So Diwali is upon us…barely a week away and I know everyone has a lot of to-do lists…shopping, gifts to pack…goodies to send out to friends and family..the list is almost endless 😀 among all the tiny things to do, we often tend to miss out on the actual fun of preparing homemade sweets and savouries for our loved ones and choose to buy them instead…and therefore I bring to you a collection of my most easy, delicious and tempting sweets and savouries that can be made at home with basic ingredients and very little effort😘 I present to you Diwali Recipe Collection 2016!!!!! ✨💥🎉🎊🎁

I won’t be placing direct links here for you to keep clicking, that can get a little tedious. I will be putting the link to each recipe with its step-by-step pictures at the end but not before I give you a detailed recipe right here on this post. That way, it’s up to you if you wish to check the pictures or not. I think that’s fair enough as you won’t have to navigate your way into my archives and spend to much time when you should actually be grabbing a recipe and heading to the kitchen 🤗😂 So, do read till end because each of you is going to end up making something from here…!!!!!

So here we go…

Let’s start with something sweet😊

MYSORE PAK

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Yield: 10-12 pieces (depends on how large/ small you slice them. I cut fairly large pieces)

Equipment: a heavy bottom pan, a wooden spatula, a tray, a knife, a seive, a mixing bowl, measuring cups/ spoons.

Ingredients:

1 cup besan (chickpea flour)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup ghee + extra to grease the tray

4-5 tbsp water

1/4 tsp cardamom powder

Method:

Add a tsp of ghee in the pan and roast the besan for 3-4 mins, just until the rawness goes away and the besan releases a nutty aroma. Turn off the flame.

Seive the roasted besan into the mixing bowl. Add the ghee into it and mix it with the besan to make a smooth paste. Keep that aside.

Take water and sugar in the pan, set it on low flame and let the sugar melt completely. Keep stirring while the sugar melts.

Alongside, grease the tray well with ghee. Set it aside. By this time the sugar syrup will be boiling away. The syrup will be very thick.

Now add the besan and ghee paste into the melted sugar. Keep stirring continuously now onwards, keep the flame at the lowest setting. Also, add cardamom pwd & a couple of tsps of ghee into the boiling mixture.

When the mixture begins to froth on the sides and becomes thick, turn off the flame and quickly pour the mixture into the prepped tray. (No pic of that step, the mixture very hot and setting too fast)

Once the mixture begins setting (it will set within 10 mins), cut the Mysore Pak in desired shapes and serve. Keeps well without refrigeration in an airtight box for upto 2 weeks as it contains good amount of ghee.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Mysore Pak.

MOONG DAL KA HALWA

How to make moong dal ka halwa Polkapuffs blog recipes Festive recipes Recipes for Diwali Indian traditional sweet recipe

Yield: serves 3-4

Equipment: a heavy bottomed non-stick pan (I use non-stick, it’s easier to work with it), measuring cups/ spoons, a small pan.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup split yellow lentils (dhuli moong dal)

8-9 tbsp ghee

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup water

1/4 tsp cardamom pwd (elaichi pwd)

Slivered pistachio to garnish as needed

Method:

Rinse and soak the lentils (dal) in lukewarm water for 2-3 hours (I always use lukewarm water here as it ensured that the lentils are soaked well in less time).

Once the lentils have soaked well, strain them. Blend them in a mixer without adding any water until smooth (I leave them a bit grainy as I mentioned above too). Set it aside.

Heat ghee in the pan, once it melted, add the blended lentil paste and keep stirring on low flame for 15-20 mins. Do not cease stirring as the lentil paste will burn or colour unevenly. After 15-20 mins, the ghee will seperate from the lentils and the lentil paste will be a bit crumbly and golden in colour. Turn off the flame and set this aside.

Now, heat water and sugar in a small pan. Melt the sugar in the water, add cardamom powder and stir well. Turn off the flame. (We are not making a sugar syrup with a thread consistency, we are just melting the sugar here, that should take 3-5 mins)

Now, add the sugar syrup to the cooked lentils and turn on the flame, keep it on low. Keep stirring it and let it come to a gentle boil. Cover with a lid and let the sugar syrup reduce and cook for 5-7 mins with the lentils. Open the lid, check the consistency and cook further if it’s still watery, else, add 1 tbsp of ghee and turn off the flame.

Garnish with nuts of your choice or just pistachios like I have done here, best served warm. Or create a fusion by add a scoop of ice cream to the bowl!

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Moong Dal Ka Halwa

MATHURA KE PEDE

Mathura ke Pede recipe PolkaPuffs recipe Easy rakesh a band ham recipes Diwali sweets recipes PolkaPuffs

 

Yield: 10-12 medium sized Pedas

Equipment: a heavy bottomed wok, measuring cups/ spoons, a couple of plates, a spatula.

