Diwali – the festival of lights – is one of my most favorite Indian festivals. I still remember, growing up, we used to start preparing for Diwali right after Dussehra. Deep cleaning the house, making gharondas (doll house made with bricks and clay), buying multi-colored clay utensils, etc., etc. The entire house would smell like fried food due to numerous types of savories and sweets being prepared in advance! Papa would be busy planning what types of lights and fireworks to get, making sure the latest ones were on the list! Mummy would pay attention to minute details about cleaning, Puja items, new outfits, gifts, food, etc.

Our happiness had no bounds on this day, running around in our new clothes, waiting for sun to go down so we could start the Laxmi Puja, light diyas in the entire house and then move on to our favorite part – sparklers and fireworks! Oh, how I wish, I could go back in time! I know I cannot, so I am trying to teach my kids all about our festivals and make an effort to follow the culture and traditions taught by our parents. And, I am happy to say that they all absolutely love Diwali just like me!

One of the most exciting customs for me to follow is to prepare some festive delicacies and share them with family and friends. I am so excited to share this new recipe with you all today – Moong Palak Mathris! I used Moong daal flour and fresh spinach to make these savory snacks. They turned out perfect – crunchy and yummilicious!

Wishing you all a very Happy and Prosperous Diwali!!

Recipe                                         Makes: 50-55 Mathris                            Time: 1.5 hours

Ingredients

• 2 cups Maida (all purpose flour)
• 1 cup Moong flour (green gram flour)
• 5-6 Tbsp. Oil
• 2 tsps. Ajwain (carom seeds)
• 2 cups Spinach, finely chopped (I used fresh spinach)
• 1 tsp. Chaat masala
• ½ tsp. Garam masala
• 1 tsp. Red chili powder
• Salt to taste
• Oil for frying

Method

1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
2. Add water to the mixture to form hard dough. Make sure to add water little at a time.
3. Take small size ball of dough (about a tsp. size) and roll it out in a round shape, like a poori.
4. Poke the rolled out poori with a fork.
5. Heat oil in a pan and fry few at a time on low heat.
6. One batch takes about 10-12 minutes for it to become crispy.
7. Cool and store in airtight container.

Notes:

• You can bake these mathris at 350 F (180C) for about 25-30 minutes. make sure to flip them after 20 minutes.
• You can add half maida and half whole wheat flour if you like.
• Try these with fenugreek (methi) leaves for a different flavor!