Makar Sankranti 2024: Homemakers and chefs share their favourite variations of scrumptious Til Gud Laddu

Makar Sankranti will be celebrated on January 15. The festival, among many other traditions and rituals, is known for the popular, sweet and crunchy Til Gud Laddu. While nothing beats the authentic ones, this particular sweet dish too has undergone various variations that equally taste delicious.

If you are ready to kickstart the preparations for the festival and are going to try making the laddus for the first time, we have experienced homemakers as well as chefs sharing the recipes, with some having innovative twists.

For Mumbai resident Nilima Ketan Londhe, a 60-year-old homemaker and part-time sewing professional, a large part of celebrating Makar Sankranti is making the delicious ‘til gud laddu' and ‘gud poli'. She offers prepared delicacies to Sankrati Devi after offering prayers.

"I have been making til laddu for the past 35 years. All my family members love to binge eat the laddus I make especially when they are freshly prepared." Sharing the relevance of the festival she says, "On this day, demon Shankasur was killed by goddess Jagdamba. This is why she is called Sankranti Devi. The goddess is known to take a different ride each year to travel to different places on the day of the festival. This is a belief among many."

Further, she adds, "Since January is also the season of extended winter when the climate is decently cool, many households like ours also prepare Moong Dal Khichadi, Til Bhakri, Vallavni and more. These dishes are prepared the night before the festival on the day of Bhogi. All the dishes prepared during the festival are also healthy and beneficial during the winter season."

Londe shares her coconut special til gud laddu recipe:

Ingredients:
Polish til - 1/2 kg
Chikki gud/jaggery - 1/2 kg
Roasted peanuts - 1/2 kg
Roasted grated coconut - 1/2 kg
Elaichi (cardamom) peeled (seeds) - 7- 8
Desi ghee or clarified butter - 2-3 tbsp

Method:
1. Roast til (sesame seeds), peanuts and grated coconut separately in a pan.

2. Once roasted, mix the three properly and then divide the mixture into two separate parts so that the heat stays intact till the rolling of laddus.

3. Then, head the gud in a thick pan along with one spoon of desi ghee and keep stirring until the gud melts. Do not add any water to the mixture.

4. Now mix everything with gud including the cardamom-peeled seeds for rolling the laddus and make sure that you are mixing everything in desi ghee.

5. After rolling the laddus you can serve them to your family members and enjoy the festival.

Another homemaker, 77-year-old Sulochana Kothari residing in Jaipur has been rolling warm and comforting laddus for her family for the past 60 years. She says, "We dedicate this festival to Lord Surya Dev. This festival marks the end of winter, and the days begin to get longer. Our family celebrates together by relishing various delicious food items like til ke laddu, lapsi, chawal, and pakode." Kothari loves to spend time with her family on the terrace of their home. She says, "We all enjoy watching the colourful kites flying in the sky."

Harish Closepet aka Harry's Lunchbox, a chef and entrepreneur also celebrates the festival by making Yellu Bella at home. He says, "We invite our relatives home and distribute this to all our family and friends. We also give a piece of sugarcane as part of the tradition. We also have a big potluck lunch where more than 30 to 40 dishes are relished together."

Closepet has been making til laddus since the past 20 years with his family. He says, "In Karnataka, we make Til Gud laddus during Sankranti as a special tradition. Sankranti is like a thank-you party for the harvest season. The laddus are made with sesame seeds (Til) and jaggery (Gud), symbolising warmth and good vibes. People believe that during Sankranti, a special deity named Surya visits homes to bring good luck. By offering these laddus, we express gratitude and kick off the harvest season on a sweet note. It's a way of sharing joy, unity, and positive vibes with loved ones."

Below, both Kothari and Harish share easy and authentic recipe of til gud laddu.

Ingredients:
Sesame Seeds or til - 1 cup
Jaggery (Gud), grated - 1 cup
Ghee or clarified butter - 2 tbsp
Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp

Method:
1. Roast sesame seeds in a pan over medium heat until they turn golden brown and release a nutty aroma. Set them aside to cool.

2. In the same pan, add ghee and grated jaggery. Melt the jaggery on low heat until it forms a syrup-like consistency.

3. Mix the roasted sesame seeds into the jaggery syrup. Stir well until all the seeds are coated evenly.

4. Add cardamom powder for flavour and continue stirring over low heat for a few more minutes until the mixture comes together.

