The Power Of Good Food: Special Holi Edition



With vibrant colors and water splashes all around, the festival of colors- Holi is one of the most vivid and joyous festivals of India. It is celebrated all over the country to commemorate the burning and destruction of demoness Holika; symbolizing the victory of good over evil. On the eve of Holi, commonly known as ‘Choti Holi’ people follow a ritual of Holika Dahan. They light a pyre or bonfire and celebrate the triumph of goodness. 

The next day people get together and play with brightly colored powder, putting it on each other, throwing colored water balloons, laughing, dancing, and eating delicious foods. People try to mend broken relationships, forgive each other and forget their resentments. This festival also celebrates the eternal love of ‘Radha Krishan’. Since there is love and joy blossoming all around, Holi is also often known as the festival of love. Since Holi marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring, people sometimes also refer to it as the ‘festival of spring’. Holi is known by many names but they all denote love, prosperity, happiness, and goodness.

We Indians celebrate all our festivals with great pomp and show. No festival in India is complete without its special festive menu. We love to eat and are always looking for excuses to indulge in delicious food. Holi is no exception. Holi's special food recipes spring into our minds as this festival approaches. There are many popular Holi special sweets like gujiya, puran poli, til ke Ladoo, and malpua. Savory snacks like dahi bhalle, pakoda, samosa, kachori, and besan sev are also quite popular.

All these foods sound tempting but immediately sets off our calorie count alarm. It is especially difficult to control these cravings during the festive season and you shouldn’t have to. To make your Holi extra special we at Himalayan Natives have curated some Holi dishes for you that can be prepared at home and enjoyed guilt-free. This Holi let's commit to eating only natural foods and experience the power of good food over bad.

Holi Special Recipes

Sharing and eating together with our friends and family adds a special flavor to all our meals. Festivals are a great time for celebrations and eating together. How about we tell you ways to make your Holi extra special this year. This Holi wins over everyone’s heart with the goodness of Himalayan Natives’ 100% natural food products. Enjoy rich, nutritious, and mouth-watering Holi special sweets and snacks prepared using our best ingredients. Holi special mithai puran poli and til ke ladoo are quite popular even during Sankrant. You can find its recipe in our blog Makar Sankranti Recipes: A Nostalgia of Delicate Flavors!. But only after you’ve learned to make Holi-some thandai and gujia with us, the healthy way.

Thandai

Who can say no to thandai on the occasion of Holi? Thandai is a very popular Indian traditional drink and any Holi party is incomplete without it. This lip-smacking aromatic drink not just nourishes the body but also refreshes your soul. Let’s learn to prepare this delectable drink the healthy way.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup unsalted almonds
• 1/4 cup unsalted cashew nuts 
• ¼ cup unsalted pistachio
• 1 tbsp poppy seeds
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 tbsp fennel seeds
• 2  tbsp pumpkin seeds
• 2 tsp ground cardamom
• 2 tbsp dried rose petals
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• A pinch of nutmeg powder, pink salt, and saffron
• Honey according to taste
• 2 cups milk of your choice

Instructions:

• Soak all the ingredients in water for two hours except honey, cardamom powder, and salt.
• Grind it all using a blender into a paste.
• You can add a little milk while blending if needed.
• Once it forms a paste add the remaining milk and the other ingredients and blend it all.
• Garnish with rose petals, chopped pistachio, or saffron.
• Serve chilled!

You can alternatively prepare a thandai mixture.

• Grind all the nuts together into a coarse powder using a blender for about 4-5 seconds.
• Remove it and keep it aside.
• Now grind the remaining ingredients except milk and honey into a fine powder.
• Add it to the coarse nut powder and mix well. 
• Now add two tablespoons of this mixture to a glass of cold milk.
• Add the honey according to your taste and blend it using a cocktail shaker or a blender.
• You can add a cube or two of ice if the milk is not very cold.
• Garnish with rose petals, chopped pistachio, or saffron.
• Serve chilled!

Note: It can be stored in an airtight container for almost a month. To make this drink even more healthy you can alternatively use almond milk. Using almond milk will also make this drink taste better since it adds more nuttiness to the thandai. 

Learn to make almond milk at home in our blog Amazing Almond Recipes For The Health Conscious!

Gujia

Holi rings with the arrival of gujia in every Indian house. It would be right to say that Holi is synonymous with its special gujia. Some prepare it at home while others buy it from their local sweet shops. Let us all prepare our Holi special gujia at home this year; making it more delicious and nutritious while adding a personal feel to it. Personalization makes everything special.

Ingredients:

For the filling

• 10-12 finely chopped almonds
• 10-12 finely chopped cashew
• 1 tbsp raisins finely chopped raisins
• 2 tbsp grated coconut or desiccated coconut
• 1 tbsp crushed pumpkin seeds
• 60 gms suji
• 150 gms jaggery powder
• ½ tsp cardamom powder
• 2-3 tbs dates chopped (optional)

For outer covering

• 250 gms wheat flour
• 60 gms desi ghee
• A pinch of salt
• Water

For garnishing

• Chopped pistachio
• Honey

Instructions:

• Take the wheat flour on a big platter and knead the dough using 30 gms of ghee, salt, and slightly warm water.
• Keep it aside.
• For the filling, heat ghee in a pan on medium flame.
•  Add suji and cook, until it gives a nice aroma and turns golden. 
• Switch off the flame and add jaggery powder. Mix it well with the suji. 
• To this mixture add a spoonful of ghee, almonds, cashews, raisins, grated coconut, cardamom powder, and the chopped dates.
• Now for the outer cover take a small ball of the dough and make a small size roti.
• Add filling in the puri, and fold it into half making half circle-shaped dumplings.
• Make round balls with the remaining dough and follow the same steps until all the gujias are ready.
• Line a baking tray with baking paper and arrange all the gujias on it.
• Brush some ghee on top and bake it in a preheated oven at 175 degrees for about 15-20 mins or until it turns golden brown.
• Once it is ready, brush some honey on it and stick some pistachios on the gujia.
• Enjoy a super tasty and healthy gujia.

Note: You can alternatively use a gujiya mold too to prepare the gujia. The cooking time might vary depending on the thickness of the covering, so if you want you could do a test bake for one gujiya to check the exact cooking time.

We’ve used Himalayan Natives' 100% natural ghee, honey, jaggery, nuts, and seeds in both these must-have Holi foods. So what are you waiting for? Get your hands on these wonderful products, put on your cooking cap and cook these deliciously healthy dishes this Holi. You can use our products as a great alternative in all your other Holi special dishes too. Enjoy your favorite Holi special dishes ‘dil khol ke’.

What next?

Learn to Burn Away The Bad Food Habits This Holi!