Tyohara Utsav - Microwave Modak

As part of our ongoing Tyohara Utsav, here's an easy to make Microwave Modak recipe from cookbook author Asha S Philar.

Modak : a traditional Ganesh Chaturthi offering

"All festivals seem to be my favourite," says Asha S Philar, while giving us the recipe of Modak, the traditional prasad served during Ganesh Chaturthi. "During festivals, we get to savour a lot of goodies. Festival ke naam pe swadhist aur sabhi tarah tarah ke pakaaye huye bhojan khaane ko milta hai (In the name of festivals, we get to savour a variety of tasty dishes)" she says. Here is a recipe of Modak from her, made with condensed milk, milk powder and butter in a microwave oven.

Ingredients

1/2 tin Condensed Milk; about 200 gms

3/4 cup Milk powder, preferably semi skimmed

1 tablespoon Butter.

2-3 Cardamoms, crushed

Pinch of Saffron, dissolved in 1 tablespoon of milk

Dry fruits, crushed

Method

In a deep bowl, mix the condensed milk, milk powder and butter. Microwave for a minute on high power. Add the cardamom powder, saffron and nutmeg powder. Stir and microwave again for about 1.5 to 2 minutes. Check after every minute or 30 seconds. the mixture would thicken considerably and appear to leave the sides of the bowl. Let the mixture become warm. Apply some ghee on your palm and make small balls or peda. The mixture is sticky so applying ghee helps. Flatten the balls into shape or use Modak moulds if you have them. Alternately, you can press the center of the peda with your thumb and sprinkle some crushed dry fruits or whole raisins in the center. Your delicious Modaks are ready to eat!