It’s that time of the year when our homes smell of til and jaggery. Taking us down memory lane, chefs and home chefs discuss tasty and pretty Sankranti recipes from their communities
Nakshi Pithe
Pearls of winter
Meena Subramanian, home chef
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The slight nip in the air makes us want to snack on foods that keep our bodies warm. Nuts and jaggery are rich in protein and iron, and make us strong. Kadalai urundai is a chikki that’s made across Tamilian households as soon as the temperature drops. Halved peanuts are roasted, added to jaggery syrup and shaped into balls, making them look like gleaming pearls clinging to one another. The thing about visual appeal is that it’s greatly dependent on how we serve our food.
Log on to @perimaskitchen for limited meals on Sundays
Sugar toys
Harpal Singh Sokhi, chef
Maghi and Lohri bring back fond childhood memories. Back then we didn’t take as many pictures on every occasion, yet the cheer feels fresh on recollecting. My mother and the neighbourhood aunties would gather to make and mould sugar candies also called khilona mithais. They were patterned after clay toys — swans, hen, fish, tops, elephants, chariots and so on — in bright pink, blue and yellow. These batashas can be found both online and at city-based sweet shops.
Log on to kandrafoods.com; visit Lucky Sweets in Andheri.
Timeless patterns
Somma Ghosh, home chef
After completing her daily cooking in the morning, my dida [maternal grandmother] would settle down with pithe-making in the afternoon hours. The other women of the house gathered around her to help. Poush Sankranti in Bengal meant every household would get busy with making pithes — a dumpling or pancake-like dish available in multiple varieties — that use nolen gur, rice flour, grated coconut and khoya. Nakshi Pithe — where Nakshi derives from naksha or intricate patterns — caught my notice for its artistic appeal. It’s one of the many symbols of my roots in East Bengal that is modern-day Bangladesh. Rice is soaked overnight, ground into a paste using a stone mortar and pestle, kneaded into a ball, steamed and then rolled out to adopt designs. One recurrent design resembled the veins on a leaf. Those were the days! This year, I am accepting orders for Nakshi Pithe in small batches. However, my Sankranti-special menu features til-narkel-motor dal’er bora, nolen gur’er payesh and nolen gur’er bhapa doi, among other vegetarian delicacies.
Call: 9820462881
Cost: Rs 285 onwards (for the sweets)
Log on to: @kitchentalesb -ysommaghosh
Sweet little wonders
Manju Velkar, home chef, @hungrycatkitchen
I married into the Pathare Prabhu community, and can think of two attractive dishes that are made during this season. Since til and gud reign over the winter months, we fashion a mix of the two ingredients to make edible art for kids in the family. Such dishes are usually made for newborn babies. The mix can be moulded into an edible bat and ball or musical instruments. I once made a bright golden crown and a dinosaurus for my son.
One of our grandmothers used to make kaateri halwa, a ridged sweet made on a grain of elaichi or a tiny shaving of almond or cashew. It requires layers of hot sugar syrup to rest in a brass utensil. Nowadays, for other Maharashtrian snacks and sweets like patti, rewri and gajak, we like PatilKaki and Dil-O-Cious.
Log on to: patilkaki.com and dilocious.com
Their choicest picks
>> Eyes on Aaswad
Host-humorist Kunal Vijayakar says, “I really like Chitale Bandhu’s til laddoos. This season, I am interested in Aaswad’s Sankranti thali that will have preparations like mirgund, kadhi, bhogi bhaaji and teel satori. For other Maharashtrian snacks, I recommend Kutumbsakhi.”
>> That homely taste
Sonali Kulkarni says that gud poli is really important in Maharashtrian homes. “I avoid ordering it. Every year, I make gud-poli at home. For tilachi vadi and til gud laddoo, I have been relying on Ruchi Sweets in Vile Parle East.”
>> Til of the matter
When in the city, chef and restaurateur Ajeet Kalbag likes to get his Sankranti fix from Heerson in Vile Parle East and Vijay Stores in Santacruz. “I would trust them with rajgira bites, black til laddoos, kurmura laddoos and other festive sweets.”
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