Today is Sankrant. It is the day the sun begins its journey from the southernmost point as seen from the earth towards the north. It is celebrated on the 14th of January every year. Sankrant is the rare Hindu festival that is celebrated by the Solar calendar.
My earliest memories of Sankrant, is memory of tilgul. The smell of roasted sesame seeds and peanut with cardamom. In Goa, it is also a memory of a big event on the social calendar. Women dressed up in fine sarees visiting their neighbors to exchange tilgul and other sweets. It is a memory of happy times.
This is my grandmother's recipe. The resulting tilgul is melt in your mouth soft and smells really good. I have never enjoyed the jaw breakers that are made in the name of tilgul. My mother, and my grandmother before her, used jaggery. I use white polished sesame seeds. You could use the unpolished brown sesame seeds too.
You will need
2 cups sesame seeds, roasted and ground coarsely
1 cup peanuts, roasted and ground coarsely
1 cup packed jaggery
1 tbsp. ghee (clarified butter)
2 tbsp. water
6 cardamon pods
Prepare a baking sheet with edges or similar flat surface by rubbing it with a little ghee. Keep aside. Shell the cardamom pods and pound the seeds. Keep aside.
Heat the jaggery, ghee and water in a pan until the sugar melts. Let it come to a boil. As soon as it starts to bubble turn off the heat. Add the powdered sesame seeds, peanuts and cardamom. Mix well. Transfer it to the baking sheet. Using the moistened bottom of a glass pat down the mixture in a level 1 to 2 inch thick layer. Cut it into 2 inch squares and let them rest for 15-20 minutes. Using a spatula remove the squares and store in a air tight container. The tilgul last for 2-3 weeks.
This is my grandmother's recipe. The resulting tilgul is melt in your mouth soft and smells really good. I have never enjoyed the jaw breakers that are made in the name of tilgul. My mother, and my grandmother before her, used jaggery. I use white polished sesame seeds. You could use the unpolished brown sesame seeds too.
You will need
2 cups sesame seeds, roasted and ground coarsely
1 cup peanuts, roasted and ground coarsely
1 cup packed jaggery
1 tbsp. ghee (clarified butter)
2 tbsp. water
6 cardamon pods
Prepare a baking sheet with edges or similar flat surface by rubbing it with a little ghee. Keep aside. Shell the cardamom pods and pound the seeds. Keep aside.
Heat the jaggery, ghee and water in a pan until the sugar melts. Let it come to a boil. As soon as it starts to bubble turn off the heat. Add the powdered sesame seeds, peanuts and cardamom. Mix well. Transfer it to the baking sheet. Using the moistened bottom of a glass pat down the mixture in a level 1 to 2 inch thick layer. Cut it into 2 inch squares and let them rest for 15-20 minutes. Using a spatula remove the squares and store in a air tight container. The tilgul last for 2-3 weeks.
hi varada,
ReplyDeletethanks for sharing this recipe. i just tried it and though it tastes awesome, it was not sticky enough to be cut into pieces. can i do something to it now? what wrong did i do? plz help!
If there is more of the dry ingredients than the liquid then it will not be possible to cut into pieces. Next time make sure you do not use heaping measures for the dry ingredients and turn off the heat as soon as the jaggery bubbles.
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