About the Recipe
Deceptively delicious, these balls taste like treats but are packed with healthy ingredients. Turn Diwali, or any prayer day eats into a guilt-free celebration, celebrating in a state of a nourished body, and calm mind with these fresh, healthy and tasty Laddu sweetmeats.
Ingredients
1 cup chickpeas or chickpea sprouts
1/4 cup almonds
2 Tablespoons ghee or butter
2 Tablespoons cornflour
1 medium carrot
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 pinch cardamom powder (or seeds from 6 cardamom seeds, crushed)
3 fresh dates
salt
Preparation
Step 1
Pre-preparation. Soak a cup of almonds in water for 2 to 8 hours. Soak or sprout chickpeas to produce 1 cup of chickpea sprouts. Boil the chickpea sprouts with salt till soft. (A pressure cooker saves time on this step, especially in high-lying areas).
Step 2
Grate the almonds and toast in a pan. Set aside.
Step 3
Add 1 tablespoon of ghee or butter to a non-stick pan. Drain the chickpea sprouts well and add to the pan with 2 tablespoons cornflour, 1 finely grated carrot, 1 tablespoon of sugar, salt to taste, and a pinch of cardamom powder.
Step 4
Use a potato masher to mash the mixture up. Continue to cook, mixing often. As the mixture starts to stick to the bottom of the pan, add a tsp of ghee or butter.
Step 5
Turn the heat off when the carrots have softened and the mixture is drying out. Chop 3 fresh dates and add to mixture. Use the potato masher to mash again. Then set aside to allow the mixture to cool.
Step 6
Turn the heat off when the carrots have softened and the mixture is drying out. Chop 3 fresh dates and add to mixture. Use the potato masher to mash again. Then set aside to allow the mixture to cool.
Step 7
Mix in the grated almonds. Form into balls. Store in the fridge or freezer.