Ingredients:

200 gms Khoya (I used store bought)

1 cup castor sugar + extra to coat the Pedas (adjust the sugar as per your taste)

1/4 tsp cardamom pwd (optional)

milk & ghee as needed

Method:

Take grated Khoya in the wok and cook on low flame. Keep stirring it continuously until the khoya begins to melt.

Add 1 teaspoon of ghee at this stage and some milk, about 2 teaspoons. Keep stirring continuously so that the Khoya gets an even colour and doesn’t burn at the bottom.

It took me almost 25-30 mins to reach this stage. I added another two teaspoons of milk because the Khoya looked dry. Add milk as per the texture. Always cook on low flame else the Khoya will colour unevenly.

Turn off the flame (I didn’t cook it any further to make it a little more brown, my arms were hurting too much after stirring constantly). Add cardamom pwd and mix well. Let this mixture cool down for just 5-6 mins and add the castor sugar. And mix with your hands to incorporate the sugar.

(TIP: Don’t let the mixture cool off too much before adding the sugar as the sugar won’t melt properly. But in case the khoya has become too cold and the sugar isn’t melting properly, you can cook the khoya & sugar mixture for 3-4 mins on low flame and immediately take it out of the pan and mix well).

Once the mixture is ready, grease your palms with some ghee and make Pedas of any shape (I kept them rustic) and roll them in some castor sugar. And set them aside. These can be stored for more than a week even without refrigeration as they have been cooked so well. That’s it!

Click here for a direct to detailed recipe of Mathura Ke Pede.

KHASTI MATHRI

Recipe of Khasti Mathri How to make Mathri Punjabi mathri recipe Mathi recipe Diwali recipes Diwali snacks recipes East Mathri recipe Indian snacks Indian recipes

Yield: 12-13 medium sized mathris

Equipment: a large wok, rolling pin, rolling board, a knife, a mixing bowl, a slotted spatula, measuring cups/ spoons.

Ingredients:

250 gms APF (Maida)

salt to taste

8 tbsp warm ghee

1 tbsp nigella seeds (kalonji, you can use any other spices or masala as per your choice)

water as needed (I used about 1/4 cup)

oil to fry

Method:

Take all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, add warm ghee. Now rub these ingredients together for 10-15 mins, they should resemble breadcrumb like texture. This will make the mathris Khasti. Once that’s done, add water little by little to make stiff dough. Knead the dough for a few mins, cover it & set it aside for 15 mins (since I was in a rush today, I did not follow this step but still managed to get Khasti Mathri).

After 15 mins, knead the dough again for 2 mins. Then divide the dough to make equal sized balls. Using a rolling pin, roll them to a thickness of 1/2″ and prick them all over with a knife on both sides. Repeat this step for the entire batch of dough. Next, heat sufficient oil a wok to fry.

Once the oil is hot enough, reduce the flame to low and start frying 2-3 mathris at a time. Do not fry on high flame, the mathris won’t crisp up & will be raw from inside as well. Once they turn golden brown on both sides, remove from the oil & drain on kitchen tissues. Repeat for the entire batch of the rolled mathris. Cool them completely before storing in air tight containers. They keep well for 8-10 days.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Khasti Mathri. 

CHAWAL KE NAMAK PAARE 

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Yield: serves 2-3

Equipment: measurging cups/ spoons, a large wok, a slotted ladle, a chakli press/ kitchen press, some kitchen tissues.

Ingredients:

1 cup rice flour (Chawal ka atta)

salt to taste

a pinch of baking soda (soda bicarb)

1/2 tsp black pepper powder

5 tbsp ghee

water as needed

oil to fry

Method:

Seive rice flour in a large mixing bowl, add salt black pepper, soda bicarb and ghee.

Keep rubbing these together until the flour resembles a bread crumb like texture and it holds it’s shape when held in a fist (I do it for about 20 mins to get a crisp texture later).

Then using little water make a hard dough. Cover the dough and let it rest for 15 mins.

Next, fill the dough in the kitchen and use the plate shown in the second picture above to make the shapes of the namak paare (as the dough is glutenfree, I wasn’t comfortable rolling it and cutting it into small diamonds, you can do so if you are able to manage to roll the dough).

Heat sufficient oil in a wok, once it’s hot, turn the flame to low. Now drop the pressed pieces of dough into the oil and fry on both sides. Remember to fry on low flame so that they cook evenly and turn crisp.

Once done, remove from the oil and place on kitchen tissue to absorb excess oil. Let them cool off completely before storing them in airtight containers.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Chawal ke Namak Paare. 

KHOYA PEDA 

Khoya Peda Polkapuffs recipes Peda Diwali sweets

Yield: 7-8 Pedas

Equipment: non-stick pan, a wooden spatula, measuring cups/ spoons.

