Here’s The Detailed Guide To Make Besan Laddoos, the king of indian desserts

Laddoos are round balls of goodness, and among the most famous types of laddoos enjoyed by people everywhere are besan ke laddoos. They are king of indian desserts, feature besan or gram flour, and are high in protein. They are often made during festivals like Diwali and popularly served at temples as prasad too. They are easy to make once you get the hang of it. So follow this detailed guide and make them yourself. Remember, once you’ve gotten it right, you’ll have a new feather in your cap!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups gram flour (besan)
• ½ cup ghee
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon cardamom powder or 5 to 6 green cardamoms, powdered in a mortar-pestle
• 2 tablespoons golden raisins – chopped
• 12 cashews – finely chopped

Directions:

In a pan or kadhai, roast the besan on medium heat for about 10 minutes. Keep stirring continuously or the besan might burn. Stirring also ensures it cooks evenly. Once it has roasted, add the ghee. Mix well and continue roasting for 15 minutes. Do not stop stirring. Slowly, the mixture will start to release fat and loosen from the sides of the pan.It will start collecting as one big lump. This is a sign that you should turn off the heat, because the besan is now fully cooked.

Now add the sugar to the mixture. You have to mix with all your strength and do so continuously. You have to ensure that all the sugar is getting dissolved into the mixture. There should be no lumps.

Then add the cardamom, raisins and cashews. Mix well.

Now let the mixture cool.

Once it has cooled to room temperature, make small laddoos. Coat your hands with ghee and make little balls depending on the size of the laddoos you want. If you're finding it hard to make balls, put the mixture in the fridge for 20 minutes or in the freezer for 5 minutes. When cooled, the ghee solidifies and it will then stick together better. If, on the other hand, the mixture is too dry, add 2-3 spoons of hot ghee and mix well. Let the mixture cool again and then you should be able to shape into balls.

Garnish with nuts and serve.

Store leftovers in an airtight steel container. They will be good at room temperature for a month. Keep away from direct sunlight.

Notes, tips and tricks:

You can use either a fine, powdery besan or a coarser besan, either are fine. Just make sure you’re using fresh besan. The texture of the besan won't make much of a difference.

When you roast the besan, make sure it's happening evenly throughout. You have to keep the heat on medium and stir continuously. Cook time will vary depending on the thickness of the pan you're using.

Traditionally, besan ke laddoos use boora, a type of ground, unrefined sugar. If you don't have that, you can even use powdered sugar or castor sugar, or even confectioners’ sugar if you're in a pinch. Or simply powder your normal sugar in a blender and use that.

Don't be in a hurry to add the sugar to the besan. If the besan has not been roasted properly, then the final laddoos will have a raw taste. It also won't be as sweet as it should taste. So make sure the besan has roasted perfectly before adding the sugar. And once you do add it, stir continuously and make sure no lumps are formed.

You can add any toppings and flavor additions you like to your besan laddoos. For instance, nuts like almonds, pistachios, pecans, walnuts or additions like dates, or cashews. You can even add some saffron strands for an added flavor or press a small piece of chocolate onto each laddoo for a modern twist.

If you want to experiment with modern iterations of the besan laddoo, use shape molds to shape the mixture into any shape you prefer. You don't have to make them balls only. You can also make hearts, ovals, stars or any other shape you can think of.

You can easily double or halve this recipe, depending on how much you want. You can shape them into regular laddoos or into mini laddoos, if you want more in number. Don't hesitate about making them in bulk, since they don't spoil for a long time.