SWEETS

Sweets
1. Suji Ka Halwa
2. Besan Ka Halwa
3. Aatta Ka Halwa
4. Gajar Ka Halwa
5. Lauki Ka Halwa
6. Halka (light) Pua
7. Maal-Pua
8. Naariyal (Coconut) Ka Pittha In Milk Syrup
9. Khajur
10. Thekua
11. Shaahi Tukra
12. Chaawal (Rice) ki kheer


1. Suji Ka Halwa


Suji (Semolina) – 1 cup
Ghee – ½ cup
Sugar – ¾ cup
Hot Milk – 1 cup
Chopped dry fruits:
Cashew Nut – 10
Raisin – 10
Almond - 5
Heat ghee in a heavy bottom pan. After a minute, put suji and sauté so that the ghee covers the suji completely. On medium flame keep sautéing till suji starts to turn golden brown.
Put sugar and sauté for a minute. Add the milk and stir vigorously to avoid any lumps. Keep stirring the mixture on a medium flame until you get a consistency like Halwa.
Put off the fire and immediately pour the mixture to a plate previously greased with ghee.
Cut the halwa into squares and let it cool. Garnish with chopped dry fruits.


2.Besan Ka Halwa

Besan ( Bengal gram flour) – 1 cup
Ghee – ½ cup
Sugar – ¾ cup
Hot Milk – 1 cup
Chopped dry fruits: (optional)
Cashew Nut – 10
Raisin – 10
Almond - 5
1. Heat ghee in a heavy bottom pan. After a minute, put besan and sauté so that the ghee covers the besan completely. On medium flame keep sautéing till besan starts to turn golden brown.
2. Put sugar and sauté for a minute. Add the milk and stir vigorously to avoid any lumps. Keep stirring the mixture on a medium flame until you get a consistency like Halwa.
3. Put off the fire and immediately pour the mixture to a plate previously greased with ghee.
4. Cut the halwa into squares and let it cool. Garnish with chopped dry fruits.


3.Aatta Ka Halwa


Aatta ( wheat flour) – 1 cup
Ghee – ½ cup
Sugar – ¾ cup
Hot Water – 1 cup
Chopped dry fruits: (optional)
Cashew Nut – 10
Raisin – 10
Almond - 5
1. Heat ghee in a heavy bottom pan. After a minute, put aatta and sauté so that the ghee covers the aatta completely. On medium flame keep sautéing till aatta starts to turn golden brown.
2. Put sugar and sauté for a minute. Add the water and stir vigorously to avoid any lumps. Keep stirring the mixture on a medium flame until you get a consistency like Halwa.
3. Put off the fire and immediately pour the mixture to a plate previously greased with ghee.
4. Cut the halwa into squares and let it cool. Garnish with chopped dry fruits.

4. Gaajar (carrot) Ka Halwa
Carrot – 500 gm. (grated)
Milk – 1 liter
Khoa – 1 cup
Ghee – 4 tbsp
Sugar – 1 cup
Chopped dry fruits: (optional)
Cashew Nut – 10
Raisin – 10
Almond – 5

1. Boil the milk in a pressure cooker; let the milk evaporate to half its original quantity. Put the grated carrots, close the cooker and cook on high flame till it gives out the first whistle.
2. Cook on medium flame for 5 minutes. Upon cooling of the cooker, open it. Put it on medium flame again, add sugar, stir frequently and let the liquid dry up. Add khoa, ghee and stir till ghee starts to show on sides of pan. Garnish with chopped dry fruits and serve hot.
Alternatively:

Pressure-cook 500 gm carrot with half liter milk for 5 minutes after the first whistle. Open cooker, add condensed milk (150 gm), add ghee and stir till ghee starts to show on sides of pan. Garnish with chopped dry fruits and serve hot.



5. Lauki (Doodhi) Ka Halwa

Lauki – 500 gm. (grate it and squeeze off the water )
Milk – 1 liter
Khoa – 1 cup
Ghee – 4 tbsp
Sugar – 1 cup
Chopped dry fruits: (optional)
Cashew Nut – 10
Raisin – 10
Pistachio – 5

1. Boil the milk in a pressure cooker; let the milk evaporate to half its original quantity. Put the lauki, close the cooker and cook on high flame till it gives out the first whistle.
2. Cook on medium flame for 5 minutes. Upon cooling of the cooker, open it. Put it on medium flame again, add sugar, stir frequently and let the liquid dry up. Add khoa, ghee and stir till ghee starts to show on sides of pan. Garnish with chopped dry fruits and serve hot.

Alternatively:
Pressure-cook 500 gm lauki with half liter milk for 5 minutes after the first whistle. Open cooker, add condensed milk (150 gm), add ghee and stir till ghee starts to show on sides of pan. Garnish with chopped dry fruits and serve hot.



6. Halka (light) Pua
Aatta (whole wheat flour) – 2 cups
Sugar – 1 cup
Ghee – 1 cup
Milk – 3cups
Grated Coconut – 2 tbsp
Cashew Nut – 10 (chopped)
Raisin – (15)

Mix all the above (but only 2 tbsp of ghee) into a smooth batter. Heat the rest of ghee for deep frying the pua. Put around ¼ cup of batter in form of a round pancake into the hot ghee. Deep fry the pua till golden red, strain oil and repeat the same with rest of batter. Serve pua hot.






