Til Vadi - Sesame Seeds Squares

Makar Sankranti is a festival which is celebrated in many different ways in all parts of India. In Maharashtra (the state from where I come) it is celebrated by exchanging the sweets made out of Sesame seeds. "Take sweet, be sweet and talk sweet" is what people greet each other while exchanging these sweets. In Marathi it is called as "Tilgul ghya god bola".

At my home we make a "Tilvadi"  which is made out of Sesame seeds and Jaggery. This year I tried my hands on this vadi which is really easy to make. The vadis can come out perfect given that you follow all the steps correctly.

Happy Makar Sankranti to all and enjoy this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 Cup Sesame Seeds (Til)
1/4  Cup coarsely crushed roasted Peanuts
1 1/2 Cup of Jaggery (Gud)
2 tbsp Clarified Butter (Ghee)
Grated Dry Unsweetened Coconut as per requirement

Method:

1. Heat a skillet and roast the Sesame seeds till they turn crisp, little brown and you get a nice aroma. Let them cool and then grind them coarsely (do not make it fine). Meanwhile prepare a shallow plate (thali) or a kitchen top surface by greasing it with some clarified butter. We will use this to spread the vadi mixture.

2. Heat the same skillet again, add the clarified butter (ghee). Once the butter melts add the jaggery (Gud)  to it. When Jaggery melts and when the bubbles start to pop up, remove the skillet from above the burner and add the sesame seeds and crushed peanuts to the jaggery syrup.

3. Mix everything fast.

4. Spread the mixture evenly onto the plate and garnish it by sprinkling the  dry shredded coconut. To spread everything evenly use your hands or a bowl with flat surface to apply pressure on the hot mixture.

5. Now make the vadis by cutting the mixture into diamond shapes. Let it cool before you take out the vadis.

Tips:

• The color of the vadi depends on the Jaggery used. Prefer the darker jaggery. Also the Jaggery should be not too sticky and not dry at all.
• Make sure the Jaggery syrup is not too liquidish before you add mixture. It should be thick enough to glue up everything in one whole piece.
• Jaggery and Clarified butter, both can be found in any indian store.