Ingredients:

200 gms unsweetened khoya

1 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp elaichi pwd

a few chironjee or pistachio flakes to garnish

some ghee to grease your palms

Method:

Grate the khoya in a bowl. Add the powdered sugar to the grated khoya. Mix the two well. Then heat a pan, add the khoya-sugar mixture to the pan. Cook it on low flame and stir continuously. The khoya and the sugar will first melt and then slowly start to thicken in about 15-20 mins.

Add the cardamom pwd and mix again. Turn off the flame. Let the mixture cool down completely. (I let the mixture in the refrigerator for about 45 mins as the climate is very hot and humid and making the Pedas would be difficult.)

Once the mixture has cooled down and solidified a bit, pinch lemon sized balls of the dough and roll them between greased palms and make smooth Pedas. You can even decorate them with some chironjee or pistachio flakes. That’s it! These keep well in the refrigerator for 2-3 days easily.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of KHOYA Peda.

INSTANT KESAR PEDA

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Yield: 8-10 Pedas

Equipment: measuring cups/ spoons, a heavy bottom non-stick pan, a wired whisk, a plate.

Ingredients:

200 gms condensed milk

1 cup milk powder

2 tsp warm milk

9-10 strands of saffron and some extra to use for the garnish

2 tsp ghee + extra to grease your palms while shaping them

Method:

Mix warm milk with the saffron strands and let it stand for 5-8 mins until the milk is coloured beautifully.

Next, add milk powder and condensed milk to the pan. Add the saffron infused milk too. Whisk it well until it’s lump free. Place the pan with the mixture on medium flame and cook while you stir it constantly. Add 2 tsp ghee and keep stirring, I cooked it for about 10 mins to achieve a dough like consistency which leaves the sides of the pans once cooked.

Take the mixture from the pan onto a greased plate. Knead the mixture like a dough for 2 mins. Let it now cool for the next 8-10 mins. Then, grease your palms with some ghee and take a small portion of the dough and shape it into a Peda. Do the same for the rest of the dough. You can use any stamps to make some pretty designs or simply decorate them with a few strands of saffron.

Cool them in the refrigerator before you serve. They stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 3-4 days.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Instant Kesar Peda.

CHAKLI | RAWA MURUKKU 

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Yield: 20-22 medium Chaklis

Equipment: a kitchen press (chakli maker), a mixing bowl, a saucepan, a slotted spatula, a large wok, measuring cups/ spoons.

Ingredients:

1 cup rice flour

1/2 cup fine rava (semolina)

1/4 cup Besan (chickpea flour)

1 cup water + 3 tbsp

1 tbsp hot oil

salt to taste

1/4 tsp rock salt (kala namak)

1/2 tsp red chilli pwd

a pinch of asafoetida (Hing)

1/2 tbsp roasted cumin pwd

1/2 tsp cumin seeds (Jeera)

oil to fry

Method:

Boil 1 cup of water in the saucepan, then add rava and cook it, make sure it is without any lumps. Now, add rice flour, besan , salt to taste, kala namak, red chilli pwd, roasted cumin pwd, cumin seeds, hing and 1 tbsp hot oil to the cooked rava. Give them a mix. Add a little water and make a soft dough. Let the dough rest for 15 mins.

Then, make the Chaklis using the chakli maker on a plate or aluminium sheet. Heat sufficient oil in the wok. Once it’s hot enough, lower the flame and start frying the chaklis on medium flame. Don’t fry on very high flame, else they will remain raw from inside. Fry 3-4 chaklis at a time, don’t overcrowd the wok. Let them turn golden- brown in colour on both sides & drain them on kitchen tissues.

Store them in airtight containers, they stay fresh for 8-10 days.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Chakli | Rawa Murukku.

KARACHI HALWA | CUSTARD POWDER HALWA 

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Yield: 17-18 pieces

Equipment: a non stick pan, a wire whisk, measuring cups/ spoons, a tray, a sharp knife, a mixing bowl, a wooden spoon.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cornflour OR vanilla flavoured custard powder

1+1/2 cups water

a few drops of food colour (I used Orange Kesari)

1+1/2 cups sugar

1 cup water

2 tbsp ghee

1/4 tsp elaichi pwd

3 tbsp chopped cashew nuts

a few slivers of pistachio to garnish

Method:

Grease a tray with some ghee and keep it ready to set the Karachi Halwa

In a mixing bowl, add the cornflour/ custard powder + 1+1/2 cups of water. Also add the colour and whisk these well. Ensure there are no lumps in the mixture. Set it aside.

