Easy Atta Halwa – Atta Ka Sheera Recipe – Instant Wheat Flour Halwa - Gurudwara Style

Atta halwa also known as Atta ka sheera is one of the most popular sweet/ dessert recipe in North India. This is an Instant halwa made with whole wheat flour( atta in Hindi). This atte ka halwa is served as Kadah prasad ( Karah prashad) to all the visitors of Gurudwara ( A place of worship for Sikhs ) in Punjab.

Traditionally, it is prepared with equal quantity of Whole wheat flour, Sugar and Butter/ghee to emphasize everyone are equal. Some people make this halwa adding equal quantity of wheat flour and sooji. For variations, this halwa can be made with milk or jaggery instead of sugar. I never thought making this North Indian style wheat flour halwa is so easy.

 South Indian style Godhumai halwa/wheat flour halwa ( Tirunelveli halwa) is in no way related to this atta halwa in preparation and cooking procedure. Both has its own variations and taste. This sweet can be prepared easily and instantly for surprise guest and to celebrate special occasions at home. I am sure this ghee dripping halwa gets a big applause from your family members and friends. I followed the recipe from HERE and watched some You tube video recipes too.

 Even though its my first attempt, making this halwa was a breeze for me. You can easily find the correct stage of removing the halwa. Its 100% a beginners recipe. This halwa tastes very soft and it slides in your mouth. I made in very less quantity just to serve 2 people as the quantity of ghee is more . Holi festival is fast approaching. Include this easy, rich atta ka halwa in your menu and enjoy the festival ! This atta halwa can also be prepared for babies but its made without ghee. I will share that recipe later.

Now lets see how to make Instant, easy wheat flour halwa/ atta halwa with step by step pictures and a video !

Check out my Sooji halwa and Bread halwa recipes too.

Atta halwa recipe - Atta Ka Sheera

Easy Atta halwa recipe - Atta Ka Sheera - Gurudwara Karah Prasad

Cuisine: North Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 2

Prep time: 2 Minutes

Cook time: 10 Minutes

Total time: 12 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 240ml Whole wheat flour - 1/4 cup ( I used Aashirvad atta) Sugar - 1/4 cup ( I used 1/4 cup heaped, add 1/2 cup for more sweetness) Melted Ghee - 1/4 cup Water - 1/2 cup Cardamom powder - a pinch ( Optional, Its not used traditionally) Cashews & sliced almonds - To garnish

HOW TO MAKE INSTANT WHEAT FLOUR HALWA - METHOD

Heat 1/4 cup of ghee in a wide, non-sticky kadai. Add wheat flour and roast till it turns golden brown in color with nice aroma. Keep the flame low to medium  while roasting and keep mixing to prevent burnt bottom. It takes 3- 5 minutes to roast well based on the quantity you use. Boil 1/2 cup of water in a bowl and add the hot water carefully to the roasted wheat flour. It splashes. Add 1/4 cup (heaped) sugar, cardamom powder ( I din’t use) and mix well without any lumps. All the water would be absorbed by the wheat flour and gets cooked. Mix well till halwa leaves the sides completely, becomes a whole mass. Do not switch off the stove. Keep mixing till ghee starts to ooze out in the sides of kadai. It will turn glossy too. Do the whole procedure in medium flame. It takes just 3-5 minutes to release the ghee. Switch off the flame and remove in a plate or bowl. Serve warm or cold as you wish. Please watch the video for clear understanding ! For variations, you can add milk instead of water. You can also use grated jaggery in place of sugar. Enjoy !

Note

Traditionally this halwa is prepared with equal quantity of wheat flour, sugar and ghee. But I used little more sugar ( 1.25 cups) as we are sweet toothed. If you don’t want to use equal quantity of ghee, you can use half the quantity mentioned. But texture may slightly vary. Cardamom powder is not used in the traditional atta halwa. If you wish, u can add it along with sugar. If you feel the sweetness is less, you can add it even at the end. Heat the halwa till the sugar melts and ghee oozes out. Serve it warm. I read people have this halwa as a side dish for poori too just like suji ka halwa.

Try and enjoy this easy, yummy, rich wheat flour halwa at home !

