4 easy recipes for festive sweets

Did you know you can elevate coconut laddoos with a touch of beetroot? Here are four interesting festive sweet recipes sourced from the podcast The Tastes of India Podcast on Audible.

Also read | Easy recipes for homemade mithais in 30 minutes

Pink Coconut Laddoo

Ingredients

2 cups freshly grated coconut

Half cup condensed milk

2 tsp beetroot juice

1 tsp cardamom powder 

Ghee (for greasing palms)

Grated, roasted coconut for garnishing

Method

1. Begin by gently toasting the grated coconut in a pan over low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, ensuring not to brown it. This step removes excess moisture.

2. Once this is done, transfer the toasted coconut to a bowl and allow it to cool completely.

3. Next, combine the cooled coconut with condensed milk, cardamom powder and beetroot juice, making sure to mix everything thoroughly.

4. Take small to medium portions of the mixture and shape them into round ladoos. If the mixture sticks to your hands, you can apply a bit of ghee to grease your palms.

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5. Roll each laddoo evenly in freshly toasted coconut.

6. Place these laddoos in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours to allow them to firm up slightly.

7. Finally, garnish the laddoos with roasted coconut and serve.

Mango Suji Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup suji

1 cup mango pulp 

Half cup sugar

1 tsp baking powder 

Three-fourth cup milk

One fourth cup oil

One fourth cup almonds, chopped

Method

1. Use a mixer grinder to combine mango pulp and sugar until you achieve a smooth paste. Set this mixture aside.

2. In the same mixer grinder, grind suji into fine powder.

3. Now, add oil and mango pulp into the ground suji, and whisk the mixture thoroughly.

4. Add half cup of milk to the mixture and mix it in.

5. Cover the mixture and let it rest for about 30 minutes.

6. After 30 minutes have passed, add baking powder and mix well.

7. Add the remaining milk, ensuring that the cake batter remains thick and not too loose.

8. Transfer the mixture into a greased baking tin and sprinkle some chopped almonds on top.

9. Bake the cake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 55 minutes.

10. After baking, allow the cake to cool on a wire rack for at least an hour.

11. Your delicious mango suji cake is now ready to be sliced and enjoyed.

Khoi Laddoo

Ingredients

100 gm moa/khoi lava or popped rice 

350 gm khoya

3-4 tbsp jaggery

1 tsp cardamom powder

3-4 tbsp roasted sesame seeds 

2 tbsp ghee

Raisins to garnish

Method

1. Add moa, khoya, jaggery, and cardamom powder in a large bowl or on a plate and mix them well.

2. Next, add sesame seeds and ghee, and mix well.

3. Next, apply a little ghee to your hands, portion out the mixture, and make golf ball-sized laddoos.

4. Repeat this process for the remaining mixture.

5. Once done, garnish with raisins or your preferred nuts. You can store these laddoos in the refrigerator and eat them within two days.

Sweet Caramel Poha

Ingredients

2 cups poha

Half to one cup jaggery

2-3 tbsp sesame seeds, roasted

1 tsp ginger powder

Method

1. In a kadai, dry roast poha over high heat, stirring until it becomes light brown. Once it reaches this color, transfer it to a bowl or plate and allow it to cool.

2. To prepare caramel poha, use a heavy-bottomed kadai. Pour water and jaggery into it, and thoroughly melt the jaggery by stirring continuously.

3. Continue stirring over medium heat until the jaggery thickens and becomes sticky. To check for the right consistency, drop a small amount of the thickened syrup into a bowl of cold water. If you can shape it into a small ball or it hardens without diluting in water, the jaggery is at the correct consistency.

4. Add the roasted poha, toasted sesame seeds and ginger powder to the mixture, and stir continuously until they are well combined with the jaggery.

5. Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool completely.

6. Once it has cooled, store it in an airtight container.

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