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Indian festivals are more of an opportunity for us to indulge in a host of delectable delicacies (read sweets!). It is the time to feast on countless sweets and savouries as the options are aplenty. Indian festivities are mostly marked by exchanging sweets with family and friends, and festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, which is just around the corner, is marked by offering sweets to Lord Ganesha. These offerings are then distributed between devotees. Vinayak Chaturthi is a 10-day extravaganza which is set to begin on September 10 and followers of Lord Ganesha can’t be more excited.
Modak, a dumpling sweet meat is known to be a favourite of Lord Ganesha and is thus the star dessert during the festivity. People offer it as bhog. But modaks available in the market end up using artificial flavours and excessive amount of refined sugar. And while we know that it is a sweet, but do we really need to sweeten it with copious amounts of sugar? If you are someone looking for less of sugar but don’t want to do away with it completely, we’ve got you sorted with a healthier alternative.
Making sweets at home is a sure shot way of controlling what and how much of it you consume. Moreover, if you are on a diet or someone in the family is a diabetic, you can always control the amount of sugar in it or replace with healthier alternatives – which is exactly what we are going to do with our sugar-free modak recipe.
Making modaks at home is actually not a difficult task. And you’ll be surprised to know that the dumpling delight can also be made without a single granule of refined sugar! The sugar-free modak recipe uses the natural sweetness of dried fruits like dates, figs etc., to make a wholesome treat.
The different types of nuts and dried fruits make for a delicious combination. Follow this easy recipe for making sugar-free dry fruit modaks for this festive season:
Sugar Free Dry Fruits Modak Recipe
Ingredients:
4 Figs
6 Seedless Dates
12-14 Almonds
1 tsp Walnuts
5-6 Pistachios
7-8 Cashewnuts
8 Raisins, chopped
1 tsp Sesame Seeds
1 tsp Dessicated Coconut
1 tsp Chironji
1/2 tsp Khus Khus
1 Tbsp Ghee
1 tsp Cardamom Powder
Method:
1. Soak pitted dates and figs for an hour.
2. In a grinder, take all the nuts and grind them to a coarse powder.
3. In a pan, sauté the ground nuts. Then sauté the seeds along with desiccated coconut in a separate pan.
4. Grind soaked figs and dates to a paste. Take ghee in a pan and cook the paste until the colour darkens. Add chopped raisins, the sautéed nuts and seeds to the paste and mix.
5. Add cardamom powder and coconut and then mix it well.
6. Allow the mixture to cool and then put it in modak moulds and press to give it the perfect shape and serve!
