Makar Sankranti 2023 recipes: 4 yummy foods for the special occasion - check how to prepare

One of the festivals that are most widely observed in the nation is Makar Sankranti. And if you look around, you'll see that every region celebrates the day with a different custom and meal. So, here is a list of Makar Sankranti recipes:

Karela Seekh Kebab

Ingredients:

. Ghee

. Cumin seed

. Garlic, chopped

. Ginger, chopped

. Bitter Gourd, grated

. Beans, chopped

. Chopped spinach

. Grated potato

. Black pepper

. Almonds, crushed

. Khoya

. Corn

. Roasted gram flour

. Salt as required

Method:

. Put desi ghee in the cooking pan.

. Add cumin seeds, garlic, ginger and saute till golden brown.

. Add Karela, beans, potatoes, black pepper and salt.

. Let it cook for about a couple of minutes. Then add almonds, khoya, and corn.

. Now add roasted gram flour to make the mixture into dough.

. Settle the dough on the tandoor rod for roasting and put it inside the tandoor.

. Once roasted, serve with or mint and chilli chutney.

Dahi ke kebab

Ingredients

. Hung Curd

. Paneer (Grated)

. Roasted channa powder

. Gram Masala

. Green Cardamom Powder

. Salt

. White pepper powder

. Orange marmalade

. Desi Ghee for cooking

Method

. Take hung yogurt in a bowl, add all the above ingredients and mix well.

. Divide into equal portions. Now, stuff with paneer. Damp your hands, take a portion of the mixture, and roll lightly in the shape of kebab (one centimeter thick round). Prepare the other kebabs in the same way.

. Heat sufficient oil in a pan and grill the kebabs till golden in colour.

. Remove from heat and serve hot with mint chutney or sauce.

Fruit & mint custard

Ingredients

. Strawberries

. Kiwi

. Apricot

. Yellow berry

. Mango custard powder

. Milk

. Sugar

. Cashew nuts (chopped)

. Few drops vanilla extract

. Mint leaf (chopped)

. Almond (sliced)

. Milk/chocolate bar

Method

. Take strawberries, apricot, kiwis, yellow berry or fruit of your choice and cut into small cubes or slit them into two halves

. Mix custard powder and sugar in little milk.

. Boil the remaining milk for 10 minutes.

. Pour the boiled milk into the above mixture.

. Add chopped fruits, chopped mint leaf and add vanilla extract.

. Garnish with chopped almond and cashews and add milk. Add a chocolate bar as per your liking.

. Keep it in a freezer (for better taste) or let it cool down for some time at room temperature.

. Exotic fruit and mint custard is ready to serve.

Also see: Lohri and Makar Sankranti 2023: 5 simple, beautiful mehendi designs - check PICS

Almond Gujia

Ingredients

. Maida (All purpose flour)

. Oil / Ghee (melted)

For Filling:

. Khoya

. Cardamom Powder

. Chopped almond

. Raisins (Kishmish)

. Crushed almond

. Dried coconut (shredded)

. Sugar

Method

. Sieve the flour. Mix oil with the maida.

. Mix well so that the mixture takes the form of breadcrumbs and binds to a certain extent.

. Now add some water and knead lightly. Keep adding water as required and knead into a soft but tight dough.

. Set aside and cover with a damp cloth.

. Mash the khoya and fry it in a kadhai / deep pan till light brown in colour. Add sugar and cardamom powder into the khoya and mix well. Add almonds, cashews, coconut, and raisins. Fry for 2 minutes and remove from the heat. Allow it to cool.

. Divide the dough into small balls and roll each ball into a small round of 4-inch diameter. Fill half the round with the khoya mixture, fold it and seal the round, twisting the edges inwards. Take care that the filling does not ooze out.

. Bake in oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown colour. Take out from the oven and dip in sugar syrup. Make sure the sugar is properly coated.

. Garnish with almonds, pistachio and serve hot

(Swapnadeep Mukherjee, Executive Chef, The Metropolitan Hotel & Spa)