Super decadent, juicy and a showstopper kinda milk based sweet with the flavors of cardamom and saffron scented sugar syrup in every juicy, melt-in-mouth bite, This quintessential Indian gulab jamun, traditionally made into balls, gets into a new donut shaped avatar guaranteed to satisfy anyone’s sweet tooth and floor your friends and family; perfect to make and share at any special occasion! Jump to Recipe Print Recipe It is that time of the year when every Indian is looking forward to; Diwali celebrations with sweets, crackers and lots of food, especially sweets to satiate every one. This Hindu “festival of light” as it is sometimes called, is when we light up our houses and neighborhood with lots of lamps and diyas; ghee or oil lit lamps. This symbolism represents the victory of light over darkness, good over evil etc. and mythologically is when Lord Rama supposedly came back home after killing the evil king Ravana, after an exile of 14 years. It is also an occasion to celebrate with family like there is Thanksgiving or Christmas in other parts of the world. Many of us get store bought sweet boxes but lot of us try and make them at home too….nothing like homemade with that touch of love don’t you think? I know I am making these as part of my Diwali sweet box!
If you need some more ideas to make, then head on over to this link where I have shared a bunch of more delicious sweet and savory dishes for Diwali you can make easily at home. EASY DIWALI RECIPES – SWEET AND SAVORY
GULAB JAMUN DOUGHNUTS
Now, about this dessert I have made – GULAB JAMUN DOUGHNUTS OR DONUTS…… Everyone is familiar with this quintessential Indian dessert called gulab jamun which is nothing but deep fried balls of milk solids soaked in a sugar syrup. “Gulab” represents the rose or gulab extract flavor in it but my family loves the exotic cardamom flavor. I do make it sometimes only with rose essence or rose extract in the syrup. This time, I was tempted to present it in a new way – in the shape of donuts; juicy, melt-in-mouth and absolutely addictive! You can make these from scratch using milk powder or mawa, flour and/or semolina, ghee etc. You will find lots of recipes online. But, although I would love to make it that way, when you are bogged down by umpteen tasks especially during festival time and when readymade packets of gulab jamun mixes are readily available where you just add milk or water to the mix, deep fry and then soak in a simple sugar syrup, I would opt for this anytime. My favorite mix is the Nandini brand from my hometown state of Karnataka in southern part of India but you can use any other brand too. Do check online or in Indian stores. You just make the dough, cut into doughnut shapes, deep fry in oil or ghee and then soak them for just 5 minutes in a warm sugar syrup.
To make it look festive and beautiful, I decided to dress them up with edible dry rose petals and chopped pistachios! So easy to make, so delicious and a perfect show stopper Indian fusion dessert to share with family and friends for Diwali or any other festival or gathering!
INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED TO MAKE GULAB JAMUN DONUTS:
Gulab Jamun Mix – These packets are readily available in Indian stores or even online. I would suggest using MTR brand or Gits brand but my favorite is Nandini as I mentioned earlier, if you can get your hands on it. Milk – preferably, I love to make my gulab jamun dough using milk for more richness but you can use plain water too. Sugar – traditionally, we have always used plain white sugar to make the syrup, but you can use jaggery/unrefined cane sugar or even brown sugar if you want. Oil or ghee to deep fry. Cardamom powder – like any Indian dessert or sweet, nothing adds to the oomph factor in all Indian desserts more than a dash of aromatic green cardamom powder. Freshly made from whole green cardamom is best but you can choose to use store bought cardamom powder if you want. Saffron strands – I love using these exotic spice strands to flavor and color my desserts….gives a lovely aroma and golden yellow color to any dish. Optional – dry rose petals and chopped pistachios
EQUIPMENT NEEDED:
Parchment paper to roll the dough Rolling pin Cutters like donut cutter or lids of any bottle or jar. A deep saucepan to deep fry the donuts Perforated ladle Saucepan to make syrup Wire rack to drain the soaked gulab jamun donuts Baking sheet to place the wire rack and catch drained syrup
SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
These are best served as a grand and sweet finale to any meal and are perfect to make and share at special occasions like Diwali which is coming up, special occasions, get togethers, festivals or even at a Christmas or Thanksgiving table etc.
Store leftovers in an airtight container on the counter top for at least 2-3 days. For longer storage, you can store in the fridge but bring to room temperature before serving. Totally addictive, fun to make, an exciting way to enjoy this quintessential dessert in a new form and an absolutely delicious dessert you will enjoy making, serving and enjoying with all your loved ones. For a cake version of this, do check out my infamous Eggless Gulab Jamun Cake with saffron and Pistachio glaze (from scratch; no mix) too!
Enjoy and Happy Cooking/Eating!
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Traditionally made into balls, for a visual delight, it gets into a new donut shaped avatar guaranteed to satisfy anyone’s sweet tooth! If you like my posts and recipes, do not forget to Pin, Share, comment in the box below or like my Facebook page For more such easy and delicious recipes, follow me on: Facebook @ curryandvanilla Pinterest @ curryandvanilla Instagram @ curryandvanilla16 Twitter @ curryandvanilla Google Plus @ Vanitha Bhat Have fun cooking, eating and sharing!!!!
