Modak : Holiday Recipes
Modak is a deep fried Indian sweet that is almost exclusively prepared during the Ganesha Festival around August, when it is often given as an offering to Lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed Remover of Obstacles. Modak is reportedly his favorite sweet.
Ingredients
Dough:
1 cup white wheat flour
1 cup semolina flour
pinch of salt
pinch of turmeric powder
1 cup warm water
oil for frying
Filling:
1 coconut, grated finely (makes about two cups)
1 1/2 cups jaggery (or substitute raw sugar)
3/4 tablespoon powdered cardamom
Procedure
Prepare the dough; it should be dry but stay a little sticky.
Sprinkle it with oil and leave it covered for 1 hour.
Melt the jaggery with 4 tablespoons of water in a non-stick pan until liquid.
Add the coconut.
Sauté for 15-20 minutes, until the mixture becomes very thick and almost dry.
Mix in the cardamom powder and remove from the fire.
Spread the mixture out on a metal tray to cool.
Take a tablespoon-sized ball of dough and roll it out - using flour if it is sticky - into a disc 4 inches across.
Put a tablespoon-sized lump of filling in the middle (it should be hardening well by now), wet the edges with a finger, and fold up the sides, crimping the dough into a peak at the top to completely seal in the filling.
Deep fry the modak in oil until golden brown.