Nariyal Gur Ladoo (Coconut Jaggery Ladoo)

Soft, chewy coconut balls bound in melted jaggery, the kind of ladoo every Diwali tin seems to have room for.

• Prep10 minutes
• Cook20 minutes
• ServesMakes 14-16 ladoos

Ingredients

• 2 cups freshly grated coconut (or 1½ cups desiccated)
• 1 cup jaggery powder
• 1 tbsp cold-pressed coconut oil
• ½ tsp green cardamom powder
• 2 tbsp chopped cashews
• 1 tbsp raisins
• a tiny pinch pink salt
• 2 tbsp water

Method

1. Warm the coconut oil in a heavy kadhai on low heat and toast the cashews and raisins until the raisins puff up. Lift them out and keep aside.
2. Add the grated coconut to the same kadhai and stir on low heat for 4-5 minutes, just until it smells toasty and loses its raw dampness. Do not let it brown.
3. Push the coconut to one side, add the jaggery powder and water, and let the jaggery melt into a glossy syrup.
4. Stir the coconut into the syrup and keep cooking on low heat, stirring constantly, for 8-10 minutes, until the mixture gathers into one mass and leaves the sides of the pan.
5. Turn off the heat. Stir in the cardamom, pink salt, cashews and raisins.
6. Let it cool until you can handle it comfortably, then grease your palms with a drop of coconut oil and roll into ladoos while still warm.
7. Cool completely on a plate before storing in an airtight tin.