3 Tasty recipes to try for Diwali

Picture: Pexels

Diwali is a Hindu festival, a five-day celebration that symbolises the spiritual victory of light over darkness. This year Kershnee Kallee, Marketing Manager at Jungle and three local influencers share their favourite recipes with us.

‘One of the most commonly baked Diwali dishes has to be Soji Cake, which is most commonly made with Semolina, however, bakers can also use Taystee Wheat which is a staple in so many homes due to its versatile nature.’

‘This Diwali, we want to encourage consumers to get creative and bake up a storm. In case a little inspiration is needed, we’re sharing a few tasty recipes that can be easily recreated at home. Happy Diwali’, said Kallee.

Semolina Gujiya (Taystee Half Moons)

First up is the tasty Semolina Gujiya recipe – also known as Taystee Half Moons – recipe by Derusha Naidoo. Derusha shared that this is a recipe her mother passed on to her, but she has added her own twist when it comes to the fillings.

Time: +/- 1hr | Serving: 4

Ingredients

1.5 cups of self-raising flour

3 tablespoons butter or ghee

0.5 cups milk

0.5 cups Jungle Taystee Wheat

0.5 cup fresh coconut, grated

1 cup caster sugar

1 tablespoon cardamom powder or elaichi

0.5 tablespoons nutmeg powder

0.25 cups chopped cranberries

0.25 cups chopped pecan nuts

Oil or ghee for frying

Making the Soji filling

Heat a heavy-bottomed pan (pan with a thick base) with 1 tablespoon of ghee and add Jungle Taystee Wheat.

Gently fry the Jungle Taystee Wheat until it turns golden or light brown in colour. Once the colour has changed, add in the grated coconut.

Once the Jungle Taystee Wheat (Soji) is cooked, remove it from the heat and transfer it to a bowl.

Then to that bowl, add sugar, cardamom powder, nutmeg powder, and chopped cranberries or pecan nuts. Mix everything thoroughly and allow it to cool for a few minutes.

Now the outer pastry shell/casing

In a bowl, add the flour, salt and 2 tablespoons of butter or ghee. Add the cold milk gradually to make a firm ball of dough.

Divide the dough into equal portions, dust in flour and roll them out into two-inch diameter flattened rotis. Place them in a calzone maker and place a portion of the filling in the hollow centre part.

Apply a little milk to the edges, close the calzone maker and press firmly.

Deep fry in the ghee or cooking oil to your liking and place it on absorbent tissue paper to cool. Then enjoy.

Soji Cake Pops

Up next, Bianca Naidoo shares a delicious recipe of white chocolate dipped Soji Cake Pops.

Time: 1hr 45min | Servings: 12-14

Cake Ingredients

1 cup Jungle Taystee Wheat

1 cup desiccated coconut

1 cup self-raising

1 cup white sugar

1/2 tsp elachi powder

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla essence

2 cups milk

250 g butter

Make the cake

Preheat the oven at 160 degrees. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

In a medium pan, melt butter on low-to-medium heat then add milk and vanilla essence.

Pour milk mixture into dry ingredients and mix well. Then, pour mixture into greased baking pan.

Bake for +- 30/35 minutes, then allow to cool.

Buttercream Ingredients

100 g butter

200 g icing sugar

1/2 vanilla extract

2 tbsp milk

300 g white chocolate, melted

Sprinkles to decorate cake pops

Buttercream

In a large bowl, beat the butter and icing sugar together until smooth - add the vanilla extract and milk and beat again.

Once the cake is cooled, crumble into large crumbs. Add the butter cream and stir together.

Take chunks of the cake mixture and roll into balls, then transfer each ball to a plate lined with a baking sheet.

Add a lollypop stick into each ball, then put into the fridge for an hour to set.

Dipping

Melt the white chocolate in the microwave, blasting it and stirring at 10 seconds intervals until smooth.

Tip the sprinkles into another bowl. Take each of the chilled cake pops and dip into the white chocolate, allowing it to drip off a little over the bowl.

Dip into the sprinkles, then stand upright in a mug to dry at room temperature for an hour, or in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Tres Lesches Soji Cake

Naliyani Uma shares her special Tres Lesches Soji Cake recipe.

Time: 1hr 15min | Serving: 10-12

Ingredients

1 cup of self - raising flour

1 cup of desiccated coconut

1 cup of Jungle Taystee Wheat

3 eggs

1 cup of sugar

4 tbs of margarine

1/2 a tsp vanilla essence

1/2 a tsp egg yellow food colouring

1/4 tsp cardamom powder

1 cup of milk to combine n mix ingredients

1 can evaporated milk

1 can sweetened condensed milk

250ml fresh cream

Method

Melt butter then add sugar and eggs - whisk until creamy.

Add the flour, coconut, Taystee Wheat, and mix well.

Add the vanilla essence, egg yellow, cardamom and stir well until the mixture is thick and creamy.

Follow up with milk gradually to combine all ingredients.

Spray baking pan with non-stick and line with waxing paper.

Pour mixture into the baking pan and sprinkle coloured almonds on top.

Bake at 160 degrees for 25 - 30minutes until ready. Allow to cool for 15min.

Combine condensed milk, evaporated milk and ¼ cup fresh cream in a small bowl. Pierce cake surface with fork several times. Slowly drizzle mixture leaving 1 cup aside of the milk mixture. Allow the cake to absorb milk mixture for 30 min.

Whip fresh cream, 3 tablespoon sugar until thick and is ready to pipe on cake.

Decorate with Almonds and Pistachio.