 

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Thandai Masala Powder Recipe – How To Make Thandai Powder At Home

Thandai is a very popular drink in North India that is mainly served during Holi festival and Maha Shivratri. This drink is the best coolant for body with lots of  health benefits as it is prepared with the combination of nuts, whole spices and milk. Yesterday my neighbor called me to enquire whether we get readymade thandai masala powder or thandai syrup at shops nearby my house. I browsed for some good brands and told her to get Patanjali or Haldirams Thandai powder as these are the well known names to me. She searched in shops but couldn’t get it. So I thought of preparing homemade thandai masala powder and share with her. 

As I had already shared the recipe of thandai from scratch, I know making at home is very easy. I used to make it regularly for every Maha Shivaratri festival along with our South Indian style arisi vella puttu and offer to Lord Shiva. This year I was planning to make the same following my recipe. But now after my neighbor’s suggestion, I wanted to make and store this homemade thandai masala in advance and prepare it quickly on Shivrathri day. I watched some You tube video recipes and adapted this recipe.

I have also watched a video from BBD TV’s travel escapades in which the preparation of thandai with & without bhang from a popular shop in Ujjain was shown.I found it very useful. For this thandai powder recipe, I could see many variations across the web.Some recipes are very simple with just 4 ingredients and some recipes are with bhang as well. But in this recipe, I have not used Bhang. Basically bhang balls are made from hemp seeds and leaves which are washed, cleaned and grinded to a smooth paste. But it should be used in minimum quantity as over dosage induces psychosis, excitement, uncooperativeness and hallucinations.

This is a very simple thandai masala that can be prepared with easily available ingredients. I have used Khus Khus in this recipe. I know its banned in some of the countries. In that case, feel free to skip it.Yesterday I made thandai using this powder and it came out very well. It was refreshing and we loved it a lot. I have passed some of this powder to my neighbor. I hope her family will like it too. Ok, lets see how to make Thandai masala powder at home with step by step pictures.

Thandai masala powder recipe

How to make thandai masala powder recipe at home

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Drinks Recipes

Serves: 12

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 10 Minutes

Total time: 15 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 250ml Almond/Badam - 1/4 cup Cashew nuts – 2 tbsp Melon seeds - 2 tbsp Khus khus – 3 tbsp Fennel seeds – 2 tbsp ( OR cumin seeds) Pepper corns – 1 tsp Cardamom – 8 nos Nutmeg - Very small piece (optional) Saffron threads - Few Sugar - 1/2 – 3/4 cup Dried Rose petals - 1 tbsp or 15 nos OR rose essence - 1 tsp Pista – 1 tbsp (Optional , I used it) To make thandai ( For one serving) Boiled milk – 1 cup ( At room temperature, use full fat milk) Thandai powder – 1 tbsp ( Adjust) Ice cubes – few ( 2 nos)

HOW TO MAKE THANDAI POWDER - METHOD

Take all the ingredients for thandai masala and keep it ready. Grind them to a fine powder using a mixie. Sieve it and again grind the coarse ones. Use the remaining leftovers for making fresh thandai or lassi. Mix the powder well with a spoon and store in a box. Thandai masala powder is ready ! This powder can be stored for 2 months in an air tight box. Use clean spoon to handle. To make Thandai : Boil thick, full cream milk and let it cool down to room temperature. In a wide bowl, put few ice cubes, add 2 cups of milk and 1 tbsp ( i.e 5-6 tsp) thandai powder. Mix well. Check for taste and add more sugar or thandai powder if needed. Strain it using a cloth strainer( Tea strainer) and serve it. If you want to serve later, refrigerate it till use. It tastes the best only when served chilled. The more the standing time, the more tasty it would be! Straining is more important.Do not forget to strain the milk after adding thandai powder. Enjoy !

Note

There is no hard and fast rule in the quantity of ingredients for masala. You can reduce or increase it as per your like. I felt pistachios are not needed as it was not mentioned in the Ujjain video.Still I had used just 1/2 tbsp of it. Do not add more. It would dominate the other ingredients in flavor. Do not add more pepper corns. The color of thandai is usually sandal in color if its made without bhang. It looks green when bhang is added. Adjust the amount of cardamom and fennel as they are the flavoring ingredients for thandai. Straining is more important. Do not forget to strain the milk after adding thandai powder.

Try this Thandai powder at home and enjoy this refreshing drink instantly at your will !

