Happy Diwali! Today is the beginning of Diwali (दिवाली), the “festival of lights”, a 5-day Indian festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness. Light is the symbol of the celebrations and many clay lamps filled with oil are lit during the 5 days of the festival. As you may know, even though my husband is Indian, we are not hindus, but we believe that the meaning of this festival is “universal” and one that we can all easily relate to, so we too are celebrating Diwali. As part of our celebrations, I made some Indian sweets like Jalebi, Gajar ka Halwa and these Shankarpali (शंकरपाली). These are small fried cookies traditionally made mainly in Maharashtra and Gujarat and served for Diwali. They are amazing… not too sweet, crunchy and they literally melt in your mouth! They are very easy to make and they can be served as a snack with a hot cup of chai. Be warned though, they are addictive: I find it hard to stop at one! Follow the recipe below to make some Shankarpali at home and join in the celebration of light! दिवाली की शुभकामनाएं to everyone who celebrates!
Shankarpali – Shakarpara
Celebrate Diwali with these delicious Shankarpali: fried crunchy Indian cookies that literally melt in your mouth!
Ingredients
- 60 gms – ¼ cup ghee
- 155 gms – 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour maida
- 50 gms – ¼ cup fine semolina flour sooji
- 65 gms – 1/3 cup sugar
- 65 ml – ¼ cup milk
- 1 pinch salt
- Vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
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In a bowl combine the ghee and milk. Mix and microwave for 30 to 60 seconds, so the ghee melts completely. Make sure not to over heat this or the ghee may split.
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Add the sugar and mix to dissolve.
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Add the semolina flour and salt and mix.
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Add the flour, little by little and knead until you obtain a soft but not sticky dough, like in the picture.
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Divide the dough into 4 smaller balls and work with them one at a time. Roll each of them into a 1 cm – ½ inch thick circle and cut out squares/diamonds about 2.5 cm – 1 inch big, with a knife or a pizza cutter.
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Deep fry them in batches in hot vegetable oil over medium heat so that your shankarpali cook without burning. When they are golden brown, remove them with a slotted spoon and put them on a plate covered with kitchen paper to drain the excess oil.
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Serve at room temperature with some chai.
I’m going to try this recipe out for Hanukah- the festival of the Maccabees in Modiin ISRAEL the universal Festival of lights celebrated around the world during December. Happy Diwali to all whom celebrate thank you for the memories..Look forward to one day visiting Manu in Sydney…
Yummy and delicious recipe 🙂 Highly recommended.
I tried the recipe and the shankarpali opened up in the oil and became too hard, it did not turn out crispy