Next, in the non stick pan, add the sugar & 1 cup of water. Turn on the heat and these melt together. Stir it with a wooden spoon a couple of times. This needs to be done on medium flame. There is no need to get any thread consistency here. Just that the sugar must melt completely and the mixture should be bubbly and frothy. It must thicken slightly and be sticky. Once such a texture is achieved, stir in the cornflour/ custard powder and water mixture in the sugar syrup while stirring all the time so that there are no lumps. In 3-4 mins, you will see that the mixture has started to thicken and has turned glossy in certain parts. Keep stirring continuously.

Now, add the elaichi pwd and the ghee too. Keep stirring and mixing everything together. The texture will thicken more at this stage and become gluey. It will take another 5-6 mins for this. You will see the mixture slowly leaving the sides of the pan. Keep stirring without stopping as this stage is crucial and if you don’t stir, you will end up with lumps all over. Now add the chopped cashews (you can fry and add these, I didn’t fry it). Mix in the cashews quickly. Now you will see that the mixture is beginning to set if you stop stirring it.

Immediately pour the mixture on the greased tray and flatten it out a little bit. Garnish it with some slivers of pistachio. And let it set for at least an hour, at room temperature for the first 20 mins and then in the refrigerator. Once it’s set, use a sharp knife and cut it in any desired shapes. That’s it, it is ready😀 it keeps well in fridge for about 5-6 days.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of KARACHI HALWA.

SHAKARPARA| KHURMA 

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Yield: approximately 3 cups

Equipment: a rolling board, rolling pin, a knife, measuring cups/ spoons, 2 heavy bottomed wok, a slotted spatula, kitchen tissues, mixing bowl.

Ingredients:

2 cups Maida (APF)

2 tsp Bombay Rawa (semolina)

a pinch of salt

a pinch of baking soda

5 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)

Water as needed

oil to fry

For the syrup:

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup water

Method:

In a mixing bowl, seive maida (APF). Add salt, rawa, baking soda and ghee. Rub these together until the texture of the flour resembles to that of bread crumbs. This step is crucial as it ensures the crispness of the shakarpara. I rub these ingredients together for almost 20-25 mins.

Next, take very little water to knead a stiff dough. Cover the dough with a napkin and let it rest for 15 mins.

Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and roll them on a board to a thickeness of 6mm or so. Using a knife cut into small diamond shape pieces. Set them on a plate.

Heat oil in a wok, once it’s hot, lower the flame to minimum and fry the pieces until golden. Keep moving the pieces around in the oil so that they get a golden colour and cook evenly. Cooking on low flame ensures that they are crisp.

Fry the entire batch and keep it on kitchen tissues to absorb any extra oil. Let them cool down completely. They will crisp up as they cool down.

Syrup:

In a wok, take water and sugar. Heat these on medium flame while stirring continuously. The sugar will start melting and also will become very thick. Keep stirring and once the sugar starts settling like a white powder around the wok, add the fried pieces of Maida (APF).

Mix everything together quickly to coat the fried pieces with the sugar. Be quick as the sugar will dry and set within 5 mins.

Let them cool completely before storing in airtight boxes.

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Shakarpara.

INSTANT RAWA LADDOO

How to make Rava Laddoo with condensed milk Rava Laddoo recipe Coconut Laddoo recipe Indian festive recipes Diwali recipe for sweets Polkapuffs

Yield: 12 medium laddoos

Equipment: a non-stick wok/pan, measuring cups/ spoons, a spatula.

Ingredients:

1+1/2 cup Rava (sooji/ semolina…I used the fine variety)

1/2 cup desiccated coconut

1 cup condensed milk

2 tbsp ghee

a pinch of cardamom pwd (Elaichi pwd…optional)

garnish as per your choice…I used some strands of saffron

Method:

Heat ghee in a nonstick wok, add the Rava and roast it until it becomes slightly golden, it takes about 5-6 mins on medium flame. Then add the desiccated coconut into the roasted rava, further roast them together for 5 mins. Then add cardamom pwd (optional) & the condensed milk.

Mix everything well on low flame and cook for about 5 mins, you will then see the mixture coming together like a thick dough. Turn off the flame.

Let the dough cool down for 10 mins. Grease your palms with some ghee and make laddoos with the dough. Keep the laddoos in the fridge for 15 mins. Then remove them from the fridge and re-shape them so that they are nice and round. That’s it! Done😉 they keep well for 4-5 days even without refrigeration. Enjoy!

If you wish, you can fried raisins and nuts too in the dough and make laddoos…but I like them plain! 😋

Click here for a direct link to detailed recipe of Instant Rawa Laddoo.

I am sure you’ll these recipes and try them too😊 My blog has many more recipes for sweets and savouries too, you can check them out in the search bar or in the archives column on the right hand side.

Here’s wishing you and your loved ones a very Happy, Safe and A Prosperous Diwali! May the Festival of Lights bless you! 🎉🎊✨🎉🎊✨

Love,

Shreya💖

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