Gajak

What to get ready

• Roasted white sesame seeds 1.4 lb
• Palm sugar 1.5 lb
• Ghee 3.5 oz
• Cardamom 0.6 oz
• Pistachios 4.2 oz
• Lime 1.2

Method

1. 1 Roast sesame seeds in a dry pan until they pop evenly, then coarsely grind them in a mortar.
2. 2 Cook the palm sugar syrup with ghee and a few drops of lemon juice until it forms stiff threads.
3. 3 Mix in the ground sesame seeds, then pour onto a stone surface and brush with ghee.
4. 4 Beat the block with a wooden mallet continuously for 10 minutes until it breaks down into a thin layer.
5. 5 The pounding process is different from rolling the candy into balls, resulting in a light, crunchy texture that melts in your mouth.
6. 6 Roll the dough to a thickness of 3 mm, then cut it into diamond shapes while still warm and sprinkle with pistachios.

With an appliance

• Microwave 46 min

  Replace step 2: swirl the palm sugar, ghee, and lemon in a glass pitcher at 800 W for 3 minutes, then add 15-second intervals to 125–128 degrees; this will achieve the firm, stringy consistency faster, around 4 minutes, and allow for easy heat control at the right time. Step 4, pounding with a pestle, should still be done for 10 minutes, as this is what creates the crisp, airy texture of the candy.