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Showing posts with label Sesame. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sesame. Show all posts

Friday, January 15, 2010

"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!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

"Everyday Cooking"- Stuffed Okra/ Bharali bhendi


As a kid, I LOVED okra! We call it 'Bhendi' in marathi ( language we speak in Pune,India). My mom tells me, to get me to wake up in the morning....only thing she had to say was...." Come on wake up...There is Bhendi for lunch"!!!  And...it seems I would get up right away and ask for lunch! Hahah!
May be my mom was exaggerating....but I still remember liking it very much! My father used to joke that....since I like Okra soooo much.....I would have to marry a 'Okra Farmer" so that I can always have okra whenever I want! And the fun part is....."M" (my husband) comes from a family who did own a farm where they planted okra in one plot! How funny is that!!!!
There are number of ways you can prepare okra.You can slice it into discs and fry it, stuff it, add it to Sambar (lentils) etc etc.As a kid I liked the simply sliced one and fried in oil with turmeric,mustard,chili powder and salt. Same goes for my little 'E'...he likes it that way too!
But as I grew up,I also started liking this 'stuffed' okra that my mom used to prepare.
Here is the recipe for Sour-sweet-spicy Okra, stuffed with peanut,sesame,tamarind,jaggery etc.

Ingredients:
1lb Okra (look for slender ones)
1/2cup Finely Crushed peanut
1/4 cup roasted sesame seeds
1/2tsp ginger garlic paste
1/2tsp tamarind extract
1/2tsp Jaggery/ Brown sugar
1/2tsp turmeric
1/4tsp Chili powder
1/2tsp Cumin-corainder powder
1/2tsp Maharashtrian masala (optional)
1/4tsp Cumin
1/4tsp mustard seeds
salt
oil

Method:
1)   Mix together, crushed peanuts, sesame,ginger garlic paste, tamarind,jaggery, cumin-corainder powder,chili powder,turmeric etc. The mixture will be moist but crumbly.
2)Wash Okra and pat it dry. With a sharp knife, give a slit vertically. Gently put your finger in the slit and widen it a little bit.
3) Stuff the slit with 1/2tsp or so of the filling.Press it shut.



4) Heat some oil on low flame.Add mustard and cumin and let it splutter.Add turmeric and little bit chili powder.
5) Add the stuffed okra and gently toss.
6) Cover the pan and let it cook for 3-4 mins on low flame. Do not overcook. The okra should hold its shape.
7) Serve warm with Chapati (Indian flat bread) or roll it in a tortilla to make a tasty wrap.