Ganesh Chaturthi 2023: Indulge In Guilt-Free Sweets This Ganeshotsav With 4 Organic Modak Recipes

The auspicious occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi is here, filling the air with a lot of devotion and the delicious aroma of traditional modaks. We now have yet another justification for all health-conscious foodies to happily partake in the age-old custom of preparing modaks.

Making healthy Modak at home is simple if you change a couple of the components. So let's go on a culinary adventure that combines the best of tradition and health in a single delicious bite.

Baked Khoya Modak

Check out this tasty baked modak recipe by Chef Nikhil Rastogi at Unox.

INGREDIENTS

• 200 gms Unsweetened Khoya              
• 50 gms Mixed nuts                             
• 50 gms Sugar                                      
•  10 gms Cardamom powder               
•  5 strands Saffron                                  
• 1 Tbsp Warm milk                             
• Ghee

METHOD

• Grate the khoya, finely chop the nuts and immerse the saffron strands in warm milk
• Now Heat up a skillet
• Add khoya to it and gradually add the sugar
• Let the khoya melt and cook.
• Add the finely chopped nuts, cardamom powder and saffron strands and let it become a solid mass
• Let it cool for some time.
• Now grease the Modak moulds with ghee and fill them up with the mixture.
• Hold it tight for a couple of minutes and take them out carefully.
• Now place these modaks on a baking tray.
• Pre-heat the oven at 200 degrees.
• Once the oven is preheated, place these Modaks inside the oven at 180 degrees for 7 minutes.
• They shall achieve nice even coloring and will crisp up as well.
• Plate it up nicely and offer it to the Lord Ganesha.

RAGI MODAK

You can make healthy Ragi Modak in Godrej Microwave in just a few minutes.

INGREDIENTS

• 1½ cup Ragi Flour
• 1½ cup Water
• Salt to taste

INGREDIENTS FOR STUFFING

• 2 tbsp Ghee
• 1 cup Grated Coconut
• ¾ cup Grated Jaggery
• ½ cup Sesame Seeds
• ¼ tsp Cardamom Powder

METHOD OF PREPARATION

• Take a microwave oven-safe glass flat bowl, add ragi flour and salt, mix well, and cook for 4 minutes in micro mode. Keep mixing the flour after every 30 seconds to roast it well.
• Take water in another oven-safe bowl and boil the water for 2 minutes. Then slowly add the water to the roasted flour little by little. At the same time keep mixing it with a spatula to make soft dough. Knead the dough until it becomes soft without any lumps. Make small lemon-sized balls by dividing the dough into equal sizes and keep it covered with a damp cloth.
• For the stuffing, in another bowl, add ghee and sesame seeds, mix it all well and cook for 1 minute. Add coconut powder and jaggery, mix it well and cook for 4 minutes. Stir after every minute to get better results. Now, add cardamom powder, mix well, and allow the mixture to cool.
• Now make small-sized balls of the ragi dough for ease of stuffing and keep it aside.
• Take a modak mould and grease it with a brush of oil from inside. Stuff a lemon-sized ball into it. Press and set by making a hole in the center. Add the coconut and sesame stuffing inside and press it gently. Now, seal the bottom with a little more ragi dough. Gently take it out from the mould and arrange it on a microwave-oven safe idli plates.
• Take a microwave-oven safe wide bowl, pour one cup of water in it and boil water for 2 minutes. Then, arrange the idli plates and place it in the hot water bowl, cover with lid and steam these modaks for 5 minutes in micro mode. Set to cool and serve.

DRY FRUITS & NUTS MODAK

A dessert recipe made during Ganesh Chaturthi by Chef Vaibhav Bhargava at 'Cho Vietnamese Kitchen & Bar', is also very healthy, nutritious and tasty recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 50 gm Roasted almonds
• 80 gm Roasted cashewnuts
• 50 gm Roasted walnuts
• 40 gm Soaked Raisins
• 35 gm Pistachios
• 150 gm Dates Puree or Deseeded Fresh
• 30 gm Dry apricots
• 50 gm Anjeer
• 100 gm Ghee
• 3 gm Eliachi powder
• 10 gm Honey                                                            

METHOD

• Take a Pan or Kadhai and roast the nuts on a medium flame without changing too much the color of the ingredients, should be lightly golden.
• Do the same with all the nuts one by one and keep them separately for cool down.
• Once they are cooled, make the Powder in the food processor.
• Soak the dry fruits like anjeer, apricots, fresh dates in water for 10 mins.
• Once dry fruits are little soft, remove them from water and Pat dry and chop them.
• Add the dry fruits in the food processor and make a puree.
• Transfer the ingredients into the kadhai or Pan again, add ghee and rest of the nuts and dry fruits mixture and cook a bit with cardamom powder and honey added into it. fry for 3 -4 mins until all dry fruits come together, it’s a ghee rich recipe and start making modaks when they are warm because after completely cooled down, they will start falling down in crumbles.
• Now Mix all the ingredients into a big bowl and mix them well so that all flavors get absorbed by all ingredients. 
• Take the Modak mould and grease them with ghee, now press the mixture evenly into the mold and remove excess mixture from the sides of the mould.
• Let the Modak set in the Mould and then U can take it out and serve.

CHOCOLATE MODAK

This tasty chocolate modak recipe shared by Chef Md. Naushad at Orange Room is all about at-home sweetness.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 Cup Cashew
• 1/4 Cup Pistachio
• 1/2 Cup Desiccated coconut
• 1 tbsp Dry Rose Petal
• 2 tbsp Condensed Milk 
• 200gms Dark Chocolate

METHOD

• Blend dry Rose Petal using pulse mode
• Add dry fruits mixture in a mixing bowl
• Add condensed Milk
• Combine well and roll into small balls
• Melt chocolate using double boiler method
• Add molten chocolate in silicon modakmould
• Add dry fruits mixture in center
• Cover it with more chocolate, tap to even
• Refrigerate until set