5. Allow the mixture to cool slightly, ensuring it's warm enough to handle.

6. Grease your palms with a bit of ghee and shape the mixture into small laddus.

7. Let the Til Gud laddus cool completely before serving.

Til Gud Peanut laddu
Ingredients:
White sesame seeds - 170 gm + 2 additional tbsp
Peanuts - 1/4 cup
Jaggery - 150 gm
Green cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Ghee or clarified butter - ½ tbsp + some more coating on your hands (as required)

Method:
1. Set a pan over high flame and heat it well. Then lower the flame and add the white sesame seeds. Dry roast them over low flame while stirring them continuously until they turn golden or light brown.

2. Once the white sesame seeds turn golden, transfer them into a bowl and remove in wo tablespoons of the extra sesame seeds. We will add them into the mixture further in the recipe. Let the roasted sesame seeds cool down completely.

3. Further heat the same pan and once it gets hot, lower the flame. Now add the peanuts and dry roast them over low flame until they turn light golden brown.

4. Once the peanuts turn light golden brown, transfer them into a bowl and cool them down completely. Then, transfer them onto a clean cloth, crush them by applying pressure using a rolling pin, and make sure you only crush them coarsely. You can also do this with the help of a knife.

5. Further, transfer the cooled-down white sesame seeds into a mixer grinder jar along with jaggery, green cardamom powder and ghee. Grind all the ingredients into a semi-coarse mixture using pulse mode. Make sure that you don't keep the grinder on for long or else the mixture will turn pasty.

6. Transfer the ground mixture to a large plate and add the crushed peanuts and the reserved sesame seeds.

7. Mix well using your hands to incorporate the peanuts and sesame seeds. Further, grease your hands with ghee, take a small portion of the mixture and form it into a roundel, shape the rest of the mixture similarly. Your quick and easy soft til gud laddus are ready.

This recipe serves 12 laddus.

Recipe by Chef Sanjyot Keer, chef, producer and entrepreneur

Dates Delight Till laddu:
Ingredients:
Sesame seeds - 1 cup
Finely chopped dates - 1 cup
Chopped assorted nuts (cashews, pistachios, almonds) - 1/2 cup
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

Method:
1. Roast the sesame seeds in a pan until they turn golden brown. Set them aside to cool.

2. In another pan, heat the ghee and add the chopped dates. Cook on low heat, stirring continuously, until the dates soften and become sticky.

3. Add the roasted sesame seeds and chopped nuts to the date mixture. Mix well.

4. Stir in the cardamom powder for extra flavour and continue cooking on low heat until the mixture starts to come together and leaves the sides of the pan.

5. Let the mixture cool slightly, making it easier to handle. Grease your hands with a little ghee and shape the mixture into small laddus.

6. Allow the Dates Delight Til laddus to cool completely before serving.
Recipe by Chef Ishijyot Surri, executive chef, SJI Hospitality and Foods Private Limited

Til Laddu Barfi
Ingredients:
Sesame seeds or til - 1 cup
Roasted and coarsely ground peanuts - 1/2 cup
Grated jaggery - 1 cup
Water - 1/4 cup
Cardamom powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Ghee (clarified butter) / oil for greasing
Almonds for garnishing

Method:
1. Dry-roast sesame seeds in a pan over medium heat until they turn golden brown. Set aside.

2. In the same pan, dry roast peanuts until they become aromatic. Allow them to cool, then coarsely grind.

3. In a separate pan, dissolve grated jaggery in water over low heat to make a syrup. Stir continuously until it reaches a thick consistency.

4. Add the roasted sesame seeds, ground peanuts, and cardamom powder to the jaggery syrup. Mix well.

5. Keep stirring the mixture over low heat until it thickens and starts leaving the sides of the pan.

6. Grease a plate with ghee and quickly transfer the mixture onto it. Flatten it evenly with a greased rolling pin.

7. Allow it to cool slightly, then cut it into square or diamond shapes using a greased knife. You can garnish the barfi with almonds by either grating them or simply chopping them.

8. Once completely cooled, separate the pieces and store them in an airtight container.

Recipe by Chef Purvi Shah, chef and digital content creator