Go for a festive treat

A house party is the flavour of the season, so here are some easy-to-make, low-on-calories recipes to tickle your taste-buds this Diwali. Keeping in tune with the times, the recipes here are packed with immunity boosters, doubling up as perfect winter snacks, as well as sweets and drinks to get the party rolling!

Peanut Butter Barfi

Ingredients

1 cup peanuts

1/2 cup sugar/jaggery (desi khand)

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon ghee

1 teaspoon ghee for greasing the plate

Method

• Fry the peanuts for 7-8 minutes and cool them completely. Then remove their outer skin.
• Grind them in a mixer – don’t grind in one shot. Otherwise the peanuts will release oil, which may completely hamper the end result. Grind them in 10-second intervals while observing the texture. Once you get a coarse powder, you can remove it from the mixture.
• Add the sugar/jaggery and water in the non-stick kadai. Keep it on a low flame and stir the sugar continuously, until you get a single string consistency.
• Then add the ground peanuts, cardamom powder and ghee – continue stirring.
• At this stage, all the ingredients need to be completely mixed and should not stick to the pan.
• After this, switch off the flame and put it in the ghee-greased plate. Cut the barfi into small squares and allow them to cool.
• Once cool, store them in an air-tight container. Peanut barfi is ready to serve. Enjoy it with tea or coffee.

— Manisha Arora, Chief Dietician,

GovernmentMulti-speciality Hospital, Sector 16

Virgin Rasam Pineapple

Bloodymary

Ingredients

Tomatoes – 250 gm (pureed)

Canned Pineapple (pureed) – 150 gm

Curry patta – 4-5

Ginger (finely chopped) – 15 gm

Cumin – 1/2 tsp

Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp

Freshly crushed black pepper – 3-4

Salt – To taste

Tamarind (de-seeded) – 50 gm

Desishakkar – 10 gm

Lemon Juice – 15 ml

Tabasco sauce -1-2 dash (optional)

Method

• Heat 1/2 tsp of oil in a pan.
• Add cumin, whole crushed black pepper, curry patta and ginger. Sautés for about a minute. Add pureed pineapple – cook for another couple of minutes. Add tomato puree, tamarind water with pulp and salt.
• Simmer for about 10 minutes.
• Lastly add desi shakkar and lemon juice to finish off.
• Adjust the consistency.
• Strain through a fine sieve.
• Pour it in a glass; have it warm or refrigerate for about 2-3 hours and have it chilled over ice.

(You can adjust for consistency by adding more tomato juice and Tabasco)

— Ashish Manchanda, chef consultant, founder,AdvisureHospitality Consultants

Broccoli Lemon Aglio Olio

Ingredients

2 heads broccoli, separated into florets

2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil

Salt to taste

5 gm chili flakes

5 gmparsley

10 gm olive oil

4 ml lemon juice

Method

• Bring salted water to rapid boil.Carefully lower the broccoli florets into the boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes.
• The broccoli should be bright green and just tender.
• With a slotted spoon, remove the broccoli and immediately plunge into ice water.
• Heat olive oil; add garlic, chili flakes and parsley.
• Sauté for one minute, add broccoli florets, check for seasoning, Finish off with lemon juice.

— Chef KrishanHari, The Cottage-7,

Virgin Courtyard-7

Heaven Tart

Ingredients

5 soaked dates

2 tsp grated coconut

1/2 cup soaked cashewnuts

4 roasted almonds

2 tsphoney

2 tbsp raw cocoa powder

For garnish pistachio powder

For garnish red rose petals

Method

• Add soaked cashews to the blender. Make sure the cashews are soaked only 20minutes prior to blending to retain its natural colour
• Add some organic honey to it. If vegan, one can add coconut flour syrup, agave nectar, organic maple syrup or purees of fruits
• Blend cashews and honey for a creamy consistency
• Take the puree in a bowl
• Blend the soaked dates in a puree (separately blend the cashews)
• Layer both the purees in a moulding bowl
• Refrigerate it for 20 minutes
• Unmould the tart in your serving plate
• Garnish it with red rose petals and freshly grated coconut
• Top it up with some roasted almonds and pistachio powder

— IshikaKonar, Executive Chef, Atmantan Wellness Centre

Almond and Sesame Pinni

Ingredients

Wheat flour 2 cup

Semolina 2½ tbsp

Roasted almond slivers ¼ cup

Roasted white sesame powder ¼ cup

Pure ghee ¾ cup

Gram flour (besan) 1½ tbsp

Sugar 1 cup

Water ½ cup

Green cardamom powder ½ tsp

Roasted white sesame 1 tbsp

Roasted whole almonds 3 tbsp

Method

• Heat ghee in a pan, add semolina and wheat flour to it. Roast the mixture till a golden colour is achieved.
• Mix the sugar and water. Cook on low heat till sugar syrup is formed.
• Mix the sugar syrup with the wheat flour mixture. Add the green cardamom powder.
• Cook the mixture till it becomes a little dry. Add the roasted almond flakes and ground white sesames to the mixture.
• Allow the mixture to cool. Divide it into equal parts and give it a round shape.
• Cut the roasted almonds into halves and place them over the pinnis; roll the pinnis gently in roasted white sesame.

— Chef Manish Mehrotra, Indian Accent

— TNS