Ladi Ladoo

Nuts for sale at a Mumbai marketMahanandi has a great recipe for cashew and walnut ladoo, the simple and delightfully sweet snack made from nuts. Another one of my favorite ladoos is the besan ladoo made from chick pea flour. My mom used to make energy balls for my cub scout crew back in 1982 and '83 which are very similar to ladoos.

Besan Ladoo
3 Cups Besan (gram flour, chick pea flour)
1 3/4 Cups Muscovado Sugar
1 teaspoon Cardamom Powder
1 Pound Butter

Slowly brown butter in a pan until it begins to smell nutty and takes on a dark golden brown color and the milk solids just barely start to burn. Strain the "golden ghee" (buerre noisette) through cheese cloth or double coffee filters. Combine the golden ghee and the flour in a sauce pan and cook over low heat stirring constantly for about five minutes, until the flour also turns golden brown and then leave to cool. Once the mixture reaches room temperature combine with ground cardamom and muscovado sugar and pound in mortar and pestel to a smooth paste, like the guy below. Then roll into little balls.

Pounding out ghee, sugar and besan outside a one hundred year old sweet shop in Jaiselmer, Rajastan to make Besan Ladoo