Peanut Chikki/ Peanut Brittle/ Kadala Muttai

Chikki/ Peanut Brittle is a traditional Indian candy made with jaggery and peanuts. This one is loved by everyone in my family. My mom used to make this when we were kids but I never tried as I was not sure of the syrup consistency.

We buy this when we go shopping at Indian store, but nowadays we are not getting good quality ones and so I gathered courage and made this by asking my mom and watching some channels regarding the syrup consistency. It came out perfect. You can cut them into pieces by spreading them on a greased surface. This is a very healthy snack, rich in protein and iron.

Jaggery is an important ingredient for perfect chikkis. Also make sure the syrup reaches the right consistency by dropping a little bit in water and checking whether it turned into candy consistency. Act fast while rolling. Hope my friends will try this and please let me know how it turned.

Ingredients:

1. Peanuts- 2.5cups
2. Jaggery- 1cup
3. Water-1/4 Cups

Method:

1. Roast the Peanuts till nice aroma comes and till it starts to change golden in color. Keep this aside and ones it is cooled remove the skin by crushing gently. Separate the skin and keep the peanuts aside till the jaggery syrup is ready.
2. Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add the jaggery along with water. Let it dissolve on low heat.
3. Begin to boil and keep stirring until it thickens well. Check the consistency by dropping few drops into water. When it reaches the right consistency the jaggery syrup will harden immediately and it forms brittle.
4. If you are unable to get the syrup brittle then cook for few more minutes.
5. Turn off the stove and add the roasted peanuts, be quick and stir the peanuts well till everything gets well incorporated.
6. Grease your hands with ghee and roll them into balls. Ones it gets harder place it in an airtight container. and enjoy.

Instant Crispy Jalebi

Jalebi is a popular Indian dessert which makes an appearance in almost all the festivals and marriages. The best combination that goes well along with hot jalebis are rabdi. These jalebis can be made with different ingredients and they all have variety of names like the paneer Jalebi, Khoya Jalebi, Jaggery Jalebi, jaleba which is king size, jhangri which is made using urad dal, imarti and so on. 

I love all the varieties. In my blog, long back I have posted a jalebi recipe which is made instantly using yeast, today I tried using curd and baking soda. The consistency of the batter matters, as it shouldn't be too thick nor thin.

The thought of making jalebis came to me when yesterday my son after coming back from school saw the jalebi on youtube and started asking me to buy or to make as Jalebi being his second favorite dessert (first one is always Gulab jamun). Today after my morning walk, I gave it a try by preparing the batter and as the jalebis were done, it took only 30- 45 minutes. Using these quantity I made 20-25 Jalebis. As the shape and taste were delicious, I thought of sharing with all my friends here in my blog. Hope you all will try and let me know.

Ingredients:

1. All Purpose Flour- 1 Cup
2. Corn Flour- 2 tbsp
3. Ghee-4 tsp
4. Curd- 4 tbsp
5. Baking Soda- 1 tsp
6. Salt- a pinch
7. Yellow/ Orange Food Color- a drop
8. Water- required to make a batter- 1/2 Cup
9. Oil- for deep frying

Sugar Syrup:

1. Sugar- 1 Cup
2. Water- 1/2 Cup
3. Lemon Juice- 1 tbsp
4. cardamom Powder- 1 tsp

Method:

1. Mix the all purpose flour, corn flour, curd, ghee, baking soda, food color and salt in a mixing bowl. Combine these using little amount of water by using a whisk. The batter should be neither thick nor thin, it should be free flowing. If it feels thin add a tbsp of all purpose flour, if it is too thick add small amount of water.
2. Pour this batter into a squeezer or in a zip lock bag and seal it.
3. Heat oil for deep frying, when it is hot cut a small end of the zip lock and pour the batter in the shape of Spirals. Make 4-5 rings and let it become crisp on both the sides. Repeat with the remaining batter.
4. Meanwhile make the sugar syrup by adding the ingredients in a deep bowl on a low heat. Mix and boil till the sugar syrup forms 1 string consistency. Keep this aside.
5. Add the made jalebi rings into warm sugar syrup, flip it on both the sides for a min and remove. Continue with the remaining.
6. Enjoy hot jalebis.