Besan Ladoos are the most delicious & popular Indian sweet (mithai) especially in Maharashtra. Different types of ladoos are prepared at all festive & auspicious occasions in India. Besan is high in protein & very nutritious & healthy…
To prepare besan ladoo is very simple & easy but requires utmost patience. Besan, which is chickpea flour is very delicate & needs tender loving care while dry roasting as it has a tendency to burn if you are not alert. You need to focus completely on gently roasting the besan to get the right texture, aroma & the desired reddish brown color which is a mark of a well made ladoo. Hence, the perfection of the ladoo depends on perfect & continuous dry roasting & this is the real test of one’s patience.
Traditionally, you need to dry roast on a metal tawa/wok/kadhai but now it can be done in a brief span of time & very little effort is needed if you use a microwave. This is the first time I have made a traditional sweet in a microwave. I was hesitant but wanted to give it a go… I must say it was a success! Above all, I did not have to slog it out on a stove!! So now whenever I want to make besan ladoos, it is goodbye to the traditional way & hello to the microwave! 😀
In the good old days, ladoos would always bring a large smile on one’s face & automatically one would be eager to know what the celebration is about. No one would even give a thought to the calories but today the importance given to health & fitness is tremendous & the mithai which always held its own in every Indian household is almost non existent. The sugar & the pure ghee which plays an integral role in the Indian mithai is replaced with substitutes & hence it may not even have the original traditional taste. But I feel one need not indulge in this lovely, traditional, pure & original sweets but one must eat in moderation, relish & enjoy the sweet moments. Diwali is the festival of lights & calls for celebration & festivities. It is the right moment to relish sweets & savories. So let us celebrate with fun, laughter & a microwave besan ladoo 😀
Wishing you all a Happy & Safe Diwali… Thank you for stopping by… 😀
Ingredients :
- 1 cup Besan (Chickpea Flour)
- ½ cup Sugar pwd. or as per taste
- 4 tbsps. Pure Ghee (I used Amul) or home made
- 3-4 Green Cardamom Pods (freshly powdered)
- Few Raisins or sliced Almonds & Cashew nuts (fry in a tsp. of ghee)
Procedure :
In a microwave safe bowl, combine besan & ghee & mix well.
Microwave on high for 3 minutes, stirring after every minute.
Reduce the power to medium & microwave for another two minutes, stirring again after every minute.
The mixture should be reddish brown & should have a good aroma. Take care & make sure the mixture does not burn.
Let the mixture cool completely.
Then add sugar pwd. & cardamom pwd. & mix it thoroughly. Add dryfruits (optional).
Divide the mixture into portions larger than a lemon or as desired.
Shape each portion into a smooth round ball & place on a plate/tray.
Let the besan ladoos set well for about an hour .
Serve immediately or store in an airtight container.
