Gajaks and gajar ka halwa: Mumbai chef delves into traditional winter delicacies

Winter is not a season itrsquos a celebration a mood as they say And even if it is shortlived in the city itrsquos best to make the most of it including enjoying seasonal greens and gajar ka halwa Every winter our stock of gajak arrives from Lucknow This time a relative sent over a big batch of panjiri a north Indian speciality made from wholewheat flour and heavily laced with dried fruits and edible gum This got us digging deeper for its variants and on a mission to know what India eats when things get coldReetu Uday KugajiAt culinary expert and chef consultant Reetu Uday Kugajirsquos home in Navi Mumbai Panjiri is a must to make in winters She makes it in bulk and calls it desi granola ldquoWhy notrdquo she retorts ldquoThis authentic traditional Punjabi sweet is loaded with goodness of whole wheat flour semolina clarified butter edible gum fox nuts nuts mixed melon seeds carom seeds ajwain dry ginger powder sonth green cardamom powder fennel seed powder fenugreek seed powder and is sweetened with the desi khand raw cane sugar or powdered jaggeryrdquoEvidently panjiri is not only a comfort food but an excellent nutritional supplement in winters It provides warmth to our body and boosts immunity to help fight colds and coughs Only hitch is to limit its intake as the ingredients have a garam taseer hot by nature and consumption in large quantities can cause difficulties Panjiri can be consumed at any time with or without warm milk It has a shelf life of three months at room temperature and six months when refrigeratedKugaji gives a twist to the traditional panjiri with ingredients to fight cold like the kacchi haldi di panjiri raw turmeric almond and pine nut panjiri sukhe mewe ki panjiri and phool makhana ki panjiri fox nuts Herersquos her family heirloom recipeItrsquos kardant in KrsquotakaGrowing up in Belgaum Karnataka where the winter temperatures drop down to 9 degrees home chef Swapneel Prabhursquos mom used to make kardant for nourishment ldquoIt is something like a crumbled dink laadurdquo she says but not quite These days it is sold in bars and is essentially a mix of roughly chopped nuts poppy seeds and dry fruits toasted individually in ghee To this is added a spiced jaggery syrup and toasted dried coconut It cools into a lumpy crumbly mixture As kids my maternal grandfather would take my mom and her siblings to this particular sweet mart called Nagori in Belgaum to buy them kardant Served on individual papers for each child the gang would then settle around the lsquobara gadgadyanchi vihirrsquo the well with twelve wheels and enjoy the treat ldquoMy ajoba would then continue on to workrdquo she says ldquowhile my mother and her siblings returned home with a packet of kardant or whatever little was left of it after each of them took turns digging into the lsquosecurely packedrsquo parcelrdquoNoren gur sparkles in BengalIn Bengal gur and til sesame seeds are eaten in combination as they both heat the system ldquoWinters in Bengal are fleeting and during the short season barely nine to 10 weeks temperatures rarely fall below 15 or 16 degree Celsiusrdquo says home chef Iti Misra ldquoBut even this short spell is welcomed and celebrated by preparing sweets made with date palm jaggery which is star product of the cold weather Narroohs or laddoos are made in homes by cooking the jaggery to hardball stage folding in til and shaping the mass into laddoos These harden when cool and can be stored for the entire seasonTiller NarroohSometimes the gur is combined with puffed rice muri or khoi to make other delicacies These are called moahs not naroohs Bengalis are nothing if not imaginativerdquo Misra is also fond of gajak a dry sweet made of sesame seeds cooked in raw sugar syrup and set in thin layers The dough is hammered until the seeds break down and release their oils into the dough It takes about 15 hours to make five to eight kg of gajak This meltinthemouth delicacy can be stored for months Originating in a small district called Morena at the heart of Madhya Pradesh its variants include tilrevadi gajak khas gajak and tilmawa gajakPunjabi panjiriIngredients2 cups whole wheat flour12 cup semolina dry roasted12 tbsp desi ghee14th tsp carom seeds ajwain lightly roasted and coarsely ground12 tsp dry ginger powder sonth12 tsp green cardamom powder1 tsp fennel seed powder12 tsp fenugreek seed powdered75 gm edible gum gondh roasted in desi ghee and coarsely ground12 tbsp lotus seeds makhana fried in desi ghee and coarsely ground12 cup raw cane sugar desi khand powdered1 tbsp almonds fried and coarsely ground16 cashew nuts fried and coarsely ground1 tbsp mix melon seeds lightly roasted15 gm charoli friedMethodIn a heavybottomed nonstick pan dry roast the whole wheat flour till you get a nutty aroma Add desi ghee and cook it on a slow flame till it is well combined Add semolina and stir with a spatula When the mixture starts turning a beautiful light golden brown cook for another five minutes till the aroma of raw flours disappears Add powdered dry ginger green cardamom fennel fenugreek carom and lotus seeds and edible gumNow add the coarsely ground nuts whole fried almonds cashew nuts charoli and mixed melon seeds Mix well Take off the flame let it cool Add the desi khand and mix well till well combined Cool the Panjiri completely Store it in a sterilised and dry airtight glass jarChefrsquos Tip Add lightly roasted desiccated coconut coarsely ground dried dates chuara pistachios white sesame seeds flax seeds and raisins to pack more flavour and super powers