GURDANI (Also Known As Chikki)

Ingredients:
Sugar : 1 cup

Oil: 1 tsp

Roasted Gram Dal (Putani/Bhugra, the same dal used in chutneys in S.India): 2 cups

Procedure:

1. Heat a pan and add the sugar. Also add 1/2 tsp oil and keep stirring first on high flame, then when it starts to melt, on low flame, until all sugar melts and the lumps disappear. Take care not to over-brown or burn the caramel. As soon as the lumps melt, add the dal and stir quickly until the caramel & dal are well-mixed.

2. Immediately transfer onto clean kitchen platform and beat with the palms to spread the lump.

Then use rolling pin to roll out the lump into a large thin (1 cm thickness) circle, at the same time, shaping the chikki into a neat circle by pushing towards inside at the edges. This process has to be done quickly, or the caramel will harden & the lump will not roll out anymore.

This stage requires practise & you can do that by making small quantities.

Once the chikki is rolled out, run a knife through the chikki as you wish, as squares or quarters. Then break it carefully at the knife marks.

Store in polythene bags.
Using Puffed Rice:

Ingredients:

Sugar: 1 cup

Puffed Rice: 4 cups

Oil: 2 tsp
Method:

1. Again, like we made as above, heat a pan, add sugar & mix until it melts into caramel like shown below. Do not burn it anymore than this.

2. Then add the puffed rice and mix briskly & quickly then shift it onto the kitchen platform.

3. Using a flat bowl as shown in the pic below, spread the lump as thin as u can quickly, and then resume rolling it out with a rolling pin, until it becomes a circle of 1.5 cm thickness.

4. Make marks with a knife and break the circle at the knife cuts.

Store in a polythene bag.

Note: You can make a chikki from other things such as cashew nuts, dried coconut, pistachios, groundnuts etc.