butter.
3)In a nonstick pan, heat 1/ 2tsp butter, add the light brown sugar.On medium heat let it melt and bubble.
4) Add the sesame seeds, cardamom and mix promptly.Take off heat.
5) Pour on the greased sheet.Spread evenly with buttered spatula or just turning the sheet around.

6) Cut into diamond shapes and let them cool.
7) Carefully break and remove the Sesame brittle from the sheet.

Til Ladoo/ sweet sesame balls

Ingredients:
1 cup roasted sesame seeds
1 and 1/4cup jaggery
1/2tsp cardamom powder
1/2cup coarsely crushed peanuts
1/4cup roasted chana dalia
1/2tsp ghee

Method:
1) Lightly roast sesame seeds, peanuts, chana dalia.Let the cool. Crush the peanuts coarsely.
2) In a non stick pan, heat 1/2tsp butter, add jaggery.Let it melt and bubble for couple minutes.
3) Add sesame, peanuts, chana dalia, cardamom etc and mix well.Remove off the heat.
4) With buttered hands roll the hot mixture into balls.

Caution: The mixture is reaaallllly HOT! Be carefull not to burn yourself!
(I could actually roll only 7-8  ladoos and then my hand were RED....so just reheated the mixture and poured it on sheet to make brittle)
5) Warm a little if it turns dry and roll into balls again.
6) Or simply pour the hot mixture on buttered sheet and make sesame brittle.

                                               Til Gul ghya God Bola!

"Chatpata Chaat'- Bhel

What foods do you miss most...living away from your home country???
For me...its mostly the street foods....Bhel, Pani poori, Dabeli, Chana Choor,SPDP(Sev Potato Dahi Poori) etc etc.Not that we cannot make them here in USA....but the ease of stopping at one of the stalls, telling the vendor -how 'spicy' or 'sweet' you want your dish, the dish being made in front of you, chaating- gossiping with your buddies, savoring the tangy-spicy-sweet mouthwatering chaat.....ufff even the 'thought' makes me nostalgic and my mouth water!!!
Once,I was telling my colleague at Cornell  'How I miss Indian food'.He was surprised, he said.....but there are so many Indian restaurants here..why don't you eat there! I told him....they do not have 'all' the foods we get in India....and ofcourse the 'taste' is not as authentic. He asked me to describe some dish which I miss the most.I tried describing to him..'Bhel'...Puffed rice mixed with savory snack mixture, raw onions, tomatoes, Tamarind chutney.. etc etc He seemed confused....couldn't really 'get' what I  really miss????
I can totally understand....he hadn't tasted the addictive tangy-sweet-spicy taste of Bhel ...how would he know..what I really miss???
When I was reading 'Namesake' by Jhumpa Lahiri....a book about an 'immigrant' family......there, the couple migrates to US (may be in 1970's..don't exactly remember when) The lady is 'Bengali'. After coming to USA, she misses ofcourse her homeland, her friends and family....but also the 'food'. She becomes really homesick and tries making 'Bhel' with Rice Krispie cereal !!!!! How cool was that! Because those days finding 'puffed rice and indian grocery' wasn't as easy as it is now! So....we are amongst the lucky ones!!! We atleast can find what we need to make our favorite dish here in US of A!

Here is the recipe for 'Bhel':

Ingredients:
2 cups Puffed rice ( I haven't tried using Rice krispie cereal yet!!) Make sure its crispy.
1Cup Savory 'Hot Punjabi Mix' Farsan
1/2 cup thin Sev
1 onion  finely chopped
2 tomatoes finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 tbsp roasted peanuts
1 tbsp raw mango chopped (if you like the tang)
Flat pooris if you want to make 'Bhel Poori'. I sometimes use 'Pringles' !!!

For Chutney:
1 tbsp Tamarind extract
1/4 cup grated jaggery
1/2tsp cumin-corainder powder
1/2tsp chili powder
1/4tsp chaat masala
salt
1/2cup water
Mix everything in the water and make Tangy-sweet- spicy chutney.This chutney is pretty watery.

For extra spice:
Crush green chilies and garlic together into fine paste. Add to bhel as needed.

Mixing bhel:
1) Mix together the puffed rice, farsan, half of the sev, onion, tomatoes, peanuts, mango etc.
2) Add the tamarind chutney to make the bhel 'wet' but not soggy.
3) Garnish with remaining sev, cilantro, pooris/ pringles etc
4) Serve immediately!

Enjoy the blissfull combination of various textures and tastes all packed in one mouthwatering dish!