Thursday, October 20, 2011

Manoharam --- a Traditional Sweet made in Tamilian Homes

                                                                      Manoharam...... 
This sweet is traditionally made for weddings. If you notice two cone shaped objects placed in front of the bride and groom, decorated in foil and flowers, this is what is inside of it. I attempted this for Diwali.
You have to make the Thenkuzhal first. And when you make it, do not add the salt and the Jeera to it. Make it Bland.

What you need to make Thenkuzhal:
Rice Flour : 4 Cup
Urad Flour : 1/4 Cup
Butter -  1/2 Cup Softened to Room Temperature
Water : As Needed

When You deep fry the thenkuzhal, take it out when it becomes crisp. It will not brown much, because it does not have salt in it.



To make the Paagu:
Jaggery - 2 cups
Water - 1/4 of a cup and little more


Bring the water and Jaggery to a boil, and strain through a strainer to get the dirt out. When it comes to a thick liquid like consistency, you can put a drop in a small bowl of water, you should be ale to rotate it, with two fingers and make a ball. At that time, switch the stove off, and take it off the stove.


From here, you are ready to make the Manoharam:

In batches, take about two cups of crushed thenkuzhal, and mix about 1/2 cup of the paagu in it, let it set for a few mins and then you should be able to make small balls of it.

I made about 19 Urundais of Manoharam with half of the Thenkuzhal I made.


Warning:
With the second batch of Manoharam, I was not lucky, The paagu was too thick for it,and it kind of did not set well at all and I ended up with some loose Manoharams. they taste great, but it is like sweet boondi...
 Hey, you can't win them all :))
This is what they look like....