Happy Diwali

I may be a little late ...but as it is posted on Indian Roads..."Better Late Than Never"...HAPPY DIWALI.

Well I'm hoping that your Diwali was Happy and that the hangover is not to painful and that you did not loose a lot of money when you gambled a few nights ago.But then there is always a flip side....If you won...well whats to say ...Lucky Lady...Lady Luck smiled on you...and If you are male ...Lucky Dude...and aren't you the lucky one ...you won the money and were smiled at by LADY Luck!
And conversely if you did not win...after cursing all and sundry you can rest happy that soon you will be Lucky in LOVE!If you are female...then maybe someone special will soon kiss the ground you walk on ,and if you are a man...LUCKY BOY!Soon Some babe will be singing that song......I don't think Bipasha Basu would condescend to singing that for you...I'm sure you'd want her to gyrate to the music...whatever.....
Enough Rambling!
Back to a happy and sweet Diwali!
Thanx to the hullabaloo created by the much maligned TV channels ,people have stopped gifting any Mithais...and if you do get something by mistake....Your brain is screaming ADULTRATED.
You cant offer Ferrero Rocher to Lord Ganesh and Goddess Lakshmi.......

They may line your pockets with the moolah to buy the chocolates but I'm, sure Lord Ganesh loves his modak.
So You need the Desi!

Thats what I realised at 2 in the afternoon...after exchanging all varieties of chocolates...BTW...some of my friends had Egg less Date Cake for Diwali...http://baketitude.blogspot.com/2011/08/eggless-date-cake.html
courtesy baketitude.
Same predicament....where's the Desi mithai???
No way was I ready to face the traffic and waste an hour for 5 pieces of mithai,so the only option-MAKE.Dug out an old diary in which I used to write recipes hen sweet child o'mine was a toddler....No I could still read the stuff I am not that old mind you that my Diary Entries are illegible!
And found what I was looking for...thank God for Sanjeev Kapoor.He was the god of Indian cooking on TV years ago...I don't know about the TV channel,not seen not heard.
These were Raghavdas Laddoos err Suji and Nariyal ke laddoos...or more eloquently said
Semolina Coconut Laddoos.
Despite the nomenclature,they were interesting Blame my Kerala Connection...I love all things Coconut.
http://baketitude.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-kerala-connection.html
But the amount of sugar and Desi ghee almost gave me angina.
Modifications !The necessary evil.
But you've got to admit they did look pretty...and say it...the candles were looking awesome too.

My guests had this platter as an alternative...I hope you would want to sample the home made Raghav Das Laddoos.

I know Diwali is now long gone,but you can still practise for another time.
Wont you like to try??
For the
Semolina Coconut Laddoos...
you need

2 1/2 cups semolina...the cup size does not really matter here...but I used standard Indian Chai cups,180 mils to be precise
1 1/2 cups sugar(sanjeev kapoor used the same amount of sugar as he did semolina...but I deferred)
3/4 cup water
2 cardamom pods peeled
1 cup shredded coconut-fresh(mine was fresh from the freezer)
3-4 tbsp raisins
2  tbsp Ghee(he used 3/4 cup of ghee...if you have the courage or are seriously under weight-go ahead!)
That's ALL Folks!

All you need to do is measure up the 1 cup of coconut and dry roast in a pan...dry-Coconut has enough fat of its own,if you did not know....

And keep stirring on l;ow heat till it releases its heady aromas and begins to turn brownish golden..

In the meanwhile mix the sugar and the water in a sauce pan and set to boil,it has to boil down to a one thread consistency.I did not have the patience to wait that long.

Some flecks of coconut in the sugar syrup...not too keen on washing the dishes as the maid had taken off for Diwali.So that's the toasted coconut.

And the cardamom peeled...the little seeds are quite ugly.

The semolina now being roasted,without the ghee.This way the semolina absorbs a little less ghee,trick learnt from my mum.

Once the raw smell is almost out then add the ghee,since the ghee is less you have to struggle a bit in the stirring.

Now you stirring till the semolina  roasts till it turns a little reddish brown and you started getting a little toasty smell.

The sugar syrup boiling away  to glory...

Now add the roasted coconut to the semolina and mix well ,in the meanwhile sugar syrup should be now almost one thread consistency.Also add in the raisins at this stage.One thread as in take a drop of between your forefinger and thumb and open them...to get one thread.

Me,I'm not that into complications...when the syrup was Almost the needed consistency(Think Jalebi Syrup or Gulab jamun Syrup) I poured the syrup into the coconut and semolina mix.Now no pix of the mixing,suffice to say it has to be a QRA...a.k.a .Quick Reflex Action.
The Reflex always reminds me of Duran Duran...OMG what crap we loved when we were young...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDnNF5cHCdo

Being mixed...

And now poured into a cold platter...to cool down.Hot sugar is way hotter than you think so be careful.

Wait for at least 15-20 minutes ,and with lightly oiled hands shape a bit of the laddoo mix ...like a WWF wrestling match...only your opponent is the laddoo....Uneven shapes..OK, asymmetry is also good.

They tasted nice..well nobody said they did not ,and Lord Ganesh and Goddess Lakshmi were hopefully HAPPY....so the year ahead should be good.

Diwali long gone ,no bake but still.


So what are you baking today???