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Gujiya Recipe With Mawa, Suji - How To Make Gujiya With Step by Step Pictures

Holi festival is around the corner.When I was looking for Holi special recipes, I found Gujiya is a must to do recipe for this festival. When I browsed for the recipe, I found it was very similar to Sweet samosa/Karanji , Chandrakala and Suryakala sweet recipes. Of course there are some slight variations between each of them. So this time I tried an Authentic North Indian style Gujiya recipe using mawa and suji by following the recipe shared by Sandhya Soni, a member of Facebook’s Chef at large group. Here is the link. It came out very well.

 I was very happy & satisfied with the result. Sendhil & Raksha loved it too. So I thought of sharing this wonderful recipe as my contribution to Holi festival recipes. I used khoya/mawa for gujiya filling as mentioned in the original recipe. If you wish to try without khoya, you can replace it with dessicated coconut and powdered nuts. Please refer my Sweet samosa recipe to know its procedure. Try it and share with your friends and relatives on HOLI day !! Have a colorful celebration. Lets see how to make Gujiya recipe with mawa and sooji stuffing with step by step pictures.

Gujiya recipe

How to make gujiya with khoya/mawa filling - Holi festival recipes

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 8-10 

Prep time: 30 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 50 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 240ml Maida - 1 cup Melted ghee - 1.5 tbsp ( at room temp) Water - as needed For filling Unsweetened khoya - 1/2 cup  ( I used Amul) Powdered sugar - 1/2 - 3/4 cup ( based on taste) Chopped nuts - 2 tbsp ( badam, cashew,pista) Roasted sooji - 3 tbsp Cardamom powder - 1/8 tsp Cooking oil - to deep fry

HOW TO MAKE GUJIYA - METHOD

Take a wide bowl and add the flour. Add the melted ghee at room temperature and mix the flour. After the ghee is well mixed with the flour, add water little by little and make a smooth dough. Knead the dough for 5 minutes and rest it for 30 minutes. Cover the dough with a wet cloth. In the mean time,make the filling. Take the unsweetened khoya in a non-stick kadai. Heat the khoya in medium flame and mix until it leaves the pan and starts to rotate with the ladle. The color of khoya will turn golden brown. This process takes around 10 minutes or more. So do it patiently in low to medium flame. Remove in a plate. Dry roast the sooji well. Collect in another plate. Let the cooked khoya  & roasted rava cool down completely. Now mix the finely chopped nuts, powdered sugar, khoya and rava very well till the mixture looks crumbly. Add cardamom powder, mix well. Stuffing is ready. Now take the dough and roll it to a cylinder.Make balls of equal size. Roll the ball into small poori and keep a tbsp of stuffing in the center. Apply water on the corners and fold the poori into a half moon shape. Now fold the edges as shown in the pic OR press the corners with a fork. Heat oil and drop a pinch of batter. If it rises to the top and does not brown, oil heat is just right. Now keep the flame low to medium and drop the gujiya. Deep frying the gujiya patiently in low to medium flame give you really crispy gujiyas. So do not  hurry up while frying. Do not over crowd the kadai. Fry 2-3 gujiyas based on the size of kadai. Deep fry them in batches. Cook the gujiya patiently on both sides by flipping now and then. Once the bubbles cease and gujiya turn golden brown, remove them in a tissue. Drain the excess oil and serve hot OR store them in an air tight box after it comes to room temperature. It stays good for a week !! But to enjoy its best taste, eat it on the same day of preparation. Enjoy !

Note

Adjust the quantity of powdered sugar based on your taste buds. Deep frying in medium flame for long time gives a crispy gujiya. For best taste, serve gujiya as soon as you prepare them. Another important point is “Rolling” . Roll the dough like a thick poori. It should be thick in the centre and slightly thin in the corners. If you make it very thin , stuffing will ooze out in the oil while deep frying and the oil becomes a waste . Please be careful. I had experienced this.  If you make it too thick , it takes more time to cook and spiral corners may not be cooked properly.To avoid this disaster , first make one , deep fry in little oil. If you get it right , proceed making the remaining ones. Else adjust the rolling and try again.This will surely help. Suppose if the stuffing ooze out in oil , immediately switch off the stove and remove the sweet. Strain the oil and reuse it.

Enjoy these yummy Gujiya & Thandai on HOLI Day and have a great celebration !

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Gulab Jamun Recipe With Khoya - Diwali Sweets Recipes

Diwali celebration would not be fulfilled without Gulab Jamun for Indians. Not just for Diwali, we make this delicious sweet recipe for celebrations like New year, Birthday, anniversary to make it more special. It’s one of the most popular dessert recipes that tastes the best with Vanilla ice cream. Even beginners who are new in making sweets never fail to try jamun at least with store bought gulab jamun mix like MTR, Aachi, Gits during Diwali. 

