Makar Sankranti 2022: Make Ellu Urundai with this simple 4-ingredient recipe
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‘Til ke laddoo’ is a classic Sankranti special sweet dish. (Photo: Madhur Bhog/ Instagram)
Makar Sankranti is one of the most widely celebrated festivals in India. The joyous day marks the end of winter and the beginning of longer, warmer days. Referred to as Bihu in east India, Pongal in south India, and Uttarayan in west India, this harvest festival is celebrated with heart warming delicacies like dahi chooda, undhiyu, khichdi, and of course, til ke laddoo.
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Easy to make and nutrient-rich, sesame laddoos are a guilt-free indulgence for those with a sweet tooth. This Sankranti, however, swap white sesame seeds with the black ones and try a super easy ‘Ellu Urundai’ recipe by chef Sanjeev Kapoor that requires just four ingredients.
“A nutrient-rich delicacy with very few ingredients, Ellu Urundai, is a must during winter!” the chef captioned the Instagram post.
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sanjeev Kapoor (@sanjeevkapoor)
ELLU URUNDAI
Ingredients
*I cup – Black sesame seeds
*1 cup – Jaggery
*¼ cup – Water
*Green cardamom powder
Method
Dry roast the black sesame seeds in a pan for 4-5 minutes. Take them out. Add jaggery to the same pan and let it dissolve. Then, add water and cook it till it has a one string consistency. Add the sesame seeds to liquid jaggery. Follow it up with a big pinch of green cardamom powder and mix it well. Lay out the mixture flat on a plate. Then, take grease your palms with some ghee and roll the sesame mixture into small balls while it is still warm.
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Hindu pilgrims celebrate harvest festival Makar Sankranti
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U.S. lawmakers gather to honor former U.S. Senator Harry Reid, as his body lay in state in the rotunda of the Capitol in Washington, part of a tribute paid to the Democratic majority leader who died on Dec. 28.
makar sankranti: Makar Sankranti A Low-key Affair
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Patna: Amid the pandemic scare, the festival of Makar Sankranti was celebrated as a low-key affair on Friday. However, going by the astrological calculations, many people will celebrate it on Saturday.There were very few people at the important Ganga ghats in the urban areas, which in normal times witnessed huge congregations of devotees for taking a holy dip in the river on this auspicious day. Policemen were seen maintaining vigil at the ghats while NDRF and SDRF personnel carried out river patrolling.There were neither roadside fair, nor get-together of political leaders on ‘dahi-chura’ bhoj or cultural programmes to mark the occasion. Dr Nikhil Kumar Singh, principal of JNL College at Khagaul, said, “Our long family tradition of holding ‘Bramhan bhoj’ and offering them donations had a brake this time due to Covid fear. Not even the people in neighbourhoods stepped out of their homes to exchange greetings.”Vijay Kumar of Naya Tola said it was the first time that his family members did not go for ‘Ganga snan’ due to the fear of virus infection.Meanwhile, deputy CM Tarkishore Prasad celebrated the Makar Sankranti with a ‘dahi-chura bhoj’ with NDA workers at his Katihar residence. He also extended greetings to people of the state on this occasion.Former health minister Tej Pratap Yadav reached Delhi to celebrate the day with his father and RJD chief Lalu Prasad and others there.
Makar Sankranti is an occasion to celebrate surya namaskar
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The sun will rise a little to the north on Makar Sankranti, January 14, bringing along many messages of cultural, spiritual and agricultural significance for the country. The word “sankranti” signifies transitional movement, the movement for betterment within and without, transitions on a cosmic level and in the zodiac signs.
The Ministry of Ayush has decided to utilise this occasion to reach out to humanity with a special and topical message of rejuvenation through the surya namaskar — the set of yoga asanas used to “salute” the sun.
Most of us must have heard about the surya namaskar. Its significance goes much beyond a salutation to the sun. It has a profound impact on the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of humans. When performed appropriately on a regular basis, the surya namaskar not only improves our vitality and immunity but also helps maintain mental balance in a fast-moving and stress-generating world.
Considering the importance of yoga, the Ministry of AYUSH has dedicated due resources towards its growth and development — along with naturopathy — under the ambit of Indian traditional medicine systems. Furthermore, in a bid to popularise yoga at the global level, it has also been recognised as a competitive sport. The International Yoga Sports Federation (IYSF) has been constituted by the ministry and concrete steps are being taken to promote it as a sport at the international level.
Since 2014, when the International Day of Yoga was recognised, the event has grown each year, with greater international participation. As a part of its commitment to promote yoga on a grand scale, the ministry is in the process of setting up a centre of excellence for Ayurveda and yoga in the United Kingdom. In order to further boost professional activity in the domain, the Ministry of AYUSH has constituted the yoga certification board for yoga professionals and accreditations to the institutions.
