It is almost time for Diwali, which I could argue is the biggest event celebrated across the country in India by people of varying faiths. With that comes the need to start thinking about the sweets that will be made!

Whilst it is a Hindu festival, Diwali today is celebrated more for the fun, games and incredible food. The festival is celebrated with plenty of parties, family events, dancing and in some communities it is tradition to play games of poker.

What is Diwali?

Diwali, also known as Deepavali or Divali, is the festival of Lights celebrated by many religious communities across South Asia. Usually celebrated over 5 days, Diwali is always associated with the Goddess of Laxmi (the Goddess of Wealth) and her arrival into our homes. The lights and lamps that are lit up are to guide her right into our homes on this day – my dad would get very mad if I switched any of them off!

The festival of lights is also associated with the day that Ram (an incarnation of the God Vishnu, the preserver as part of the Hindu Supreme Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu & Mahesh) returned to his home Ayodhya with wife Sita and brother Lakshman after defeating the evil King Ravan.

In Sikhism, Diwali is celebrated as Bandi Chhor Divas which commemorates the day that Guru Hargobind (The sixth Guru of Sikhs) was released from Gwalior Fort after Emperor Jahangir has imprisoned him for several months. The celebration often includes the recitation of Akhand Paath (a reading of Guru Granth Sahib), Nagar Keertan (processions in the street), and fireworks. Learn more about Sikhism here.

In Jainism, Diwali is the date that Mahavir attained absolute liberation. Whilst Hindu and Sikh celebrations have some fanfare, Jain celebration are based on the principle of Ahinsa (or non violence). As a result fireworks are not a typically display during Diwali celebrations and instead opt to decorate the home and temples with lights and diyas, and the sharing of sweets. Some Jains also fast for 2 days in remembrance of the sacrifice of Mahavir. The Jain new year also commences the day after Diwali. Learn more about Jainism here.

The 5 days of Diwali

Diwali refers to the 5 day period of celebration which goes as follows

Dhanteras

Dhanteras is typically celebrated with the giving of gifts to loved ones. In scriptures it is said to be the day that the God of Ayurveda imparted the wisdom of Ayurvedic practices to the World.

Legend has it that when the Sumudra Manthan was performed, Dhanvantari (God of Ayurveda and an incarnation of Vishnu) emerged with the elixir. Another legend follows that the King Hima predicted his death on the 4th day of his marriage. To combat this, his wife laid out as much gold, silver and other ornaments as possible, and did not let her husband sleep. When the Lord of Death (Yama) arrived he was dazzled by the ornaments and instead sat there listening to the stories the Kinds wife was reciting. He then silently left.

As a result this day is celebrated with the giving of gifts, in particular clothing, gold and ornaments.

Narak Chaturdashi or Choti Diwali

This day celebrates the day that the Demon (Asura) Naraka was killed by the Goddess Mahakali. The day is celebrated the day before Diwali or Lakshmi Puja with lights, songs and dancing.

Lakshmi Puja or Diwali

The main day of Diwali is celebrated with the biggest of shows. There are fireworks, and firecrackers, as well as dancing, music and delicious food served up to guests and worshippers. On this day it is said that Lakshmi enters our house using the lights as a guide, and brings us and our families happiness, wealth and prosperity.

Bali Pratipada

Also known as Bali Padwa (Maharashtra), Bali Padyami (Karnataka), Barlaj (Himachal Pradesh), Raja Bali (Jammu) and Gujrati and Marwari New Year.

On this day, worshippers celebrate the annual return of Mahabali to Earth and the victory of Vamana (the 5th Vishnu incarnation). As with the rest of the days in Diwali, this day is celebrated with food, music and dancing.

Bhai Dooj

Also known as Bhau Beez, this day celebrates the relationship between a brother and sister. The day in particular focuses on the duty of the brother to protect his sister. I never really celebrated this day myself at home as I don’t have any brothers.

How is Diwali Celebrated?

Each family has their own way of celebrating Diwali, and every culture and custom will differ. What I cam sharing here is simply a few things that my own family would do to celebrate. This article from the Times of India shares a few different traditions to celebrate!

Typically Diwali would feature some gifts amongst the family, always featuring some new clothing to wear on the day of Diwali in particular. We would spend the week prior preparing at least 10 different sweets and savoury items including the sweets listed below, and then some more! The home would be decorated, and the 2 weeks prior we would engage in a huge spring clean. Rangoli (drawings on the floor using rice flour and colour) would be drawn at the entrances to the home, and a garland using mango leaves and marigold flowers would be hung up over the door.

On the day of Diwali we would wake up extra early to apply a herbal paste called ubtan which would be mixed with oil and applied like a scrub on our whole bodies. My father would make a mixture called Panchamrut made of milk, honey, ghee, yogurt, and sugar topped with some Tulsi which would be used after the ubtan. Finally we would cleanse using water (and soap of course!). We would always be required to wash our hair that morning as well.

