Mann mei ladoo phoota

EarthPoorna serves packs loaded with nutrients and energy. They use plastic-free packaging and deliver across India

Sucheta Bhandare was born in a family of farmers in Nashik's Vadner Bhairav village. She didn't have an ordinary childhood. At a time when her classmates got dal-bhaat for lunch, she feasted on peanuts, jaggery, grated coconut, roasted grams and puffed rice in her tiffin. On some days, she ate fruits, pulses and healthy ladoos. "I had no option of eating junk food or anything unhealthy. My family grew crops on our farm, and we would subsist on just that. Between classes, all I could think of was - when am I going to get home and help aai-baba on the fields. The harvest period was my favourite," recalls Bhandare, now 35.

Rice Flakes

Tomatoes were grown in abundance on their two-acre land. Located a few kilometres away from home, this land was used by the family to grow almost every crop, except potatoes. "We had grapes, papayas, among other seasonal fruits, lots of vegetables and even wheat. And I enjoyed planting every seed. There came a point where I thought I wanted to study only agriculture," she remembers. But, she ended up graduating from a Dapoli college in commerce instead. "It's okay, I guess. Not everything goes according to plan," she says.

In 2007, when she turned 21, she moved to Pune to pursue a B.Ed degree, like her grandfather had. "He was a teacher, and encouraged me to take up the same profession. But my heart was into farming, I just knew I would come back to it some day. And that's exactly what happened. I started a small call centre with a friend, but almost seven years later, I realised I didn't want to do it long-term. So, I returned home," she adds.

Ragi Ladoo

This trip back home changed the course of Bhandare's life, because this was when she decided she would launch EarthPoorna. In 2019, Bhandare registered her new business, one that provides healthy, wholesome and natural food products and works on the sustainable development of farmers. "You are what you eat. When I would set off on treks and bicycle expeditions during my time in Pune, I was usually the only one not huffing and puffing. I realised it was because of the healthy food I grew up eating. Schools in metros are surrounded by fast foods stalls. I wanted to intervene and help solve this problem."

Ragi

Her hands-on training in farming made her observe a market gap. "Farmers in Nashik were incurring major losses as they didn't know how to price their crops. Since everyone was growing tomatoes, by the time these reached the marketplace, the prices had to be dropped by the sellers. The growers were barely making any money. I managed to convince a few to start growing another crop."

Under EarthPoorna, she has roped in a few farmers who grow ragi. The millet is used to make healthy ragi ladoos. "The ragi is grown without chemicals. The ladoo recipe is simple and contains healthy flax seeds and jaggery. Farmers are paid market rates."

EarthPoorna also sells multigrain ladoos, ragi ladoos with dates, and a rice flakes snack. "The rice flakes snack is a great combination of high fibre, protein and complex carbs.its gluten and cholesterol free, and rich in Vitamin A and C." A packet of 200 grams is priced at R200. Sixteen pieces of ragi ladoos come at R439, and a box of multigrain ladoos are for Rs 449.

Sucheta Bhandare

Early this year, EarthPoorna collaborated with Mitti Ke Rang, a social venture working towards generating livelihood for women through e-commerce. "In the month of June alone, we sold 100 boxes. The word is spreading, and we are getting popular in few regions of Maharashtra. Surprisingly, we have a high number of orders from Delhi. It has been a terrific journey and there is more to do."

Ragi ladoo

Ingredients
1.5 cups ragi flour
3/4 cups jaggery
1/3 cup cow ghee
1/3 cup roasted flax seeds powder
10/15 almonds (chopped)
1/3 dry dates powder
1/2 teaspoon of cardamom

Method
Take 1.5 cups ragi flour in a kadhai or a thick bottomed broad pan. Keep the pan on a low flame and begin to roast the ragi flour. You have to stir often so that there is even roasting. Roast till the colour changes and you get a nice aroma from the ragi flour. Do it for about eight minutes on a low flame. Timing will vary with the material, size and thickness of the pan.

To make Ragi Ladoo Mixture

Add 1/3 cup ghee in the flour. The ghee will melt. Begin to mix the ghee with the flour. Keep on stirring and roasting this mixture for five to seven minutes more. Again, timing will vary with the material, size and thickness of the pan. Check the taste of the ragi flour; it should feel nutty and crunchy and shouldn't taste raw. Switch off the flame. Place the pan down. Add 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder, almonds, flax seeds powder, dry dates powder and add 3/4 cup jaggery powder. Begin to mix very well. Break the tiny lumps of jaggery if any with a spoon or spatula.

To make Ragi Ladoo

Let this ragi ladoo mixture become warm, then mix everything again very well with your hands and break small lumps if any with your hands, Take a portion of the mixture and shape into ladoos.

If you are unable to form ragi ladoos, add a few tablespoons of ghee, which is at room temperature. Mix again very well and begin to shape the ragi ladoos. Make ladoos this way with all of the mixture. Store ragi ladoo in an airtight jar or container.

Why Ragi Ladoos?

>> Ragi is a power-packed superfood.
>> Amazingly high in minerals like calcium, iron, this ‘dancing grain' contains high amount of protein and Vitamin D.
>> Flax seeds, arguably the most powerful seeds on the planet, are a rich source of omega-3 fats and loaded with many other nutrients. Almonds contain Vitamin E and healthy fats.
>> Dry dates are energy boosters and stimulate metabolism.
>> All these combined with jaggery and ghee form a "nutrition bomb", which is a healthy way to start your day or to satisfy your mid-meal hunger pangs.

To order: https://mittikerang.org/collections/earthpoorna