Sugar free Dates & Nuts Rolls

Desserts are always so much fun to prepare and enjoy with family especially during festive season. But it also comes with some guilt of consuming all the unwanted sugar! Hence, sometimes I try to sneak in some healthy desserts on my list that can be indulged guilt free. :) So here I am today with sugar free, gluten free, butter free Dates & Nuts Rolls. 

These rolls are made with just a few simple and natural ingredients. It is a breeze to make these Dates & Nuts Rolls as they can be prepared within few minutes. Just chop your choice of nuts, add seeds, dates & ghee, settle the mixture in fridge for an hour and voila you are ready to cut the delicious rolls into pieces. Sometimes, I like to make laddoos instead of roll if I don't want to wait for it to set in the fridge. You can really try various ways to present this dessert, depending on the occasion. The flavors come from the roasted nuts and sweetness comes from the dates. If you like nuts then you are definitely going to love these nutty sweet delights. These rolls are a wonderful delight for those who are trying to watch their sugar, weight or just trying to eat or feed healthy to their family. 

Nutritional Value

Nuts (Dry fruits) - I have used almonds, walnuts, pistachios and cashews to make this dessert. Nuts are considered one of the healthiest snack and are an excellent source of healthy fats, protein, vitamins (especially vitamin B & E) and minerals (mainly Magnesium). In fact according to Healthline.com, almonds, walnuts, pistachios and cashews are among the top 9 nuts to eat for better health.

Dates - Dates are one of the super foods and are packed with nutrition. They are a great source of fibers, vitamins and minerals including but not limited to potassium, magnesium, copper and vitamin B. Dates are a natural sweetener and also full of antioxidants. Here are some of the known health benefits of Dates - help improve digestion, bone health and skin health; also help lower cholesterol. 

You can also call them Energy rolls as they are packed with bunch of nutrients. Here is a quick video to help you get started followed by detailed recipe...

Yields 10 -12 pieces

Prepare time 15 minutes 

Cook time 10 minutes 

Ingredients

1/3 Cup chopped almonds

1/3 Cup chopped walnuts

1/3 Cup chopped cashew

1/4 Cup chopped pistachio

1/4 Cup Pumpkin seeds

1 Tbsp khas-khas/ poppy seeds

1 1/4 Cup pitted dates

1 Tbsp ghee/ clarified butter

Instructions 

Start by roughly chopping all the nuts by knife as chopping in food processor will yield into more fine powder than chunks. Next, coarsely grind pitted dates in the food processor or blender. Just make sure to not blend the dates into puree. 

Now heat up a sauce pan on a low-medium flame and add ghee/ clarified butter. Next as ghee starts to melt, add poppy seeds/ khas-khas to the pan along with pumpkin seeds. Roast them for about a minute until poppy seeds start turning slight brown. 

Now add coarsely ground or crushed dates to the pan. Mix them well with the seeds by smashing and stirring for another minute. 

Further add all the chopped nuts including almonds, walnuts, cashews and half of the pistachios. Incorporate the nuts with the crushed dates mixture so that dates are evenly coating the nuts. 

Continuously stir the mixture for another 2-3 minutes or until everything starts coming together as a dough. Turn off the flame and allow the mixture to cool for about 5 minutes.

Now roll the mixture to form a log. I made 2 logs and joined them at the end which turned out to be easier and faster rather than trying to form one big log. 

Tightly wrap the logs in a parchment paper or foil and refrigerate for an hour to settle. After an hour, take the log out and unwrap. 

Now spread some ghee and sprinkle over some finely chopped pistachios and poppy seeds. Roll the dates and nuts log over it to evenly coat poppy seeds and pistachios. This step is optional but will beautify your rolls for more attractive presentation. 

Lastly, cut the log into thick slices (about 1/4" thick) and the delicious Sugar free Dates & Nuts rolls are ready to relish. 

Additional Notes/ Tips

Any combination of nuts and seeds can be used to make this delicious dessert. 

I have used less dates and more nuts in my recipe as I just love the nutty flavor and my family likes less sweeter taste. Feel free to increase amount of dates to 1 1/2 cup to have sweeter taste and fudgy texture.