These traditions are incredibly dear to me, and I love the way in which my father observes them all. While in High School and University I felt as if I couldn’t enjoy much of the celebrations of Diwali here in Australia owing to the exam season that would always be around the same time. After graduating however, my role in Diwali has become completely about the sweets!

Not only do I make the bulk of them, I also get the chance to experiment and try some new, interesting and traditional recipes. To be completely honest with you, nothing gives me greater joy!

My Top 10 Diwali Sweets

1. Malpua

This is my ultimate favourite Indian sweet to make. There is a bit of effort and resting time required but my gosh is it worth the time and energy! Malpua is a sweet, fried pancake particularly popular in Rajasthan. It is made with a batter comprising of four, jaggery and/or sugar, fennel, cardamom and saffron. The pancake is then soaked in sugar syrup laced with rose and cardamom.

Find my recipe right here.

2. Gulab Jamun

Name a more iconic Indian sweet! Sweet fried dumplings all soaking in a delicious rose and cardamom syrup. Honestly, Gulab Jamun to me is everything luxury and brings me all the beautiful memories of family, friends and festivals. If there is a dessert you absolutely must try making at home, it is this one.

The trick to making perfect Gulab Jamun is to master the art of cooking the jamun/dumplings low and slow in the oil. This makes sure that the balls have cooked through completely, don’t burn on the outside and still develop a beautifully browned exterior. By ensuring the dough is cooked right through you will create the perfect sponge for the syrup which is so so important to make this dessert!

My recipe makes roughly 30 small Gulab Jamun balls.

3. Almond & Saffron Barfi

One of the simplest but most widely consumed Indian sweets for you to make, Almond & Saffron Barfi is a real crowd pleaser. Barfi is such a great recipe to make a huge batch of. I often double up the recipe to make a really large amount because it is so easy to distribute barfi among friends and family. To do so, simply cut up the barfi into bite size squares and serve in decorate boxes for your family, friends and Diwali guests.

Barfi is also one of the best Indian sweets to distribute in the office or to your neighbours!

Have a go at my recipe right here

4. Shahi Shakharpare / Champakali

Another Diwali classic, these are delicious sugar coated fried biscuits. Whilst at home we would make a slightly less intricate version of this recipe, featuring a sweet dough, Shahi Shakarpare take this to the absolute next level. There is a bit of technique required to get the perfect leaf shaped folds to your biscuits, but once you get the hang of it these do not take long to make at all.

My recipe will make about 30 biscuits and can be stored in an airtight container for up to a month!

5. Mango & Coconut Barfi

Mango and Coconut is such an iconic South Asian combination. Call me biased, but India genuinely has the most incredible Mangoes in the world – in particular the Alphonso mango from the Konkan region.

I digress.

My mango and coconut barfi is a total family favorite and it features in every single one of my family events. These work perfectly as barfi squares, little pedas (or small flattened ball shapes like coins) or even can be used in molds like I have (the shape I have used below are Modak shapes for Ganpati!).

6. Atte ka Halwa

Also known as Kara Prashad, Atte Ka Halwa is a wholewheat pudding served usually at Sikh temples and religious events. I used to look forward to visiting the Gurudwara especially to be able to get my hands on some of the halwa. It would be dripping in ghee and full of deliciousness. My version of this recipe isn’t quite as rich and loaded with ghee and sugar, but still tastes incredible.

7. Shahi Tukda

This is what I call my signature dessert.

I do so because this is the first Indian sweet that I spent hours and hours of my time developing. The story behind this is from many years ago when a dear family friend refused to share her recipe to make Shahi Tukda. So I decided to make my own version!

I’ve tried this recipe with regular white bread, whole meal bread, brioche, croissants… you name it! I personally believe the best results come with using whole meal bread. This recipe is great to make ahead (the day before is perfect!) and serve up after the bread has had it’s time to soak up all the beautifully flavoured custard.

Find my recipe right here!

8. Beetroot Halwa

Not much beats the stunning flavour and colour of this Beetroot Halwa. Whilst I believe this is the best dessert to be made for Holi (the festival of Color), I couldn’t pass up sharing it for Diwali too! It’s perfect for every season in my opinion.

This recipe was part of my cooking class series earlier this year (2021) and was loved by everyone too! I use a hint of rose to complement the rich earthy beetroot flavour. Trust me it makes a world of difference.

9. Rasgulla

Homemade Rasgulla are 1000% better than what you can find in prepackaged containers. Trust me.

Whenever someone gifted our family a container, I would absolutely dread having to open it. The overly sweet syrup and crust that would form on the dumplings would be far too much for me to handle. The result would be hard rasgullas that would cause anyone tooth pain.

This recipe is great for a small batch of 8 rasgulla and coms together super easily. Similar to Gulab Jamun and Shahi Tukda, I recommend making this at least one day ahead to let the rasgulla dumplings soak up the syrup completely!

