In our childhood, Mom gave a Gond laddoo with a glass of warm milk for breakfast all through winters. I often asked: how come you give these tasty laddoos only in winters but never in the summer. Mother always replied: these keep you warm in the winters and make your very smart in studies.
That struck in my mind. So other day I made these Gond (edible gum) and almond, walnuts, cashews and melon seeds laddoos but I wanted to find out the benefits in detail. What amazed me that something so tasty could be such a powerhouse of nutrients.
Gond or edible gum is the sap of the thorny shrub Tragacanth. This gum is odourless, tasteless and water soluble mixture and it is obtained from the sap of the plant and then dried. This has medicinal properties and often used in ailments like cough, cold and diarrhoea. This has long been used as a binding and thickening agent by the food and pharmaceutical industry. It is rich in calcium and protein and is excellent for people with lung related issues, weakness and fatigue. It also helps lactating mothers.
Other than Gond or edible gum, these laddoos have almonds, walnuts, cashews and melon seeds. All these nuts contain lot of vitamins, minerals and anti oxidants.
Almonds contain healthy fat, protein, fibre, magnesium and vitamin E. Almonds help with lowering blood sugar level and managing your weight.
Cashews provide us with vitamins like E, K and B6 along with copper, magnesium, zinc, iron and selenium. Eating cashews in moderation can do wonders to your health.
Walnuts are rich in Omega3 and helps in fighting heart disease. Walnuts contain vitamin E, folate and anti oxidants. They have neuroprotective compounds so they support the brain health.
Melon seeds provide us with Vitamins B1,B3, B6 and folate as well as vitamin K, potassium, magnesium, copper and fibre.
Now you can imagine if all the above mentioned ingredients are put in a laddoo with wheat flour and ghee(clarifying butter), why won’t they become a powerhouse of nutrients and minerals, which we don’t get in our day to day dishes. These laddoos should not be taken more than one per day, although their taste tempts you to go for second or third helpings. They strengthen and nourish the bone tissues and wholesome nourishment for winters.
Here is my simple recipe of Gond Laddoos:
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup wheat flour, 1 cup walnuts, 1 cup almonds, 1/2 cup cashews, 1/4cup melon seeds, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup ghee(clarifying butter), 1/3 cup gond(edible gum), 1/4 tsp cardamom powder(optional)
Method:
Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan, when ghee gets heated, lower the flame to sim. Fry Gond. It will pop like pop corns. Gond should always be fried on low flame otherwise it won’t cook from inside which can make stomach upset. Once all Gond is cooked, take it out in a plate. When it cools off, either crush it with pastel or grind it in a mixer.
In another pan on a low flame roast wheat flour without adding anything to it. It will take 7 to 8 minutes for it to roast well. Take it out and keep aside.
Now grind almonds in a mixer. You may leave them a bit coarse. Take these out. In the same grinder pulse walnuts, cashews and melon seeds. If you pulse it more than half a minute they will become powdery. Not that there is any harm in making it powdery. Mix all the ground nuts together.
Now in the first pan, pour rest of the ghee, heat it on medium flame. Add roasted wheat flour. Stir it for 2 minutes, add brown sugar and mix it well. Cook for two more minutes on low flame. Now add ground nuts and crushed or ground Gond to it. Turn off the stove. You may add cardamom powder to it.
Let it cool off a bit, take a tbsp of mix at a time in your palm and make round ball. Make round balls of the whole mix and put them in an airtight container. Their shelf life is 2 to 4 weeks.
Note: some people like to fry nuts and then ground them. This enhances the taste but reduces the nutrient value of the nuts.
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