Chef Reetu Uday Kugaji shares tips for the perfect festive meal, including sweet somethings
A cornucopia of traditional treats means the festival of lights might almost be called the festival of sweets! The first thing that comes to mind when you think of Diwali food is sweets – and plenty of them. Mithai, as Indian sweetmeats are called, are little morsels of deliciousness, similar to a cross between a snack, a dessert and a confectionery. Chickpea flour, rice flour, semolina, various beans, lentils and grains, squashes, carrots, condensed milk or yoghurt are normally used as base ingredients; to which cashew nuts, almonds, pistachios, charoli/ chironji nuts or golden raisins are added. Fragrants like green cardamom, cinnamon, cloves or nutmeg are further combined with saffron, rose or screw pine water (Kewra) and silver or gold leaf.
Barfi, Ladoos, Halwas, Mawa Kachoris, Mori Pak, Sohan Papdi, Gulgule, Mohanthal, Sinal and Pinni… Snack-making is very much a social activity, with older women turning out a dozen or more items and young people keeping the tradition alive by making at least a few. It includes Chivda, Shakkarpara, Sev, Chirote, Puris, Chakli and Karanji.
On the first day, which is associated with wealth, large-grain cracked wheat sautéed with desi ghee and sugar known as lapsi is prepared. On the second day which is associated with the elimination of evil spirits, specialities include anarasa, a rice-and-jaggery dish that can take up to seven days to prepare.
Starters:
Diwali is a festival which involves eating small things often, so onion bhajis, pakoras and samosas are the order of the day here with a few paneer and vegetable skewers.
For the main course, Dal Makhani, Bagara Baingan, Paneer Butter Masala, Achaari Aloo Gobi
Zarda Pulao can also be prepared.
Want to Throw the Perfect Diwali Party?
Tips:
Go for fresh juices, mocktails, and smoothies instead of serving empty calorie drinks.
1. Planning is key
Don’t rush into making everything you know how to cook! First sit and plan all courses – appetizers, drinks, main course and desserts. What would you like to serve? You may want to recall the menu at your last Diwali do so as to not repeat dishes. Remember not to overdo food preparations to minimise wastage. Don’t go overboard with the amount of food you make for your guests.
2. Keep it simple
They are your friends and they wish to spend time with you and not just eat the whole time.
3. Serve bite-sized foods
You don’t have to prepare fancy foods that may need a plate and cutlery; instead serve bite-sized foods along with tissue paper and toothpicks or disposable cutlery so that the host is not seen collecting crockery from everywhere. You can serve mini Vada Pav bites, mini Dabelis, Rajma Galouti Kebab, Corn Fritters, Cocktail Idli Kebabs, et al without having to do much.
4 DIY cooking
Considering they are your loved ones, there shouldn’t be any room for formalities. So go ahead and make them comfortable with DIY cooking i.e. BBQ
5. Let the presentation do the magic
A good presentation is always a treat to the eye; therefore, invest your time in creatively making a dish or dessert look beautiful.
Sweet goodbyes
You do not want to send your guests away without treating them with delicious desserts. Remember not to serve any milk-made sweets as they may not do any good to their already stuffed tummies and the alcoholic drinks together.
Also, leaving them empty handed is just not the way to go. Towards the end of the night, when your guests are ready to go home, add an element of festive surprise for them. Give them home-made sweets beautifully packed in order to see them off with fond memories.
Sweet temptation
Sweets made in desi ghee are a time-tested recipe that cause the least amount of disturbance to blood sugar levels.
Desi ghee, one of the biggest components of mithai, helps keep the intestines in good shape and ready to take on the load of overeating during Diwali. It is an essential fat, helps assimilate fat-soluble vitamins like A, D and E and protects your bones, skin and immune function as the season changes. Mixtures of ghee and gur come in, as the perfect internal cleansers of the lungs and intestines and work as a digestive aid too.
Ayurveda even celebrates gur for its upkeep of the health of the bone marrow. Best of all, it is delicious!
So go ahead, and prepare these sweet traditional delicacies that imbue the special aura of the season…
Gur Ki Kheer
Gur Ki Kheer is a traditional recipe which belongs to Royal Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
In Bihar, this kheer is known as Rasiya and in Western Uttar Pradesh it is known as Raskheer.
Serve this delectable Gudwali kheer, especially during chilly winters, to keep yourself warm. I have used Punjabi Masala Jaggery which has fennel seeds, carom seeds, and dry ginger already added to it, which further enhances the flavour of the kheer making it absolutely delicious.
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients and quantity:
Milk, full cream – 01 litre
Basmati Rice, Broken- ½ cup
Punjabi Masala Gur/ Jaggery Shavings- 04 tbsp. Or as required
Green Cardamom powder-1/4 th tsp.
Raisins, golden- 10 gm.
Almonds, slivered-15 gm.
Pistachio nuts-15 gm.
For the garnish:
Almonds, slivered- 01 tsp.
Pistachio nuts, slivered -01 tsp.
Method:
Pick, wash and soak rice for 30 minutes. Drain water and let it dry completely for some time.
Add milk in a large heavy bottomed deep non-pan add cardamom powder.
Simmer till thick (reduced) add the drained rice. Add the slivered nuts.
Cook it on a low flame till the rice become soft, till it is cooked.
Take off from the heat and add the grated Jaggery, mix it well with the milk. Add the raisins.
You may serve it chilled or warm as desired garnished with raisins, almonds and pistachio nuts.
You may set it in earthenware pots, if served chilled.
Chef Tips:
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Stir continuously, otherwise rice and milk will be separate.
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You may sear the rice in a little pure ghee after draining and drying it.
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It may be served warm / hot / chilled, as desired.
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You may soak the jaggery in hot water and reduce it to be added to the completely cooled down kheer.
Kesar Pista Phirni
A scrumptious blend of milk and ground fragrant rice, with a dash of sugar, flavored with green cardamom powder, drizzled with rose water and laced with saffron, garnished with pistachio nuts and edible dried rose petals.
Soaking Time for Rice- 01 hour
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes to 60 minutes
Chilling Time in Refrigerator: 1-1 ½ hours
Serves: 04
Ingredients and quantity:
Full cream milk -1 ¼ th litres
Basmati Rice, soaked -1/4th cup
Saffron, broiled -01 gm.
Pistachios -60 gm.
Sugar -1/2 cup or as required
Green cardamom powder – ½ teaspoon
Rose water- ½ tbsp.
For the garnish:
Pistachio slivered-15 gm.
Saffron, broiled-1/2 gm.
Rose Petals, edible and dried-02 tsp
Method:
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Pick, wash and soak rice for one hour.
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Boil milk in a heavy bottomed pan and set aside. Drain and grind the rice coarsely.
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Broil saffron and set aside. Blanch pistachios, peel and cut into slivers.
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Add the coarsely ground rice paste to the milk and cook stirring continuously so that there are no lumps and it does not burn or stick to the bottom of the pan.
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Add sugar and mix. Add green cardamom powder, saffron and mix. Add rose water. When the mixtures starts thickening take it off the flame.
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Pour into soaked kasoras/ earthenware pots and keep them in the refrigerator to chill for 1 to 1 ½ hours.
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Serve chilled garnished with slivered pistachio nuts, saffron and dried edible rose petals.
Chef Tips:
If this Phirni needs to be prepared for fasting use Sama (Samvat Rice) soaked for the same time, instead of Basmati rice.
Chef Reetu Uday Kugaji is a chef, culinary expert and food blogger.