10. Milk Barfi

One of the most viewed recipes on the website is my Milk Barfi recipe. Truth be told this is a cheat’s version that can be made super quickly and is great to make when you have guests coming over and you simply don’t have the time!

Similar to the mango & coconut barfi, and the saffron & almond barfi, this one can also be made into barfi squares, pedas (flattened ball shaped like coins) or even can be shaped using a mold. I usually make this barfi about 10 times in the year for all sorts of festivals and happy occasions, and is one of the most requested items by my family and friends.

I hope you find everything you need to prepare for the festive season in my post. I absolutely love seeing all your recipe attempts! Be sure to share your photos with me via Instagram by tagging me @theminiaturelife. Leave me a comment below with any comments or feedback – I love hearing your thoughts.

The post How to make the BEST Diwali Sweets first appeared on The Miniature Life.

Hey all It’s Nirry taking over the blog for today’s post. As you may know a few months ago the both of us went to Hawaii for a holiday. One of the highlights of the trip was the surfing class we took in Maui, the rush you get standing up on the board was just so addictive. Anyway since that moment I haven’t stopped yapping on about it so for my birthday Mini bought me a stack of surfing lessons (She’s awesome I know)!

My initial fears about surfing

Australia boasts close to 2 – 3 million surfers across the country, which is staggering given the country only has a population of a 25 million. But then you think about the sheer number of accessible beaches throughout the country and that number doesn’t seem too far fetched. For someone who grew up loving the water, I wanted to briefly touch on why it’s taken me 25 years to give it ago.

Firstly a fear of the ocean. When I was younger I was once caught in a rip ever since then i’ve always been overly cautious with going out into the ocean. Having had no experience of swimming in the ocean the thought of wading into the ocean and surfing was a far fetched idea.

Secondly, my background. Coming from an Indian background, going out to the beach to surf felt odd. I personally don’t know anyone with a similar background surfing, and you rarely see people with the same skin out on a board.

However, having gone consistently for a few weeks, I can say there was nothing to afraid of. I think a lot of it comes down to a lack of confidence. And the only way to build that up is to keeping going out there and having a go. Further down in the post I’ve listed out a couple of tips for beginners going out without and instructor too.

My experience with lets go surfing Maroubra

The company we went with is let’s go surfing Maroubra. The group have a couple of branches in Sydney, if your a local I’d go with Maroubra, it’s a little quieter then Bondi and there is plenty of free parking along the beach.

The shop itself is just situated behind the main club house, the staff are super friendly and once the forms out of the way, they get you into your wet suit nice and quickly. If you’re a complete beginner (like me) take the surf easy course, they come in packs of 3 or 5. Each lesson is taught in a group of 4 – 5, and lasts about 2 hours each. Trust me that is plenty of time.

Our instructor Dan, manages the shop and has been surfing for the last 15 years or so. He was excellent in getting everyone comfortable, and providing plenty of encouragement and tips along the way. The lessons were broken up into three distinct sections.

• The first 30min was getting to know the group, setting expectations, and understanding how waves work, and general ocean mechanics.

• The second section of the lessons saw us venturing into the water and getting comfortable with catching waves while laying on our boards.

• The third part of the lessons involved us learning about popping up onto our board (i.e how to stand up).

Having completed three lessons the format of each lesson is identical. Unfortunately your instructor will change from week to week but that’s expected with the number of lessons the team run. So if your expecting each lesson to build up on the previous lesson that won’t happen. But what i’ve realised and what each instructor will remind you is the only way to improve is to just keep giving it a go. Once you’ve learn’t how to properly pop up onto your board the rest of the process can be learnt by trying it out for yourself.

So will you be a pro surfer after a couple of lessons? Well i’m certainly not, but I want to walk you through my experience of going by self. It’s likely you’ll find yourself in this position and I think it’s important to share with you my learnings.

1. Before you head out, give the surf shop a call, they’ll tell you what the best conditions are if you are a beginner, and if one beach isn’t good there is a good chance that another beach close by might be better (e.g Bondi instead of maroubra)

2. Once at the surf shop, ask them where on the beach is the best location, tip try and find the surf school and tag a long with them.

3. Stay within your comfort zone. And by that I mean, don’t paddle out too far, and don’t go out if the waves are too big.

I find the the more I’ve gone out the better i’ve started understanding surf conditions, beach protocols etc.

Based of my experience I would highly recommend the lets go surfing Maroubra for anyone looking to learn how to surf. I would recommend taking at minimum 3 group lessons, and then commit yourself to go at least once a week. Nothing like repeating a process to build confidence and muscle memory.

Note: I do have a number of private lessons i’ve yet to take so I shall update this page once I’ve had those too.

Huge shoutout to Mini for taking all the amazing photos and for always being a constant stream of support. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.

The post [experience] Surfing @ Maroubra Beach first appeared on The Miniature Life.