Celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi Made Easy! A Quick Guide Complete with 10 Prasad Recipes for Ganpati and Unique Decoration Ideas(2020)

Ingredients

• Whole wheat flour - 2 cups
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
• Salt - 1/4 tsp
• Ghee - 2 tsp

• Cooked Chana Dal - 2 cups
• Grated Jaggery - 1 cup
• Ghee - 1 tbsp
• Nutmeg powder - 1/4 tsp
• Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
• Fennel powder - 1/2 tsp

Instructions

• Mix turmeric powder, flour, ghee and salt in a bowl and mix well.
• Add a little water and knead it into a soft dough. Cover and let sit for 30 min.
• Mix dal, ghee and jaggery in a pan and cook until jaggery has dissolved.
• Continue to cook the mixture until it is thickened nicely.
• Add nutmeg powder, fennel powder, cardamom powder and mix well.
• Take the pan off the heat and let the filling cool.
• Divide the dough and filling into 6-8 equal parts. Roll out the dough balls into 4 - 5 inch circles.
• Place a ball of filling in the dough circle and bring the ends together. Roll again into a 6-inch circle.
• Heat a griddle and cook the Puran Poli on both sides till brown spots appear. Apply ghee on both sides and fry until golden brown.
• Serve hot with Katachi Amti.

Ingredients

• Rice flour - 2 cups
• Grated jaggery - 1 1/4 cup
• Grated coconut - 2 cups
• Poppy seeds - 1 tbsp
• Cardamom - 1/2 tsp
• Ghee - 1 tsp, for greasing and kneading

Instructions

• Boil 1 3/4 cups of water and add it to rice flour gradually.
• Mix well and knead it into a dough. Cover it with a lid and set aside for 10 min.
• In a non-stick pan, cook jaggery on a low flame till it melts. Combine jaggery with coconut, cardamom powder and poppy seeds and cook on a low flame for 4-5 min.
• Once cool, divide the filling into 21 equal portions and keep aside.
• Add 1/2 tsp ghee and knead the dough once again and keep aside.
• Grease a modak mould with a little ghee and close it.
• Press the dough into the mould till it is evenly lined on all sides. Fill the dough cavity with the filling. Cover the bottom with a little dough .
• Demould the modak from the modak mould and keep aside. Repeat till all the filling and dough has been used.
• Alternatively, take a ball of the dough and flatten it with your fingers into a light disc or shallow bowl shape. Place the filling in the centre and pinch the sides together shape and taper the modak into the right shape.
• Moisten all modaks with a little water and place them on a banana leaf.
• Steam them for 10 min. Serve warm.

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour - 1 1/2 cup
• Sooji - 1/2 cup
• Gram flour - 2 tbsp
• Ghee- 2 tbsp
• Khoya - 2 cups
• Poppy seeds - 1 tbsp
• Dry dates powder - 1 tbsp
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Ghee - 1/2 cup
• Milk (if needed)

Instructions

• Kneed all-purpose flour, sooji and gram flour to make a thick dough.
• In a shallow pan add ghee and fry khoya for 5-8 min. Stir continuously. Keep aside to cool.
• Add more ghee and fry poppy seeds, dates powder one after the other and keep separately.
• Grind the poppy seeds into powder. Mix khoya, dates powder, poppy seed powder and sugar together. Grind the mixture till its homogenous.
• If the filling is too dry you can add some milk.
• Make a small disk from the dough. Place the filling in the centre and press the edges together.
• Roll the dough into a thick chapati.
• On a medium flame fry the satori on both sides using ghee until golden brown.

Ingredients

• Gram flour - 2 1/2 cup
• Green cardamom - 1 1/2 tsp
• Ghee - 3 cup
• Food colour - 1/2 tsp
• Baking soda - 2 pinches
• Sugar - 3 cups
• Water - 2 cups

Instructions

• Add food colour to gram flour and mix well. Add water and baking soda. Mix till there are no lumps.
• Heat oil/ghee in a frying pan. Place a perforated ladle on top of the oil and add some batter. Let boondi fall slowly into the oil and completely cook. Remove and place on a paper towel to remove excess oil
• Mix sugar and water and heat it to make sugar syrup. Then add cardamom powder and let it cook. Now, cook boondi in the sugar syrup. Turn off the flame and set aside.
• Once cool, grease your hands with ghee and start shaping into balls. Place them on a tray and garnish with crushed pistachios.

Ingredients

• Semolina/suji - 1 cup
• Sugar - 1 1/2 cups
• Ghee - 1/2 cup
• Milk - 2 1/2 cups
• Green cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
• Chopped Almonds - 2 tbsp
• Saffron - 5-6 strands
• Chopped Cashews - 2 tbsp

Instructions

• Roast some almonds and cashew in ghee on a low flame. Add suji and roast till fragrant.
• Heat milk in a non-stick pan.
• Add milk, cardamom powder and saffron to the suji, mix and cook on low heat for 5 min.
• Add sugar, mix and cover till it melts.
• Garnish with more almonds and cashew. Serve hot.

