Chaitra Navratri Day 4: The festive time of the year is here. Every year, Chaitra Navratri is celebrated with a lot of pomp and grandeur all over the country. This year, Chaitra Navratri started on April 9 and will go on till April 17. On each day of the festival, a form of Maa Durga is worshipped. Navratri literally translates to nine nights. The nine forms of Maa Durga are – Maa Shailputri, Maa Brahmacharini, Maa Chandraghanta, Maa Kushmanda, Maa Skandamata, Maa Katyayani, Maa Kalaratri, Maa Mahagauri and Maa Siddhidatri.

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Maa Kushmanda is worshipped on the fourth day of Chaitra Navratri. It is believed that Maa Kushmanda created the universe with her divine smile. Ku means little, ushma means warmth and anda means the cosmic egg. Maa Kushmanda has eight hands and rides on a lion. Seasonal fruits are offered to Maa kushmanda during the puja. Kheer and Puda is a great combination to be offered to Maa Kushmanda as bhog. Here’s the recipe to follow.

Ingredients:

For kheer:

Rice 1/4th cup (raw grain)

Almonds 1/4th cup

Milk 1 litre

Sugar

Raisins 1/4th cup

Elaichi powder (cardamom powder 1 tsp)

Condensed milk 200 ml

For Puda:

Water 1.5 cup

Sugar 3/4th cup

Saffron few strands

Wheat flour 1 cup

Rava 1/4th cup

Saunf (fennel seeds) 1 tbsp

Black peppercorns 6-7 nos

Method:

For making the kheer, wash the rice and soak in water for one hour. In a bowl, soak almonds, peel the skin and cut them into slivers. In medium flame, add the rice and milk in a cooker till the pressure builds. We should not let the cooker whistle. Then take it out, add almond slivers, raisins, cardamom powder and condensed milk and cook for some time, and keep aside. For making the Puda, in a pan, add water, sugar, saffron and cook till the sugar melts. In a bowl, add wheat flour, rava, sugar syrup, fennel seeds and black peppercorns and whisk everything together. Grease a pan with ghee, pour a spoonful of wheat and rava mixture and cook. Flip and cook both sides till it’s golden brown and ready.

(Recipe: Sanjyot Keer, Chef)