Long back,I had tried gulab jamun with homemade khova and posted here too. Then due to my laziness, I started making jamun using instant mix every year. But this year for Diwali, I was determined to try gulab jamun with khoya or milk powder. I used store bought khoya here. To make this sweet, I watched many youtube video recipes like Samayal Samayal with Venkatesh Bhat , Vahchef , Sanjeev kapoor & went through many recipes for the ratio of ingredients and tips to make perfect jamun. I came across few recipes with khoya and paneer too.

As its my first attempt with store bought khoya, I chose the gulab jamun recipe with khoya alone and tried it. After so many trial & errors, I made a perfect gulab jamun following Chitra Viswanathan Mam’s recipe with slight changes. I was very happy to see my golden colored, soft and juicy gulab jamun. I made them like mini jamuns in very small size to suit my serving bowls. It did double in size & well soaked too. I have given the recipe for lesser quantity. 

If you are attempting jamun with khoya for the first time, go ahead with this recipe. Once you get it perfect you can double this recipe and make in large quantity. Beginners, do follow the tips I have shared in this post. I am sure you will get the same results like me. Lets see how to make Gulab jamun using store bought khoya !

Gulab jamun recipe with khoya

How to make gulab jamun with store bought khoya

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 12 nos

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 200ml Store bought sugarless khoya - 1/2 cup Grated ( I used Milky mist brand) All purpose flour / Maida - 3 levelled tbsp Cooking soda - A pinch (approx. half of 1/8th tsp) Salt - a pinch Water - as needed Cooking oil - to deep fry jamun For sugar syrup Sugar -1 cup Water - 1.5 cups Cardamom powder - 1/8 tsp Saffron threads - few ( Optional) Note : Double the recipe for more quantity

METHOD

Take the khoya from the refrigerate and bring it to room temperature.If the khoya is too moist n soft to handle,crumble it well using your hands. If its dry and slightly hard,grate it using a grater. Measure 1/2 cup of khoya and knead it well for 2-3 minutes using the heel of your palm. Make it smooth and soft without any grains. After kneading add the maida,a small pinch of salt & cooking soda. Mix well to make a crumbly mixture. Add water very little by little and make a smooth,non-sticky dough. If the khoya is too moist, you don’t need to add water. So add water only if needed. Its not necessary that the dough should be completely crack free. No issues if there are mild cracks. Keep the dough covered for 5-10 minutes. In the mean time, make the sugar syrup. Take the sugar & water in a bowl, mix well. Melt the sugar and boil it for 5 minutes in medium flame.Syrup should reach sticky consistency.i.e If you take the syrup in your finger, it should coat well with a glossy look and sticky to touch. No need of half thread or single thread consistency. Add cardamom powder and few saffron threads if using. Switch off the flame and let the syrup become warm. As we have added more water, the syrup won’t become thick. If you wish, you can add 2 tsp of lemon juice to avoid crystallization of sugar syrup. But I din’t add it. Beginners,please do this testing step.Heat a kadai with oil and take a small ball from the dough. Make it round and crack free. Check the temperature of oil by dropping a pinch of dough. If it rise to the top slowly, oil temperature is correct. Stir the oil twice and drop the small ball which we kept for testing. Flame should be low to medium. Check whether the balls are not dissolved in oil and crack free. It should be doubled in size and cook properly. The color of jamun should change slowly. If the flame is high,jamun will become brown quickly but it won’t be cooked inside.So open the jamun and see whether its properly cooked inside. Please do this testing to make a perfect jamun. The balls will dissolve in oil if cooking soda is more.In that case,add little more maida and make the dough by sprinkling few drops of water.If there are cracks in the ball after cooking, sprinkle a tsp of water and mix well to make the dough moist. If the ball comes out properly, make the remaining balls using the dough and proceed cooking. Switch off the flame till you make the remaining balls. Make small crack free balls by rolling the dough between your hands. Grease your hands with ghee if needed. Make sure the balls should be crack free & smooth. This is more important to get crack free,smooth gulab jamun.If there are more cracks in the balls, slightly dip one edge of the ball in milk or water and make the balls smooth. Now heat the oil in medium flame and check the temperature.Stir the oil and drop the balls one by one. Do not mix it for few seconds. Then mix the oil using the ladle without touching the jamun. Stirring the oil helps to cook the jamun evenly with nice color. Make sure the flame is medium low. Color of jamun should change gradually. If the flame is high, it will brown quickly and inner portion won’t cook well. Gulab jamun will almost double in size after cooking. Please watch Vahchef’s gulab jamun video if you wish to see the cooking process in detail. Remove the jamun after it becomes golden brown to a tissue paper. Drain the excess oil and immediately transfer the jamun to the warm sugar syrup. Let it soak in the syrup for 1-2 hours. Enjoy ! It stays good without refrigeration for 2 days if its properly handled. Use a clean spoon every time to take the jamun. Do not use your hands. Refrigerating the jamun may make it slightly harder and chewy.

