Holi: These bhang recipes will get your festive spirits 'high'

What is Holi without bhang, right? Of the many elements and ideas that sum up the perfect Holi celebration for most people, bhang is among those that are too fun to resist. Made from the leaves and flowers of the cannabis plant, recipes made with bhang can take your festive mood up a notch. On that 'high' note, try these bhang preparations today.

Soak almonds, rose petals, watermelon seeds, aniseeds, and bhang in some water and later grind them into a smooth paste. Pour some more water into the paste and then drain using a muslin cloth. Add sugar, saffron, cardamom powder, and peppercorns to the drained liquid and mix well. Now boil some milk and add it to the above mixture. Refrigerate and serve chilled.

Mix ghee, flour, and water to make a smooth dough. Once done, cover it with a muslin cloth and set it aside. Now prepare the gujiya filling by sauteing semolina and khoya until golden brown. Now add sugar, bhang powder, almonds, and cardamom to it. Make balls out of the dough, place the filling inside them, and seal their edges. Fry them and serve.

Begin by heating some ghee in a frying pan. Once that's done, add mawa and sugar. Knead the above mixture well until the sugar gets completely dissolved. Now add a judicious amount of bhang powder, along with a handful of pistachios. Mix well and allow it to cool down. Finally, make coin-shaped pedas out of this mixture and refrigerate for two to three hours.

Add some sugar, ground almonds, condensed milk, and cream in a bowl. Mix well. In another bowl, add some saffron strands and bhang powder to 1/4 cup of milk. Mix nicely so that they blend well. Combine the two bowls and prepare a smooth mixture. Now grab a kulfi mold or matki, pour this mixture into it, and freeze until set.

Combine chickpea flour, salt, turmeric, chili powder, bhang powder, mango powder, and some water in a bowl. Mix it well to form a smooth batter. To this, add chopped onions and potatoes, and mix again before you set the bowl aside. Heat some oil in a pan and deep fry small portions of this batter until they turn golden brown. Serve with mint chutney.