The festival of Holi is always filled with joy and excitement. The most special thing about this festival, however, is the diversity of delicacies prepared at home. You may want to gorge on everything sweet, especially gujiya, but you must resist your cravings because the sugar level and frying procedure used to prepare sweets can harm your overall health. What if we tell you there was a healthy way to make gujiya? Enter the baked gujiya method! We have an expert to explain why a baked gujiya may be better than fried gujiya if health is on top of your mind.

HealthShots reached out to Karishma Chawla, a Mumbai-based nutritionist and lifestyle educator, to understand why baked gujiya is a healthier way to prepare gujiya at home.

Baked gujiya vs fried gujiya

Baked gujiya is a way of baking gujiyas rather than frying them. Though frying brings the true flavour of gujiya, go for baked gujiyas this Holi for health reasons. Deep-fried gujiya are high in calories and may cause weight gain.

Chawla also says, “The baked version of preparing gujiya is undoubtedly healthier and better because there is no frying and so no carcinogen or ageing action as well as no fat gain.”

Also read: This Holi, quench your thirst with this healthy paan thandai recipe

Instead of frying the gujiyas, bake them to give a healthy twist. You can also choose a healthy filling made of dry fruits or suji. This method can help with digestion, prevent weight gain and keep your blood sugar in check. When it comes to taste, baked gujiyas always taste better than fried ones. So you can indulge in your favourite dessert without any guilt.

How to make baked gujiya?

Here you’ll find a way to prepare crispy and healthy baked gujiya:

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tbsp ghee + for greasing
1 cup grated khoya
1 tbsp sugar free powder
¼ tsp green cardamom powder
¼ cup fresh scraped coconut
4-6 almonds, blanched and slivered
1 tbsp chopped walnuts
10-12 finely chopped cashew
1 tbsp raisins
3-4 dates, deseeded and chopped
1 tbsp muskmelon seeds
Water to make the dough
Baking tray
Gujia mold

Procedure

Prepare the dough first:

Take the wheat flour in a big bowl, add two tablespoons of ghee, and knead the dough using lukewarm water. Ghee will make your gujiya crisp. Now set the dough aside for 25-30 minutes.

Prepare the filling for gujiya:

1. Take a non-stick pan, add khoya, and mix until it melts.
2. Once the khoya has melted and turned golden, add the dates and heat until they have softened slightly.
3. Now, add coconut and cardamom powder and mix it well for a minute.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer it to a plate. Once it has cooled slightly, add sugar mix powder, almonds, walnuts, raisins, cashews, and muskmelon seeds.

Also read: Here are 7 fancy Holi recipes to not let diabetes cause ‘rang mein bhang’!

Prepare the gujiyas now:

1. Preheat the oven to 180° C and now form a tiny ball of dough into a puri-size chapati. This will be the gujiya’s cover.
2. Place the chapati into the gujiya mold. Fill the middle with a tablespoon of the filling.
3. Dip your finger in water, apply it to the roundels’ edges, fold it into a moon shape, press the edges to seal, and twist to make a gujiya pattern. Remove any excess wrapping.

Bake them:

1. After making all the gujiyas, place all of them on a baking tray lined over the parched paper and brush some ghee on top.
2. Bake the tray in a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool slightly.
3. Store in an airtight container and enjoy them with cool drinks or hot tea!

A few tips to keep in mind while preparing gujiya to make it healthy:

1. Make sure you’re using a non-fried method to prepare gujiya, such as the baking method.
2. Choose natural sweeteners instead of processed sugar, which might influence your blood sugar levels and cause other health problems.
3. Add healthy nuts and seeds to your gujiya to make it healthier.
4. Though gujiya is made with maida, using a deep-fried method, you can make it healthier by omitting the maida and substituting a gluten-free grain like Jowar.
5. Gujiya can be stored in airtight jars for a few weeks, depending on the filling you choose. Gujiya, for example, will keep fresh for around 3-4 days because it contains mawa. Nevertheless, if you make the filling with rava/semolina, it will have a longer shelf life.

So enjoy gujiyas without any guilt and stay healthy!