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour/maida - 3/4 cup
• Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp
• Salt - 1/8 tsp
• Water - 3-4 tbsp
• Desiccated coconut - 1/2 cup
• Milk - 3/4 cup
• White granulated sugar - 1 tbsp
• Poppy seeds - 1/2 tbsp
• Sooji - 1 tbsp

Instructions

• Add coconut and milk to a pan and mix well. Let the milk come to a boil. Now, start stirring every 2-3 min.
• Cook till no more bubbles on the sides are seen and it dries out completely.
• Add sugar and cook again. Then add poppy seeds and sooji. Mix well and cook for 2 more min.
• Keep the stuffing aside to cool.
• Mix maida and salt in a bowl. Add oil. Mix the flour and oil together until everything is incorporated.
• Now add little water at a time and knead into a stiff smooth dough. Cover it with a plate and let it rest for 15 min.
• Divide the dough into 10-11 equal balls and flatten it slightly.
• Roll them into a 4-inch diameter circle. Place 1 tbsp of stuffing in the centre.
• Apply some water to the edges using your finger and fold it into a half-moon shape. Seal the edges properly by pressing it.
• Heat oil in a frying pan on low-medium heat. Fry karanji until crispy and golden brown. Drain excess oil on a paper towel.

Ingredients

• Thick yoghurt/Curd – 4.5 cups
• Sugar – 8 to 9 tbsp
• Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
• Crushed pistachios - 7 to 8
• Milk – ½ tbsp
• Saffron Strands – 2 pinches

Instructions

• Place a strainer in a bowl and line it with a muslin cloth. Pour fresh curd into the muslin cloth. Bring the edges together and tie tightly.
• Let it rest for at least 4 to 5 hours in the fridge. Place a heavy bowl on the muslin, so that all the whey is drained from the curd.
• Collect the hung curd in a bowl.
• Add saffron strands in the warm ½ tbsp milk.
• Add fine sugar to the hung curd and stir it. Add saffron and whip the mixture with an electric beater or a blender. Whip until smooth, and the sugar dissolves.
• Chill this in the fridge. Top it with sliced pistachios.

Ingredients

• Dry coconut - 1 cup
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
• Powdered sugar - 1/4 cup

• Dry coconut - 1 cup
• Dried dates - 1/4 cup
• Poppy seeds - 1/4 tbsp
• Rock sugar - 1/4 cup
• Raisins - 1 tbsp
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp

Instructions

• Cook grated dry coconut in a frying pan for one min.
• Turn off the heat. Once the coconut cools down add powdered sugar and cardamom and mix well.
• It is now ready to serve

• Roast the poppy seeds on low flame for 1 min.
• Once the poppy seeds are golden brown, blend it and keep aside.
• Dry roast chopped dates for 2-3 min and clean it.
• Dry roast grated coconut for 3-4 min or till it changes colour.
• Blend coconut, poppy seeds and dates. Add rock sugar and make it a coarse mixture.
• Transfer the contents into a mixing bowl and add cardamom and raisins. Mix well.
• Garnish with more raisins.

Ingredients

• Sabudana - 1/4 cup
• Sevai - 1 tbsp
• Ghee - 1/2 tsp
• Condensed milk - 1/4 cup
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
• Chopped Almonds and cashews.

Instructions

• Soak sabudana in water. Keep it covered for 3 hours.
• In a thick bottomed pan add 1/2 tsp ghee. Add sevai and roast over medium heat. Keep stirring till sevai changes colour.
• Add milk to the sevai and cook over medium heat for 5 min. Stir continuously to avoid burning.
• Add soaked sabudana and continue cooking for 2-3 min. Add condensed milk, almonds and cashews. Keep stirring.
• Once almost cooked, the sabudana will become translucent and start floating on top. Continue to boil for 3-4 min over medium heat. Serve lukewarm.

Ingredients

• Fried gram- 1 cup
• Jaggery - 1/2 cup
• Ghee - 1/2 cup
• Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
• Dried coconut - 3 tbsp
• Sesame seeds - 3 tbs
• Peanuts - 2 tbsp
• Poppy seeds - 1 tbsp

Instructions

• Heat ghee in a pan and add jaggery. Continue to cook till the jaggery completely dissolves.
• Add cardamom powder, sesame, peanuts and poppy seeds. Keep aside 2 tbsp of gram flour add the rest.
• Mix well with the jaggery syrup. If it's too sticky add the 2 tbsp of flour that was set aside.
• Once the mixture cools a bit and is at room temperature, grease your hands and make small balls. Be quick as the mixture dries when it cools down completely.
• Store in an airtight container.

• Lalbaugcha Raja – This is most famous in Mumbai and was founded in the year 1934. The legendary design of the Ganesh Statue is patent protected.
  Location – Putlabai Chawl in central Mumbai.


• Mumbaicha Raja – This is located just a few lanes away from the famous Lalbaugcha Raja. The mandal is known for its themes.
  Location – Ganesh Galli, Lalbaug.


• Khetwadicha Ganraj – The Ganesh Idol is considered to be the most spectacular one in Mumbai and was established in the year 1959. The idol is embellished in real gold and diamond jewellery.
  Location – 12th Lane Kehetwadi, Girgaum.


• Andhericha Raja – The mandal was started in the year 1966 and the theme every year is the replica of a famous temple in India.
  Location – Veera Desai Road, Andheri West.