When I was in Elementary School we used to eat a kind of Laddu more often and even we used to make it at home and bring it to share with our friends, It was also available in the local street stalls outside of our school. We called it Rasteka ka Patthar , laal Patthar or Dhunga Mithai literally it means paved stone or stones from the street . May be it’s so hard and not easy to bite that’s why it was compared with stone.

Here is how we used to make it. I have added sesame seeds for better taste and flavor normally we didn’t get added sesame seeds!

First of all dry roast 1 cup of whole wheat flour in a heavy bottomed pan on low flame until it turns golden brown and fragrant. Make sure to roast it in low to medium flame so that it doesnt burn. Once the color changes slightly, remove and keep aside for cooling. Follow the same process for 2 tb spoon white sesame seeds and keep aside for cooling. Now take 1 cup of jaggery and 1/4 cup of water in a pan kept on heat and allow it to dissolve completely .

Let it come to complete boil for 5 more minutes . Let it thicken a bit, mix well and remove from heat.

Allow the syrup to cool down so that you can comfortably mix it with the flour. Pour the syrup in roasted flour and mix it well.

Once the syrup is mixed well. Add ghee and knead again gently . Take about 1 tablespoons each of this dough and shape up the ball . Repeat the process to make more balls and keep aside. Once all done Store in airtight container or enjoy!

Did you eat jaggery as a child? Even if you didn’t eat it regularly as a child, you must have eaten it yearly during Maghe Sankranti ( Nepali and Indian Festival). The practice of eating clarified butter, jaggery, and other sweet dishes with various root vegetables have been consumed in our society for a long time, but now in the name of modernity and western learning, the importance of all this has decreased. When we were small, we were always given a piece of jaggery and some soaked black gram on an empty stomach in the morning at home, but as we overate jaggery, it became bitter, so when we grew up, we stopped eating it. Our grandfather used to practice Ayurvedic treatment, that’s why it was a tradition to eat jaggery in the morning in our house until much later. Maybe I got the chance to meet my grandfather, who passed away a year before I was born. But he had heard a lot about it.
Jaggery is widely used in Asia and Africa. It is a staple in India and Nepal where people call it gur. It is known to us that jaggery is like a natural sweet with medicinal properties. Although it is extracted from sugarcane, jaggery does not have the disadvantages of sugar. It has been used as an Ayurvedic medicine long before the current use of white sugar. Jaggery even helps detox our bodies. Therefore, those who know the properties and benefits of jaggery, eat it after meals. It is rich in iron, calcium, phosphorus, and copper. In addition, sugar contains sucrose glucose, a mineral liquid, and water.
Known as a naturally sweet, jaggery is a treasure of health as well as taste, if you are still unaware of its health benefits, then please read my other article in Nepali .