The festive season of Navrathri is here and it is time to dress to celebrate this festival with full fervor. Navaratri, one of the biggest festivals in India is celebrated to worship the nine incarnations of Goddess Durga. In South India, houses are decorated with golu dolls and Goddess Durga is decked up with special attire. The festival is reminiscent with morning and evening prayers synchronized with bells and the aroma of desi ghee delicacies fill up the air. Most people also observe fasts or vrats during these days. During these fasts, it is recommended to avoid eating grains, onion, garlic and meat.
Navrathri festivities give you a chance to break away from your regular routine and prepare delicacies with unique ingredients that are sattvic, easily digested and keeps you full for longer. Instead of regular salt, rock salt like Pink Himalayan Rock Salt is used for its unprocessed content.
Here are some of the best fasting recipes to celebrate Navrathri:
#1. Recipe Name – Apricot Halwa Cooking Time – 30 minutes Ingredients - 200gram Apricot 2 Cups Sugar as per taste 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder Chopped dry fruits to garnish Steps- 1.Soak apricots in water overnight 2. The apricots would have absorbed all the water and be very soggy. Grind it to a fine paste and keep aside 3. Take sugar in a heavy bottom pan and add water to boil. Make a syrup to reach single-thread consistency. When you touch the sugar syrup and stretch it between your thumb and index finger you should get a single thread of Sugar syrup. 4. In this meantime, Roast the chopped nuts in Ghee and keep aside 5. Once the sugar syrup reaches consistency, add the apricot paste and mix well 6. Keep flame on low and keep stirring till the mixture starts to thicken 7. Add the cardamom and nutmeg powder along with roasted dry fruits once the mixture thickens. You can also add ghee if you want to.
#2. Recipe Name – Banana Walnut Lassi Cooking Time – 15 minutes Ingredients – 2 cups Yogurt, 1 Banana, 1-2 teaspoon honey, 4-5 Walnuts Instructions – In a food processor, add yogurt, banana, walnut. Blend till smooth and creamy, add honey and blend it well. Transfer the lassi to a glass, garnish with chopped walnuts, add saffron if you want and serve chilled.
#3. Recipe Name - Makhana Kheer Cooking Time: 15 Minutes Serves -2 Ingredients: 1 Litre Milk 1/4 cup Makhana or Puffed Lotus Seeds 2 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon cardamom powder 5 teaspoon chopped nuts – almonds, cashew, pistachio Instructions: 1. In a deep vessel pour milk, break the makhanas into smaller pieces and simmer in the milk 2. Boil the milk and cook until the milk is reduced and the seeds are soft 3. Add the sugar and stir for few minutes 4. Add chopped nuts and cardamom powder 5. Serve hot or cold, as per your preference
#4. Recipe Name - Paneer Rolls with Himalayan Salt
Cooking Time: 20 Minutes Serves – 2
Ingredients:
2 Potatoes Boiled
2 Cups Paneer Mashed
1 Green Chilli
1/4 teaspoon Ginger Powder
1 Teaspoon Coriander Powder
1 Teaspoon Pink Himalayan Salt
7-8 Raisins
Few Nuts of Your Choice for Added Crunch
1 Teaspoon Black Pepper Powder
2 Teaspoon Ghee
Instructions:
1. Take boiled potato and paneer in a bowl
2. Add chopped green chilli and ginger powder
3. Further add all the powders, salt
4. Mix all ingredients and make a dough
5. Make rolls out of the dough
6. Now take ghee in a pan, heat it and put the rolls in it to shallow fry them
7. Fry till golden brown
8. Serve hot with mint chutney