Boondi Laddu

I thought I would celebrate my completing six months of food blogging by reposting the boondi laddu recipe. Boondi laddu is my all-time favourite sweet. This recipe was one of my earliest posts and the previous picture made no justice to this delectable sweet, which is why I'm reposting this recipe with new pictures.    

Before I move on to the recipe, I also want to thank Nupur at UKRasoi, Maha of MahasLovelyHome and Taruna of Easyfoodsmith for the wonderful awards that they have passed on to me. Thank you all for your encouragement and support. I can't explain how exciting, rewarding and fulfilling food blogging has been to me. I have met some wonderful people through this network, tried some awesome recipes that I never thought I would make and have the whole time enjoyed each and every minute of this experience. It's been rewarding on so many different levels. Thank you all for visiting my blog and for taking your time to leave your valuable comments. It makes the blog feel more alive and the blogging more enjoyable. Without your comments I would feel as if I was rambling to myself. :)

Boondi laddus are a traditional Indian sweet. Besan/gram/chickpea flour (I have no idea why it's called chickpea flour when it is made of yellow lentils) is mixed with water and then sieved through a boondi (puffed chickpea droplets) skillet/strainer into hot oil. The small yellow droplets are then soaked in warm syrup. Lastly, nuts and raisins are added along with powdered cardamom for aroma. The warm mixture is then formed into round balls and allowed to stiffen before consumption. It's a popular festive sweet and a treat to anyone with a sweet tooth. It's so delectable and addictive to sink your teeth into the crispy boondis and nuts while the crystallized sugar melts in your mouth.

Batter:

1 cup of chickpea flour (chana dal)

½ cup + cirka 2 tbs water

 Syrup:

3/4 cup of water

3/4 cup of caster sugar
1 tsp cardamom powder

2 tbs nuts cashew nuts (optional)
1 tbs golden raisins (optional)

Method:

To make the syrup, boil water and the sugar in a fairly large cooking pot (big enough to accommodate  the boondi later). Boil the sugar and water at medium heat for appr. 15 minutes till it has thickened (and reached 1 thread consistency). Once it has reached that stage, allow the syrup to simmer on low heat.

While the sugar and water is boiled into syrup, prepare the batter by sieving the flour and then add the cold water and mix until free of lumps. Check if the batter is the right consistency by pouring some on a boondi skillet. The batter should drop down through the holes. If it doesn't you need to add some more water, 1/2 to 1 tbs. Don't add too much water because then you'll get boondi with long trails that look messy.  

Heat oil in a wide pan. Take a batch of the batter and pour it over a sieve with round holes. Fry till they get light yellow and not too crispy and golden. There is also a risk of the syrup reducing too much if you take too much time frying the boondis, so fry them gently. Once, fried, pour the boondi into the syrup that is on a simmer. Repeat this process until you've finished the batter. Add lightly dry-roasted nuts and the cardamom powder and mix well. Wait for a couple of minutes so that the boondi has absorbed all the syrup and then place it on a plate. Allow to cool for 5 minutes or so. Take some of the boondi and work into round balls with your hands while it is still warm. Let it rest for some time if it is too hot for you to handle but don't let it cool down completely, because the syrup will crystallize and you wont be able to make laddus after that stage. Place the laddus on a lightly oiled tray and allow to stiffen. Best of luck!