Thandai Nectarine Mini Galette(Eggless and baked)

Holi is a festival of colors celebrated on the day after the full moon in the Hindu month of Phalguna (early March). The festival signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, end of winter, and for many a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair broken relationships, and is also celebrated as a thanksgiving for a good harvest. The night before Holi, bonfires are lit in a ceremony known as Holika Dahan (burning of Holika)  People gather near fires, sing and dance. The next day, Holi,  is celebrated. Children and adults spray colours (gulal) at each other, laugh and celebrate,  Guests are first teased with colours, then served with Holi delicacies(desserts and drinks). After playing with colours, and cleaning up,  wear new clothes, and visit friends and family.

The story behind this festival goes like this- There was once a demon king by the name of Hiranyakashyap who won over the kingdom of earth. He was so egoistic that he commanded everybody in his kingdom to worship only him. But to his great disappointment, his son, Prahlad became an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu and refused to worship his father.

Hiranyakashyap tried several ways to kill his son Prahlad but Lord Vishnu saved him every time. Finally, he asked his sister, Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad on her lap. For, Hiranyakashyap knew that Holika had a boon, whereby, she could enter the fire unscathed.

Treacherously, Holika coaxed young Prahlad to sit on her lap and she herself took her seat in a blazing fire. The legend has it that Holika had to pay the price of her sinister desire by her life. Holika was not aware that the boon worked only when she entered the fire alone.
Prahlad, who kept chanting the name of Lord Vishnu all this while, came out unharmed, as the lord blessed him for his extreme devotion.
Thus, Holi derives its name from Holika and  celebrated as a festival of victory of good over evil.
To celebrate this festival I am sharing a fusion recipe today:

Thandai is associated with Holi and Mahashivrathri. It can be prepared as a drink or as dry powder and can be added to many desserts and savoury dishes.

Recipe for Thandai  Nectarine Mini Galette(Eggless and baked):

1 Nectarines deseeded and cut into pieces per Mini Galette

1.5 Teaspoon Thandai Powder per Mini Galette

Butter for brushing the Galette

Ingredients for Dough:

1Cup=240 Gms

2 Cups of Wholegrain flour (Unbleached)

½ Teaspoon Salt

½ Teaspoon Sugar

25 Gms Cold Butter(Unsalted)

½ Cup Thick yogurt(Unsweetened)

Method:

Combine the flour,salt,sugar and cold butter in a large mixing bowl. Mix well . Start adding yogurt little by little to the flour mix. Continue till you can gather the dough into a round ball (like chapati dough). Place the dough in a bowl,cling wrap it and keep in the fridge.Let it rest for 30 mins.

Ingredients for Thandai Powder:

1 Tablespoon Cashew pieces

1 Tablespoon Melon Seeds

½ Teaspoon Saffron strands

½ Teaspoon Cinnamon Powder

½ Teaspoon Nutmeg Powder

½ Teaspoon Fennel Seeds Powder

12 Almonds Coarsely Powdered

15 Pistachios Coarsely powdered

1 Tablespoon of Poppy Seeds and coconut mixture(I have powdered dry coconut and poppy seeds together)

3 Pepper Corns Powdered

Petals of 1 Red Rose

4 Teaspoons Sugar(Increase the qty if you want more sweetness)

¼ Teaspoon Cardamom Powder

Mix all the ingredients together and your Thandai powder is ready..It can be stored in an air tight container.

Method for Thandai Nectarine Mini Galette:

Take a small ball of dough, roll out, arrange the nectarines in the center. Sprinkle Thandai powder(1 Tsp) and fold the egdes over the nectarines. Preheat the oven at 200C for 10 mins.

Place the mini galette on the parchment paper on a baking tray. Place the tray in the pre heated oven and bake for 30 to 35 mins.. Flaky and yummy Thandai Nectarine mini Galette is ready. Sprinkle some thandai powder on top and serve.

Enjoy Holi with your family and friends!!!

Don’t forget to use chemical free colours. Stay safe and do your part to save the environment.

Sending this Thandai Nectarine Mini Galette recipe to Holi Collective Recipes by Sonal Gupta of Simplyvegetarian777.