My Besan Laddoo success story

I never thought I'd do a blog on food. I mean, yes I can cook, but its not as if I'm the best cook in the world :-P. But I'm just thrilled beyond bits and I have to share why. I made "Besan ka Laddoos" yesterday. Indians will know what I'm taking about, but for the non-Indians, let me try to define what Besan Laddoos are...

Besan = Gramflour / Chickpea Flour
Laddoo = Sweet balls
So Besan Laddoo = Sweet Balls made of Chickpea flour = Indian Sweet.....very sweet...
Check out the web here & there for more on these divine forms of food.

Now, I'm not sure if you know this; but I feel my kids are secretly Chinese; but somewhere inside both of them, there's this stubborn Indian food gene that refuses to give up. As a result, they just adore some specific types of Indian food. For good (they're delicious) or bad (they're fatty) one of these favorites is Laddoos. While we were in India, Nani dear would painstakingly make the laddoos and courier them over. The moment our stock got over, there would be one call to Nana / Nani who ensured that the laddoo container wasn't empty for long. Then, we came out of India, and sending laddoos by courier became a proposition too expensive for even the doting Nana-Nani to consider. Bravely, Amma stepped in to see that the kids were not being starved of laddoos by the unfeeling parents; and we were living happily with our supplies of laddoos.

Why am I telling you all this ?
Well, just to reinforce the reason why I never needed to learn how to make the Besan Laddoos. But in the last month, each time my kids spoke to either grandmother, all they would talk about is laddoos.
Kid : Neil wan' yellow laddoo
Me : Doll, Ma doesnt know how to make laddoo
Kid : Why Ma, why? Neil wan' yellow laddoo
Me : Neil, I just explained. I don't know how to make them
Kid : Neil wan' yellow laddoo. Neil wan' yellow laddoo. Ma, Neil wan' yellow LAD-DOOOOOO...

Talk about pressure. So I finally decided to take the plunge; and yes, I made the laddoos. Took some ghee, added besan, fried it on low flame till it was fragrant & slightly brown. Cooled it. Added Boora (reconstituted sugar), cardamom, and powdered almonds...and made balls of them.....VOILA, My laddoos were ready.

Oh man, were they great, or what ! Between husband + 2 kids, we were down by 10 in 3 hours. I am sooooo thrilled.

Thrilled, thrilled and thrilled some more :)