Gujiyas are a very popular Indian sweet, that are especially made during festivals. In fact, Holi (festival of colours) and Diwali (festival of lights), feel incomplete without them. They are also known as, karanji (in Maharashtra), perukiya (in Bihar) and ghugra (in Gujarat). Gujiyas are a heavenly, stuffed sweetmeat, which have a beautiful, half-moon shape. Traditionally, it is a deep fried sweet, stuffed with either khoya (milk solids) or coconut. And the shell is normally made with plain four (maida). But, my recipe here is of a healthy and baked gujiya. So, you can indulge in this very special festive sweet, without the guilt. Also, instead of using only plain flour, I have made mine with whole wheat flour.
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The filling
I have filled my healthy and baked gujiya with desiccated coconut along with dry fruits, and flavoured it with cardamom. The recipe of the filling is quite simple. In fact, it is more of a “no recipe”, really. You will simply need to bring together all the dry ingredients and mix. While I have used desiccated coconut, you could use fresh too. However, using the former, increases the shelf life of the sweets. So, you can store and devour them for longer. To sweeten my healthy gujiyas, I have used jaggery powder. While this is a healthier alternative to refined sugar, you could use any sweetener of your choice, too.
Another very popular stuffing for these sweetmeats is khoya. If you choose that or any other stuffing for your gujiyas, besides the one I have here, you could still bake them instead of deep frying. The process for making the wholewheat flour crust and thereafter baking them will remain unchanged. My coconut stuffed baked gujiyas are a pure delight and are a house favourite. Once you’ve taken a bite of the flaky, crispy outer crust together with the sweet, cardamom flavoured filling, you will know what I am talking about. Post-baking the sweets, I have dunked them in a jaggery powder syrup and then drizzled over some chopped nuts. This, again is, a healthy twist, since, traditionally, the gujiyas are completely soaked in refined sugar syrup.
The shape
The beauty of the gujiyas, apart from their lovely taste, lies also in their shape. The half-moon shape, with pleated edges, are indeed a sight. There are two ways in which you can shape them. First, is to fold and pleat it with your fingers, and second is, with the help of a mould. I have made mine, using a gujiya mould, which is easily available online. However, if you wish to enjoy the novelty of shaping the sweet without the mould, I am sure they will taste even sweeter.
So, I hope next time you want to make gujiyas, you will give my healthier version a try. I can promise, even though healthy these baked coconut gujiyas taste just as good as their fried version. If you do give any of my recipes a try, I’d love to know how they turned out for you. You can share your food pictures with me on Instagram as well.
Eat hearty!
Healthy and baked gujiya
Equipment
- Oven
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup ghee
- 1 cup desiccated coconut
- ¼ cup cashews roughly chopped
- ¼ cup pistachios roughly chopped
- ¼ cup raisins
- 2-3 tbsp chironji optional
- 1 tsp saffron strands optional
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds
- 2 tsp cardamom powder
- 1½ cup jaggery powder or sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2-3 tbsp milk
For garnishing
- 1 tbsp almonds chopped
- 1 tbsp pistachios chopped
- saffron strands
Instructions
- To make the dough, mix the flour with the ghee and salt, so that it holds shape when you hold it in your fist. Add lukewarm water gradually so as to form a soft dough. Cover with a damp cloth and keep it aside
- In the meantime, add a tablespoon of ghee to a cooking pot and roast the desiccated coconut along with the nuts, raisins and poppy seeds for 2-3 minutes, on medium flame.
- Remove this mixture in a separate bowl and allow it to come to room temperature and then mix in ½ cup jaggery powder, saffron and cardamom powder. Combine well
- Come back to the dough and make lemon sized balls of the dough, and roll it out - not too thick or too thin. Use some ghee to roll out the dough, in case it sticks to your work surface
- Grease your gujiya mould with ghee, lay the rolled out dough carefully over the mould and slightly press it into the cavity. Fill it with 2-3 teaspoons of the coconut mixture
- Apply some water around the edges, if needed, and carefully shut the mould. Cut the excess dough off using a knife, before you open the mould
- Carefully open the mould, ease the gujiya out of it, line them on a baking tray and brush with milk. Bake in a preheated oven, at 200 degrees C, for 15 to 20 minutes
- Meanwhile, prepare a concentrated jaggery syrup, by heating the remaining jaggery with 1½ cups water, until it melts. Remove from flame and allow to cool. Dunk the freshly baked gujiyas in the syrup and let them stay for 5-7 minutes
- Remove, garnish your healthy and baked gujiya, with the chopped nuts and saffron and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
- If you don't wish to use poppy seeds, you could use roasted semolina instead
- You can use the same recipe for these baked gujiya and stuff it with other fillings of your choice, for example khoya etc
- 1 cup = 250 millilitres
- tbsp - tablespoon
- tsp - teaspoon
