Main Ingredients Gram Flour/Kadala Maavu/Besan Flour - 2 Cups Water - 1 Cup + 1-2 Tbsp Oil - To Fry Sugar - 2 Cups (To make Syrup, also refer Note) Cardamom Powder - 2tsp Fry Separately and add it to the boondi at last Whole Cloves - 1/2 Tbsp Broken Cashews - 1 n 1/2 Tbsp Raisins - 1 Tbsp Other Ingredients Kalkandu/Rock Candy - 1 Tbsp Edible Camphor - Pinch

Method Picture 3 below shows the ladle I used to make this boondi . Mix 1 cup of water to the flour, leave it aside for 5 mins (by this time it may have few lumps, nothing to worry). Meanwhile heat enough oil in the pan/kadai. Later mix the batter well with another couple of tbsps of water and make lump free batter and check the consistency as shown in picture 1. When you drop a spoonful of batter, it forms a mark and then slowly disappears/merges with remaining batter. Also the oil should be very hot and check it by adding a drop of batter, it should pop up immediately. Try to keep the hole/boondi ladle as high as possible over hot oil (Pic 2) and add the batter, tap soon the batter with the spatula you use (Pic 3). It should flow when you tap it, check tips section for more useful information. Don’t over load the pan, for this boondi, the boondi should pop and cook that’s it, don't wait to turn golden brown or crisp, note this. Drain the excess oil using paper towel. Before starting the next batch wipe the front and back with damp cloth and repeat the above process till done with all gram flour batter. Once done with all the gram flour batter, fry cloves, raisins and cashew in the same oil and drain the excess oil. (You can separately fry in ghee too) How to make Sugar Syrup Take 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of water, boil in medium flame till all the sugar dissolves and changes color/clear syrup. Add cardamom powder, I grinded it with sugar and also with skin (Pic 4). When the sugar gets thick, say approx 8 minutes after it dissolved well in medium flame, check the consistency by taking a drop between your thumb and next finger (Pic 5). Slowly try to expand it should at least cross 1/2 string and upto 1 string (Pic 5). Now remove the syrup from flame, reserve 1/3 cup and add the boondi to this hot syrup. Leave it aside for 1 hour by covering the top and with on/off stirring for every 15 minutes once. During each stir if the boondis(Pic 6) need some syrup you can add tbsp of reserved syrup by this time. Also after an hour if you have too much syrup, filter it, add the fried cloves and other stuffs, pinch of edible camphor, kalkandu (Pic 7). Mix all evenly and press the mixture well with your fist to hold round balls (Pic 8). Repeat the same till finish with all boondis and this can be in room temperature for almost a month, if handled properly. Variations The sugar in this ladoos are moderate, you can increase another 1/2 cup sugar if you wish. You can add orange/red food color if you like in the batter. Grind few syrup soaked boondis and mix together to make easy laddu/balls.