 

Quinoa & Oats Idli - No fermentation, no soaking

Idli, sambhar and chutney is a classic South Indian breakfast that is prepared and savored by almost all the households in India. Typically Idlis are made of fermented rice and urad dal (lentil) batter but lately there have been many variations to this classic dish, mostly to reduce the preparation time or add more flavors. I have also tried different versions of Idli and I like the Quinoa & Oats Idli the most as it is by far the quickest and healthier version of all that I have tried. These fluffy and soft Idlis are sure to brighten up your morning. 

Traditionally Idlis are eaten for breakfast, but I enjoy eating these delicious soft Idlis for any meal of the day! These Quinoa & Oats Idlis can be prepared in less than 45 minutes including grinding flour and resting the batter for few minutes. Unlike rice Idlis, these do not need any soaking of dals or fermentation which saves so much time and efforts. Just grind the Quinoa and Oats, mix with rava and yogurt, rest the mixture for few minutes and ta-da you are ready to pour the batter into Idli trays. So easy and time saving especially on those busy work days. Moreover, these Quinoa & Oats Idlis are packed with nutrients. 

Nutritional Value

Quinoa as we know is one of the super foods. But, is it a super grain or super seed? Fun fact - Widely known as whole grain, Quinoa is actually a seed from amaranth family. This super food is high in fiber, full of antioxidants and minerals, rich in protein, yet lean. Due to such high nutritional value, Quinoa provides great health benefits and also serves as one of the popular diet foods for those trying to lose some extra pounds. :)

Oats are incredibly nutritious, in fact they are considered one of the healthiest grains of all. They are an excellent source of minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, fibers and protein. According to various sources, Oats have many health benefits including lowering cholesterol, maintain blood sugar, and help you keep fuller for longer. 

So without further ado, See recipe video below followed by detailed step by step recipe...

Serves 4-6

Prepare time - 25 minutes

Cook time - 15 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 Cup quinoa 

1/2 Cup oats

1/2 Cup rava

1/2 Cup curd/yogurt

1/3 Cup sweet corn (optional)

2 Cup water

1 Tsp salt

1 Tsp fruit salt or baking soda

Water for steamer

Oil for greasing Idli trays

Instructions 

Start by dry roasting oats in a pan on a medium flame for 2 to 3 minutes. Blend the dry roasted oats into a fine flour in the blender and transfer into a large mixing bowl. 

Now dry roast quinoa for 2-3 minutes in the same pan and blend it to fine flour in a blender. Transfer the quinoa flour in the mixing bowl along with oats flour. 

Dry roast rava in the pan and add to the mixing bowl.

Add salt and give everything a nice mix. 

Next add yogurt and mix again. Now add water little at a time to make a smooth runny batter. Cover the bowl with a lid and rest the batter for 15 minutes.

In the meanwhile, take Idli steamer and add 1 1/2 cup water to it. Turn on the flame at medium to start heating up the water inside. Also, grease the Idli trays with oil and keep them aside.

After 15 minutes, check the batter to see if you need to add any water as the flours would have soaked all the extra water. Now, the batter should be of thick consistency but if it looks dry then adjust it by adding little water as required.

Now add sweet corn and stir in the fruit salt or baking soda in the batter, it will form some foam on the top which is fine.

Take a spoon and start pouring the batter into greased Idli trays.

Place the trays in the steamer and close the lid. Turn the flame on medium high and set the timer for 14 minutes.

After 14 minutes, turn off the flame and open the steamer after 5 minutes. Take off the Idli trays and let them cool down for another 5-10 minutes.

Gently scoop out the soft and spongy Idlis from the trays, transfer them to a bowl and cover them with a lid or cloth to keep the Idlis soft. 

Serve these light and fluffy Quinoa & Oats Idlis with coconut chutney and hot piping sambhar to make a perfect breakfast! 

Additional notes/ tips

I have only added sweet corn but you can add veggies like carrots or peas whatever is available in your refrigerator. 

 

You can dry roast the quinoa, oats and rava ahead of time and keep them in airtight container to save some extra time. 

You can also blend the dry roasted quinoa and oats to fine flour ahead of time.