Narkoler Naroo ( Coconut Ladoo )

I am not sure if it is a grand-ma thing , but all grand-ma's old or new , are always steeped with goodies for their grand kids . I have favorite memories of my Thamma making these brilliant goodies , which i have literally grown up eating every single day of my childhood . Later , as I progressed to college and during my early work days , i remember these beauties being couriered to me , neatly packed as a goodie box and accompanied with a hand written postcard and an occasional 100 rs note .

Thamma made the best kuler aachar ( a piquant pickle made of an Indian berry , better known as Jujube ) , Elojhelo ( a crispy sweet finger food, made out of flour dough ) and this oh so yummy , Narkoler Naroo , which topped my favorite's list ! I distinctly remember how she would first closely monitor our housemaid through the hand grating process of the coconut . The fruit had to be carefully extracted and no hairy shell or fibrous kernel was allowed in the grated coconut . She would then patiently cook the fresh coconut with powdered sugar , stirring it over low flame for hours together , till it formed the right consistency of a sticky dough . Thereafter , she would park herself on her self assigned chair in our dining table and as she rested her knees , most effortlessly and almost as if in an instant , roll out the naroos out of the hot coconut dough .

Now , the thing is that, if you are using fresh desiccated coconut , slow cooking it is the foundation of the traditional recipe . This step takes a minimum of 60- 80 mins of continuous forearm exercise , as the fresh fruit takes time to release its natural oils and bind together with the sugar . In my part of the world , i managed to improvise on this elongated step for my stressed out days and hit upon a short cut , which cut the entire cooking time to almost half . Depending on the time you have in hand and the effort you are ready to put in , you can decide if you want to want to go the fresh coconut way or simply settle for my quick and instant short cut method , using desiccated powdered dry coconut . I have tried both versions and texture wise , both yielded pretty much the same result . Let me take you through this :

Things you will need :

• 2 cups dry desiccated coconut

• 1 teaspoon ghee (clarified butter)

• ½ teaspoon cardamom powder or 4 to 5 green cardamoms crushed in a mortar-pestle

• ¾ cup condensed milk or 220 grams sweetened condensed milk

• ⅓ cup desiccated or fresh coconut for rolling

• Chopped dry fruits of your choice (optional)

• 01 tsp camphor - optional

Steps to follow :

• Heat the frying pan and add the desiccated coconut - stir and saute the coconut on a low flame for 2-3 minutes.

• Add the sweetened condensed milk along with the cardamom powder and camphor.

• Cook this mixture on a low flame , stirring regularly - When the mixture begins to leave the sides of the pan and you see some coconut fat in the sides, switch off the flame.

• Pour this ladoo mixture in another bowl or pan.

• Now - douse your palms with some cold water and make small to medium balls from the mixture - Note , this needs to be done while the dough is still hot.

• Evenly , roll the coconut ladoo's in desiccated coconut to finish.

• Place them in small muffin liners or just in a tray to cool off .

• These ladoo's stay good in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Enjoy !