Building upon the “whole of government” approach of PM Narendra Modi, a surya namaskar demonstration programme is being launched in line with the tribute to 75 years of India’s independence, Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav. The AYUSH ministry has not only engaged other ministries and state governments but has involved all major stakeholders in the global yoga fraternity in this mass demonstration programme.
The universal appeal of yoga is embodied in the surya namaskar. As the sun is the source of vitality for all living beings, the surya namaskar is a sure-shot dose of vitality for humans without any side effects. The world is realising that vitality and strong immunity from within are the most pressing requisites to battle the re-resurfacing Covid-19 infection. For this reason, the surya namaskar becomes even more important.
Our approach is not limited to one-off events as the ministry strongly believes in creating lasting impact, focusing more on building synergies and a continuum — both in the design and implementation — of our action strategies. The demonstration event on January 14 is also part of a continuum, as I had said in Hyderabad recently when we embarked upon an initiative of organising 75 crore surya namaskars.
Surya namaskar is a combination of eight asanas performed in 12 steps. The beauty of these asanas is that all age groups can perform them without much difficulty and their regular practice makes the whole system resilient. I will not go into the details of the benefits of performing regular surya namaskars here but would just like to remind the reader that a practitioner, like myself, is bound to feel energised, with overall well-being, throughout the day, thus saving personal and national expenditure on health-related issues to a great extent.
I am sure that this Makar Sankranti will herald the beginning of a novel resolve from the global community in making natural resources of energy, like the sun and the surya namaskar, our best and most dependable friends. This will help our planet in more ways than one.
This column first appeared in the print edition on January 14, 2022 under the title ‘Salute the sun’. The writer is the minister of AYUSH and the minister of ports, shipping and waterways, Government of India
Makar Sankranti: Delhiites say yes to healthy snacking for festive feels
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Come festival and the cravings overpower any diet plans. But this isn’t an excuse that foodies in Delhi are using to relish the sugar rush that comes with traditional Makar Sankranti delicacies. And city-based home chefs confirm that they are witnessing a higher demand for healthy snacks this time around. And it doesn’t hurt that there’s quite a variety available, from Gur Til Bhugga to Jaggery Peanut Sesame Shots and even Biotin ladoos!
“Most of the people have gone back to working from home, and this makes it very easy to put on weight since we just station ourselves in front of the laptop, all day long,” says Manika Singh, a school teacher from Shalimar Bagh, adding, “I’ve hardly any outdoor activity or dedicated time to exercise. And since there’s nothing exciting happening right now, so festivals become an easy excuse to binge on some yummy and fattening delicacies. But for Makar Sankranti, I ensured that only healthy, sugar free sweets come to our house. And while ordering, I was so pleasantly surprised to see that home chefs are offering such a wide variety of these.”
Makkai Parmesan crackers by home chef Shikha Sachdeva.
Shikha Sachdeva, home chef from Kalkaji-based The Culinary Courtyard, says she has received a lot of orders requesting for healthy alternatives. “Due to the Covid situation, people want to only focus on eating healthy. So automatically the demand for sugar-free sweets and desserts made using healthy options such as gur, has increased. I’ve been making Dry Fruit Stuffed Dates, Cranberry and Pistachio Bars with home-made mawa, Jaggery Peanut Sesame Shots, and even makke ke atte ke crackers. Everything is healthy, and no one wants just the typical gur til bhhuga. We have something called date fingers, which are selling by the kilo,” she adds.
Biotin ladoo, prepared by home chef Anjali Wadhwa are a new addition this year.
In fact, it is to cater to such demand for healthy foods that Anjali Wadhwa from Rajouri Garden-based A’s Kitchen has especially added Biotin ladoo, to her menu. Besides being non-fattening, it also contains a wide variety of nuts that highlight its immunity boosting qualities. She says, “We do have til bhugga and til pista rolls, but are also offering healthy options such as our new addition, Biotin ladoos, which we have made especially for this occasion. This is a healthy ladoo that has all kinds of dry fruits and absolutely no ghee or oil. We have recently noticed a rise in demand for healthy options, more than the usual sweets. And these ladoos are truly a guilt-free choice that people can make while enjoying the festivities in the comfort of their homes. These also help in building immunity.”
And for those who love to stick to the traditional til bhugga, there are some healthy versions as well! One such option is being prepared by Greater Kailash-based Madhu Ji Meals by Madhu Suri. She says, “With the recent rise in cases, people are preferring sugar free delicacies as they want to be careful about their health and weight. So since til bhugga is a staple for Makar Sankranti, we have come up with its gur version, which is much in demand right now. Additionally, I’m also making masala gur, which people love in winter. It’s is a mix of dry fruits and masala and is a season speciality for not only it’s relished more around this time, but also safeguards our health in many ways. Quite a healthy dessert!”
Author tweets @anjuri
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