Diwali Legiyam

Diwali Legiyam  (தீபாவளி லேகியம்)

This is a digestive prepared during Diwali and eaten early in the morning to ensure that the heavy food consumed this time gets digested easily. This is one of the most important things in the Diwali list at home.

Ingredients

1. Sukku (சுக்கு) (dry ginger)               25 gm
2. Kandanthippili (கண்டந்திப்பிலி)      25 gm
3. Arisi thippili  (அரிசி திப்பிலி)          25 gm
4. Parangipattai   (பரங்கிப்பட்டை)      25 gm
5. Sitharathai   (சித்தரத்தை)           25 gm
6. Milagu  (மிளகு) (pepper)          25 gm
7. Dhaniya (தனியா) (coriander seeds)   15 gm
8. Jeera  (சீரகம்)            10 gm
9. Omam   (ஓமம்)      20 gm
10.Adhimaduram  (அதிமதுரம்)   25 gm
11. Jadhikkai   (ஜாதிக்காய்)           1/2
12. Jadipathiri (ஜாதிப்பத்திரி)      5 gm
13. Elakkai (ஏலக்காய்) (Cardamom)  10 gm
14. Ginger   (இஞ்சி)         50 gm
15. Jaggery    (வெல்லம்)  1/2 kg
16. Ghee (நெய்)        100 gm
17. Honey  (தேன்)     100 gm

Dry roast ingredients number 1 to 13 separately one after the other. Take care not to over heat. Powder all the roasted ingredients together and sieve.

Dissolve jaggery in water, heat slightly and filter it. Take the filtered jaggery water in a pan (kadai) and boil it.

Grind the ginger and take out the juice. Keep this juice aside for a few minutes so that the sediment settles below. We will be using only the clear ginger water on top. Add this ginger water to the boiling jaggery. Add the honey and let the solution boil for some more time. Before  the jaggery reaches the paagu consistency but boils very well, add the sieved powder. Keep stirring till it thickens slightly. Add the ghee little by little to the thickening mixture. Once it starts leaving the sides of the pan, it is ready to be taken off the stove.

This legiyam is in the consistency of halwa and can be shaped into balls and eaten. As mentioned above it is a great digestive and helps our tummy when attacked by diwali sweets and savouries.

This medicinal legiyam can be made not just during Diwali but anytime one feels to have a natural digestive medicine.

Diwali Recipe : Adhirasam

Adhirasam (அதிரசம்)

I tried adhirasam for the first time yesterday and it came out well. I got the recipe from my mother

Ingredients:

Rice flour  (அரிசி மாவு)  : 2 cups
Jaggery   (வெல்லம்)    : 1 1/4 cup
Cardamom powder ( ஏலக்காய் பொடி) : 1/2 tsp
Ghee (நெய்)                    : 3 tsp
Oil (எண்ணெய்)  : for deep frying
Water  (தண்ணீர்)   : as required

Dissolve jaggery in water, heat it slightly and then filter it. Boil the filtered jaggery water well until huge bubbles form on the surface. This is much before any string consistency.

Take the rice flour in a wide bowl and part it circularly in the centre (like a well). Now, add the boiled jaggery to it and stir well with a ladle. Ensure there are no lumps. Let this mixture cool. Add cardamom powder and ghee to the cooled rice mixture and knead it well.

Heat the oil in a saucepan (kadai). In the meanwhile, take a small ball of the mixture the size of a lemon and flatten to the size of a puri on a greased plastic sheet. You can do this with your fingers.

 

Drop the puri into the hot oil and deep fry.

Once it becomes slightly brown, press it well with the help of two spoons to ensure any excess oil is drained and keep it aside to cool. Repeat the same procedure for the balance dough.

Adhirasam is ready to be enjoyed for Diwali!

 NOTE: In case one adhirasam breaks in the oil, then probably the jaggery is more. The taste varies with different qualities of rice/jaggery. Do check and add a few more tsp of flour if required.