7. Maal-Pua
For Maal Pua batter:
Maida – 2 cups
Milk – 3cups
Banana – 2 (mashed fully)
Grated Coconut – 2 tbsp
Cashew Nut – 10 (chopped)
Raisin – (15)
Suji (semolina) – 1 tbsp
Sugar – 2 cup
Water – 3 cups
Green cardamom – 4 (peeled and mashed)
Ghee – 1 cup

1. Mix all the ingredients for maal pua batter into a smooth batter. Make the sugar syrup by boiling sugar, water, and green cardamom for 5 minutes over medium flame after the sugar has dissolved in water completely.
2. Heat ghee for deep-frying the pua. Put around ¼ cup of batter in form of a thin round pancake (4-5 inches in diameter) into the hot ghee. Deep fry the pua till golden red, strain oil and repeat the same with rest of batter. Keep the fried pua in a plate.
3. Before serving, boil the sugar syrup again, and dip the fried pua I it to soak pua in syrup completely for a minute. The pua now becomes Maal Pua. Strain from the syrup and serve hot.



8. Naariyal (Coconut) ka Pittha In Milk Syrup

Rice flour – 2 cups
Hot water
Coconut (grated) – ½ cup
Sugar – 2 cup
Ghee – 2 tbsp
Milk – 1 liter

1. Make a dough of rice flour using hot ( as hot as you can tolerate) water. In a karaahi, heat ghee and put the coconut to it. Sauté for 2 minutes, and then add 2 tbsp of sugar. Keep stirring till the coconut gets covered with sugar and starts to turn golden. Put off the flame. Cool the coconut.
2. Make small lumps of rice dough of 2 cm. diameter, and make a bowl of it using your hand, fill 1 little coconut and close the bowl from all sides. Then roll the pittha into a long, cylindrical shape. Repeat the procedure for all the pittha with rest of dough.
3. Boil half liter of water. To the boiling water on high flame, add the above made pittha. Cook for 7 minutes on medium flame. Strain water and keep the pittha aside.
4. Boil milk in a thick pan with rest of sugar till milk becomes half its original quantity on medium flame. Add the boiled pittha to it. Cook on medium flame for 5 minutes. Put off the flame. Refrigerate and serve chilled.


9. Khajoor


Maida – 500 gm
Coconut – 2 tbsp (chopped)
Water – 1.5 cups
Sugar – 300 gm
Green Cardamom – 4 ( peeled and mashed)
Ghee (or vegetable oil)
Saancha: (A Saancha is basically an embroidered surface of wood like the ones used for making block prints. This is used to give an embroidered look to the surface of khajoor when it gets pressed against it).

1. Make the sugar syrup by boiling sugar, water, and green cardamom for 5 minutes over medium flame
2. Mix 4 tbsp ghee, sugar syrup prepared above and coconut to maida and make dough of it. Use only as much sugar syrup as required to make dough like the one for making chapaatis.
3. Take a lump of dough (the size as that for making chapaatis), press it flat on your palm like a peda then press it against a saancha for making khajoor. After the khajoor has aquired the imprint from the saancha, it is deep fried in ghee till reddish brown. Ghee is strained and khajoor kept aside. Serve when completely cooled.

10. Thekua

Aatta (whole wheat flour) – 500 gm
Coconut – 2 tbsp (chopped)
Water – 1.5 cups
Jaggery (Gur) – 300 gm
Green Cardamom – 4 ( peeled and mashed)
Ghee (or vegetable oil)
Saancha: (A Saancha is basically an embroidered surface of wood like the ones used for making block prints. This is used to give an embroidered look to the surface of khajoor when it gets pressed against it).

Mix jaggery, water, and green cardamom into a watery solution.
Mix 4 tbsp ghee, jaggery syrup prepared above and coconut to aatta and make dough of it same as that for making chapaatis. Use only as much jaggery syrup as required to make dough like the one for making chapaatis
Take a lump of dough (the size as that for making chapaatis), press it flat on your palm like a peda then press it against a saancha for making khajoor. After the khajoor has aquired the imprint from the saancha, it is deep fried in ghee till reddish brown. Ghee is strained and khajoor kept aside. Serve when completely cooled.


11. Shaahi Tukra

Bread – 4 pieces
Oil for deep frying
Sugar – 2 cups
Water – 3 cups
Dry Fruits for garnishing:
Cashew Nut – 5 (chopped)
Raisin – 10
Almond – 4 (chopped)


Cut each of the 4 breads into 4 pieces.
Deep-fry the bread pieces till red and crispy. Drain from oil and place on tissue paper.
Make sugar syrup by boiling sugar, water, and green cardamom for 7 minutes.
Dip the fried bread pieces in sugar syrup for a minute, drain lightly from the syrup and place in a serving plate. Garnish with dry fruits and serve hot.


13. Chaawal (rice) ki kheer

Basmati rice – ½ cup (washed and kept in a dry vessel)
Milk – 1 liter
Sugar – 1 cup
Chopped dry fruits: (optional)
Cashew Nut – 10
Raisin – 10
Almond – 5
Rose syrup – 1tsp (optional)

Boil the milk with in a thick-bottomed deep vessel; let the milk evaporate to ¾ of its original quantity. Add rice, cook on medium flame till the rice softens, but do not allow the rice to break by overcooking. Now add sugar, stir frequently and let the liquid dry up. Keep it on flame till you get the desired consistency of milk. Add the dry fruits. Put off the flame. Add the rose syrup, stir. Serve hot with dal-poori or serve cold as a dessert.