Gujiya
2016-03-21- Cuisine: Indian
- Course: Sweet Dishes
- Skill Level: Intermediate
- Yield : 10
- Servings : 5
- Prep Time : 25m
- Cook Time : 45m
- Ready In : 1:10 h
Holi: A festival of colours and a sweet that goes with it.
Holi and Gujiya go together. The crusty, soft and yet crunchy pastry filled with soft and delicious mixture of khoya, sugar and dry fruits is just the right thing to eat after playing with colours and water on Holi.
Tips
Frying the gujiya is an important step. Do not increase the flame to finish off the process faster. The frying takes time and requires patience.
The festival of Holi
Holi, the festival of colours in India is a joyous occasion. Celebrated as the spring begins in the Indian subcontinent, this festival is the second biggest festival of the country. Culturally, the festivals are always celebrated with food, and in Northern India. A spring festival, also known as the festival of colours or the festival of love. It is an ancient Hindu religious festival which has become popular with non-Hindus in many parts of South Asia, as well as people of other communities outside Asia. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, and other regions of the world with significant populations of Hindus or people of Indian origin. The festival signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, end of winter, and for many a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair broken relationships, and is also celebrated as a thanksgiving for a good harvest. Holi is celebrated at the approach of the vernal equinox, on the Phalguna Purnima (Full Moon). The festival date varies every year, per the Hindu calendar, and typically comes in March, sometimes February in the Gregorian Calendar.
In recent years the festival has spread to parts of Europe and North America as a spring celebration of love, frolic, and colours. Holi celebrations start on the night before Holi with a Holika bonfire where people gather, sing and dance. The next morning is a free-for-all carnival of colours, where participants play, chase and colour each other with dry powder and coloured water. People visit family, friends and foes to throw colours on each other, laugh and chit-chat, then share Holi delicacies, food and drinks. Some drinks are intoxicating. For example, Bhang, an intoxicating ingredient made from cannabis leaves, is mixed into drinks and sweets and consumed by many.[9][10] In the evening, after sobering up, people dress up and visit friends and family.
Source: Wikipedia
Ingredients
- All purpose flour – 1 cup (Maida)
- Ghee – for frying
- Salt – a pinch
- Khoa - ½ cup
- Cashew nuts – 4, chopped
- Almonds – 4, chopped
- Raisins – 12-15
- Cardamom powder – ¼ teaspoon
- Sugar – 3 Tbsp
- Ghee – for deep frying
Method
Step 1
Make the stuffing of gujiya by heating the khoa in a pan on medium heat. Khoya is essentially milk solids, so it will melt a little. Keep stirring it till it changes colour to light brown -this will take about 5 mins on very low flame. Take it off the stove and allow it to cool a bit. Add cashews, almonds, raisins and cardamom powder. Keep it aside. After the stuffing cools down completely, add the powdered sugar and mix it all well with your hands taking care that there are no lumps.
Step 2
To make the pastry dough, mix flour, salt, 1 Tbsp ghee and knead the dough using 1/4th cup water. The dough should start with being crumbly but will become smooth and stiff after you finish the kneading. Cover the dough with a moist cloth keep the dough aside for about 10 minutes.
Step 3
Divide the dough into 10 equal parts and make 10 smooth balls using your palms and fingers. Roll out 10 small discs of about 4-inch diameter out of each of these dough balls.
Step 4
In each of these discs put about 1 Tbsp of the prepared stuffing in the centre. apply water to the edges and fold the disc to form a half circle with stuffing inside. Seal the edges well. You can use a fork to seal it well. Repeat with all the discs and the gujiyas are ready for frying.
Step 5
Heat ghee in a deep wok and reduce the flame. Fry 2-3 gujiyas at a time on very low flame so that the outer covering gets cooked through and the khoya inside melts and coats the gujiya from inside.
Step 6
Gujiyas are ready to be removed from oil when they turn golden brown and appear crispy.
Step 7
Remove and drain on a paper towel.
Step 8
Store when completely cooled in an airtight container. They stay good for about 15 days.
Serving Suggestion
Serve the Gujiya at room temperature.
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