Coconut Laddu

Hope all of you had a wonderful Diwali. I too had a great time with my family and close friends. Today's recipe is another sweet, Coconut Laddu. I made these on the Diwali eve and distributed these laddus to our friends. This was the first time I tried out these laddus and they came out awesome. My hubby is a sweet lover and he was really impressed. My friends also appreciated and they said the laddus tasted just like the store bought ones. I was so flattered and on top of the world. I come from the Land of Coconuts - Kerala...and I was wondering why I never tried these yummy laddus before :)

What you need?

2.5 cups shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen)

1 cup Milk

1.5 cups Sugar

1 tbsp broken Cashews

2 tsp Ghee

1/2 tsp Cardamom powder

1/4 cup sweetened Coconut (optional)

How to prepare?

Heat ghee in a pan. Fry the cashews till golden brown and keep aside.

In the same ghee, saute the grated coconut for 3-4 minutes or until the raw smell goes. Now add milk and allow it to boil. Stir continously and cook until the milk is all absorbed . Add the sugar and cook by stirring continuously until you get a thick mixture. Now add cardamom powder and mix well. When the mixture starts leaving out the pan, its done.

Remove from heat and keep the mixture aside. Roll them into laddus while they are warm. Now roll over these laddus on the top of sweetened or regular coconut for extra taste. Place one cashew on top of each laddu. The laddus are now ready, serve when they are cooled completely. Refrigerate them for storage.

Makes about 20 laddus.

Notes:

* Use condensed milk instead of milk and sugar for making quick laddus. Add approx. about 1 3/4 to 2 cups of sweetened condensed milk.

* If you feel the mixture is very sticky while rolling, grease your hands with a little ghee and then roll into laddus.

* You can avoid frying the cashews in ghee, instead place whole plain cashew on top of each laddu.

* You can also garnish with other nuts or raisins.