Celebrating Diwali with Kesar Jalebi

The festival of lights, the festival of opulence and wealth,the festivals of abundant happiness,the most celebrated festival of Hindus the world over,Diwali is here, precisely on Nov 5th.Dhanteras, today marks the start of 5 day long festivities.I hope all you guys have decked up your houses to welcome the goddess of wealth.Well, I am really busy these days with preparations…I m cooking a lot too but not getting any time to blog.

I didn’t want to miss celebrating Diwali on the blog with all you guys, so here I am with a rushed post.Nothing much to write except what Diwali means to me.It means going back to my roots,trying to redo the things which I have grown up seeing my grandmother and mother do.It means welcoming the newness in my house, right from clothes, utensils, home linens to new grains called “kheele“offered to Goddess along with batasha [candy sugar drops].It means getting up before sun rise on Narak chaturdashi[ a day before Diwali] and taking bath with the holy water from Ganges and shunning away all aridity  and deficiency from my life.

It means exchanging gifts and well wishes with family and friends from some 8000 miles away.It means bowing before the deity to forgive my wrong doings and accept my offerings and prayers.It means asking GOD for the means and strength to attain my goals in life.It means trying to make the best of whatever I could find in this foreign land within my means given the fact that Vegas has really disappointed me as far as shopping is concerned And above all it means a fresh ray of hope….that next year’s Diwali will be better than this year..hopefully with family and relatives..in India.

I prepared some Kesar Jalebi, a very popular Indian sweet which is basically an Indian take on the funnel cake consisting of deep-frying the batter which has been infused with saffron and cardamom and soaking it in sugar syrup.Now I really feel like a MONSTER when I deep fry…but since it’s an occasion of my favorite festival , I buried the monster for a while.Now my recipe uses yogurt which gives a slight sourness to the jalebi and a soft texture.I like to pair up my jalebis with sour yogurt though more popularly rabri [thickened sweetened milk]is more popular.Below goes the recipe.

What I need:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 tsp chickpea flour[besan]
1/3 cup beaten plain yogurt at room temperature [as needed]
1/4 tsp yeast
1 tbsp warm water to dissolve the yeast
1/2 tsp oil
1 /2 tsp saffron strands dissolved in 2 tsp luke warm water
1 tsp green cardamom powder
Oil for frying

For the Sugar Syrup:

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tsp green cardamom powder
Few strands of saffron
1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice

How I did it:

Dissolve the yeast in warm water and let it sit for about five minutes.
In a big bowl,mix the all purpose flour, chickpea flour and oil together.
Add yogurt and the yeast mix to the flour mixture and mix well making sure that there are no lumps in the batter
Cover with a plastic cling film and set aside for 1 hour.After fermenting batter will flow with a ribbon like consistency when picked with a spatula.Do not over ferment the batter.
For the syrup:Boil the sugar,water and saffron together for around 10-15 minutes.We do not need to check any thread consistency etc.Add the cardamom powder & lemon juice and remove from heat.

Making the Jalebis:In a flat, wide-mouthed frying fan, heat oil about 1″ deep till the oil is heated to a temperature that on putting a drop of batter it sizzles instantaneously to the top.
Fill a squeezable bottle[ like a ketchup or mustard bottle ]with a nozzle in front with the batter.Depending on how thick you want the jalebis, you can cut the nozzle tip using scissors.Even a piping bag with tip or cloth with a hole can be used.
Squeeze the batter in the hot oil in a spiral shape about 2 inch in dia.You can make bigger or smaller depending on your wish.

Fry the Jalebis until golden-brown on both sides.Remove to a paper towel and allow the extra oil to be drained for 1-2 minutes.
Thereafter tip into the warm syrup and let soak for few seconds and take out with the help of tongs.
Serve warm with plain yogurt or Rabri [thickened milk]

Have a Safe and Happy Diwali everyone !

ENJOY!!

Sending this to Rekha’s Diwali Dhamaka, Emreen’s It’z festival time