Mysore Paak

Ingredients

Gram Flour             150 g
Sugar                     450 g
Ghee (clarified butter)     200 g
Green Cardamoms             6
Edible Camphor (optional)   2 g

Method

Take a frying pan and dry-roast the gram flour to a golden colour. Keep aside. Grind cardamoms to a fine powder. Keep covered to retain the flavour and aroma. Grind camphor to powder and keep covered to retain the aroma. (Time: about 20 minutes)

Boil sugar and water (approx. 220 ml) in a pan to make a syrup. Lower the flame to simmer and keep stirring. Slowly add the gram flour. Continue stirring, and slowly add all the ghee. Continue cooking and stirring till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan. Add the cardamom and camphor powder and mix well. (Time: About 30 min.)
Smear a deep plate or a plate with ghee. Pour in the mixture, spread and level. Leave it to cool for about 10-15 min. While still warm, cut into diamond shapes. Allow it to cool further for another 35-40 min till it comes to room temperature. Mysore Paak should be porous, light and crisp.

Apple Chutney

Ingredients:

• 3 Apples
• 1 tsp Red chili powder
• 1 tsp Dry coriander
powder
• 1/4 tsp Garam masala
• 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder

1 Badi Ilaichi • 2 Bay leaves • 2 Cinnamon sticks • 2 Cloves • 4-5 tsp Sugar • Salt to taste • 1 tbsp Oil Cooking Instructions: Peel off and cut the apples into small pieces.Grind with little water.Heat oil in pan and add Ilaichi, bay leaves and sticks.Add grated apples, turmeric powder, chili powder and coriander powder.When the mixture is cooked, add sugar and salt. Cook for 3 minutes.Apple Chutney is ready.

Til Papdi

Ingredients:

200 gms. White sesame seeds
150 gms. Sugar
4-5 pistachios sliced into thin slivers

Method:

1. Roast seeds very lightly just to refresh. Keep aside.
2. Heat sugar in a heavy pan, till just melted.
3. Add sesame, mix well, keep pan in a bowl of hot water.
4. Take a small portion at a time.
5. Flatten a bit with rolling pin.
6. Spinkle few slivers of pista on top.
7. Quickly roll as thin as possible.
8. To roll, grease palms, rolling pin and worksurface slightly.
9. Place over a clean plastic sheet to cool.
10. Place squares of plastic between each papdi.
11. Pile and cool completely before placing in airtight container.

Bellam Paramannam(Jaggery Rice Pudding)

Ingredients
1 cup Sona Masuri rice
2 cups milk + 2 cups water
2 cups jaggery + 1 cup water
½ cup each - cashews and golden raisins
¼ cup - ghee
4 cardamom pods - seed powdered

Method:

Cook rice in milk and water to very tender, falling apart stage.

Melt jaggery in water and simmer to plain syrup stage.

Add cooked rice to jaggery syrup. Mix and cook on medium-low heat.

Meanwhile, in a small skillet, heat ghee on medium heat. First fry cashews and then golden raisins to light gold color. Add the whole thing - ghee along with fried cashews and golden raisins to the rice-jaggery mixture.

Simmer on medium-low heat stirring in-between, until the whole thing thickens a bit and comes together to moist, firm mass.

Just before turning off the heat, stir in cardamom powder and mix thoroughly. Serve warm or cold.

pongal sweet