Carrot and Raisin Tartlets
These bite-sized pretty and dainty tartlets are delicious, healthy and ideal for an anytime, and makes a must-have sweet instead of the store bought mithais. You can prepare these beforehand and store in the fridge for a couple of days. The tartlet base can be prepared way before and are versatile as they can be used as cookies or served with both sweet and savoury dips.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup mixed flour of jowar, bajri, ragi (these are Indian millets). Use any one, two or all of them.
- 1/4th cup cold butter/ghee Coldwater to bind into a dough.
METHOD OF PREPARATION OF TARTLETS
- Chop the cold butter quickly and into the flour. Mix quickly using a fork or fingertips so the flour resembles breadcrumbs. Add the cold water, as much as required to make a soft dough.
- Chill the dough for 30 minutes Roll out the dough into a large round around ¼ inch thick, using a little flour if it sticks. With the help of a cookie cutter or a small sharp-edged bowl (vati) cut small rounds.
- Bake them in a pre-heated oven (180 degrees C) in tartlet cups/trays for fifteen to twenty minutes. Cool on a wire rack. The baking time may vary depending on how soft your dough is and the oven. If you do not have tartlet trays use shallow steel.
- You can also cook them as ‘bhakhri’ on a pan/griddle.
- The tartlets will be like cookies, crisp but soft.
- Cool and store in airtight container.
INGREDIENTS FOR CARROT RAISIN FILLING
- 2 to 3 cups grated and steamed carrots (can also cook the carrots in milk)
- 1/4th cup ground Khadi Shakar or raw sugar
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 2 tbsp chopped/slivered blanched almonds
- 2 tbsp chopped cashew nuts
- Pinch of saffron soaked in a tsp of milk
- A large pinch cardamom powder
- ½ cup cream
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp rose water or kewra water
- Rose petals and tiny mint leaves for decoration
METHOD OF PREPARATION
- In a heavy bottomed pan add steamed and drained carrots, cream, sugar, raisins, almonds, cashews and cook on medium flame, stirring continuously till the mix becomes a thick lump and all ingredients are well blended.
- Switch off the heat and add saffron, cardamom and mix well
- Add the ghee, rose or kewra water and mix well. Chill the mixture
ASSEMBLING THE TARTLETS- Fill the tartlets with the carrot filling and decorate with rose petals and tiny mint leaves. In case you are using flat tartlet rounds (bhakhris), spread the filling thickly on the bhakhri rounds and decorate similarly