Note

Gulab jamun will dissolve in oil if you add more cooking soda. If the moisture content is more in khoya,u don’t have to add water for making the dough. The wetness of khoya is enough to make the smooth dough. Gulab jamun will become flat if the moist in khoya is more. In that case you should add little more maida. Adding more maida make the jamun hard.So add the mentioned quantity. Do not make the dough too sticky or watery. In that case, grease your hands with ghee and make crack free ball. Do the oil test and proceed. Cook the jamun slowly and patiently else it won’t cook inside properly. If the sugar syrup is too hot, jamun won’t absorb the syrup. So add the hot jamun to the warm syrup.Allow it to soak for minimum 1 hour.Do not refrigerate the jamun.Use a clean spoon to handle every time. You can also use boiled,cooled milk to make the dough instead of water.

Make yummy,juicy Gulab jamun for this Diwali and have a great celebration !

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Easy Atta Ladoo Recipe - Wheat Flour Laddu

Atta laddu/Whole Wheat flour ladoo is one of the easy to make Indian dessert recipes just like Rava laddu , Moong dal ladoo , coconut laddu and Poha ladoo. Whenever I plan for Diwali sweets menu, I usually include few ladoo varieties too. Last year I tried Malai Laddu/Paneer laddu & coconut ladoo and shared here. For Diwali 2015,I wanted to try motichoor & this atta laddu. I will share the recipe for motichoo laddu next week.Atta ladoo/ Wheat flour laddu can be prepared in many ways.Some recipes call for cooking atta in ghee.Some recipe uses jaggery instead of sugar.In North India especially in Gujarat & Rajasthan people make wheat flour ladoo adding jaggery which is popularly known as Churma Laddu. Today I have made this laddu in a very simple way adding powdered sugar. It was very tasty and all the laddus vanished within no time.If you are looking for an easy & healthy laddu recipe,bookmark this ladoo in your try list for this Diwali.I am sure everybody would enjoy this sweet !

Wheat flour ladoo / atta laddu recipe

Wheat flour ladoo / atta laddu recipe - Easy diwali sweets recipe

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweets

Serves: 8-10 nos

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 10 Minutes

Total time: 20 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 200 ml Atta / Wheat flour - 1 cup Sugar - 1/2 cup Cardamom - 2 nos Melted ghee - 1/3 cup Salt – a small pinch Cashews & nuts - as needed

METHOD

Dry roast wheat flour in a wide kadai till it changes to light golden brown in color.Stay nearby & do it in low to medium flame. It takes 4-5 minutes.Take care the flour should not be burnt.Remove in a bowl and let it become warm. In the mean time,powder the sugar adding cardamom seeds.You will 1-2 tbsp more sugar than 1/2 cup .But its fine.Add it as such. Add the powdered sugar , melted ghee,roasted chopped nuts ( If using) and a pinch of salt to the wheat flour.Mix well and make a crumbly mixture. Do not add all the ghee. Add it little by little and mix well.Stop adding ghee if you are able to shape the ladoo. Make balls and arrange in a plate.I roasted few dry grapes in ghee and studded over the ladoo. You can stud roasted cashews or dip a small portion of ladoo in ghee & coat with nuts powder. Decorate it as per your wish. Store them in an air tight box and use it for a week. Enjoy !

Note

You should roast the flour well else laddu will have a raw smell. Do not burn the flour.Roast in low to medium flame only. You can add finely chopped nuts to the laddu mixture before shaping them.I din’t add it. The quantity of ghee may vary from 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup.

Try this easy,healthy ladoo during this Diwali & enjoy with your family !

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