Basen Ladoo

Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 cups gram flour (basen)
* 2 tablespoons semolina flour (fine sooji)
* 1/2 cup unsalted melted butter (ghee)
* 3/4 cups sugar
* 4 tablespoons sliced almonds (badam)
* 1/4 teaspoons coarsely grounded cardamom seeds (ilaichi)

For Garnish:

* 1 tablespoon melted butter or ghee
* 1 tablespoons sliced pistachios (pista)

Method:

1. Put the basen (gram flour), sooji, and melted butter in a large frying pan and mix.
2. Turn the stove on to medium heat and begin to roast the basen mixture until basen becomes light golden brown in color. Stir the mixture continuously with a spatula to prevent burning. Cooking on high heat will not allow the mixture to fully cook.
3. When the color has changed you will also start to smell the sweetness of roasted basen. This should take about 7 to 10 minutes.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and let the basen cool to a warm temperature. don’t let it become to room temperature.
5. While the mixture is warm add and mix cardamom seeds, almonds, and sugar.
6. To make the ladoos, take about 2 tablespoons of warm basen mixture into your palm. Gently press the mixture between your palms to form a smooth, round ball. The ladoos are usually about the size of a ping-pong ball, but you can adjust the as you prefer.
7. When you have finished making all of the ladoos, take one ladoo at a time and dip the ladoo a quarter inch into melted butter or ghee. Then lightly touch the part of the ladoo with the butter into the sliced pistachios just enough so some pistachios stick to the ladoo.
8. Put ladoos back on the plate with the pistachio side facing the top.
9. Leave the ladoos on a plate to cool to room temperature before putting into a covered container. The ladoos can be stored in an airtight container for 2 to 3 weeks.