I know I have been showing up after a while. When I am home with my family I dont get time to blog. Life is all busy with socializing, shopping, yapping, some baking workshop and lazying around. Last week I spent on the beaches of Goa and when I returned to Delhi it was freezing cold. The next day was Makar Sankranti which is the First Day of Hindu Calender. This day is widely celebrated in India with different names in different parts of the country like Pongal, Lohri, Bihu etc. Its believed to be the coldest day of winters when the cold is at its peak. Therefore, foods which keep your body warm are eaten and distributed with friends and family which included, sesame seeds, dates, jaggery, ground nuts and other dry fruits.
I was home after many days and I was itchy to make something festive. So I decided to make this rice pudding with Jaggery, Dates and Carrots. Its my mother’s recipe and I have grown old on this. This is a keeper for winters. Its a wholesome meal I had also made Tilkoot which is Pounded Sesame Seeds and Jaggery Balls couple of years back . Its a traditional recipe from Uttar Pradesh.
Directions:
1. Soak Rice in Water for an hour or so.
2. Wash and Grate Carrots and keep aside.
3.Blanch Almonds and remove their skin and cut them into halves. Also deseed and chop some dates. You can also add raisins and cashews if you like.
4. For the syrup, in a pan heat water and when it comes to a boil add jaggery. Keep stirring and let the jaggery melt in water.
4. Add a spoonful of milk and a scum will form on top. Spoon out the scum and throw it away. That’s the impurity in jaggery which we don’t want to add to the rice. Turn the flame off and keep the syrup aside.
5. In a pressure pan add ghee and when ghee melts add cumin seeds.
6.Let them crackle that is when you add grated carrots to the pan and saute in ghee for a minute.
7. Add the dried nuts which we had chopped earlier.
8. Add Soaked rice without the water.
9. Lastly add the jaggery syrup and close with the lid. Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles or until the rice is cooked.
10. When the steam escapes fluff up with a fork and serve hot. Enjoy the winter bounty.
You can even try Tilkoot for Makar Sankranti.
Other Rice recipes you can try are: Rice Pudding with Mango & Saffron, Mushroom Biryani, Raw Mango Rice, Spicy Mint Rice, Italian Arborio Rice with Mushrooms, Kathal Ki Biryani, South Indian style Curd Rice, Bombay Biryani
[whohit]GurrGajarRice[/whohit]
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