Call it Gujiya or Karanji, you will never get enough of this delectable delicacy during the Indian festivals. Being a typical Indian kid, I have always grown up enjoying Gujiyas during Holi or Diwali. Holi seems incomplete with Gujiyas. Growing up, I somehow felt connected to the recipe of Gujiya, modifying and altering it without compromising with the authenticity. Now here’s my secret – I do not fry them. Instead, I bake them! Yes, you can make Baked Gujiyas in Airfryer or Microwave Oven too. Well, it may sound shocking but that worked out really well for me. Sometimes, I even use store-bought pie dough to prepare this amazing Indian delicacy. Not only is the recipe easy and healthy, but you get to taste the best baked Gujiya in the world.
What is Gujiya?
Gujiya or Karanji is a very popular Indian dessert prepared mostly during the festivals of Holi and Diwali. Call them by any name – Turnovers, Milk-Fudge Hand-Pies, or simply Dessert Empanadas, their taste, and authenticity remain the same. They are made by stuffing dry fruits and sweetened khoya (milk fudge) inside a pastry sheet. Later, you just need to deep fry them. The best part about Gujiya is that it is made in several parts of the country. As expected, you will find a lot of local names for this dessert. I got to know a few of them during some of my trips. It is called Karanji in Maharashtra, Ghughra in Gujarat, Garijalu in Telangana, Somas in Tamil Nadu, Nevri in Goa, and Kajjikaya in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
Baked Gujiya Recipe
So, you need three important components for making healthy baked Gujiya in airfryer or oven. They are the filling, the wrapper, and the sugar syrup.
- Filling
Gujiya stuffing is mostly made from coconut flakes, khoya, dried fruits and nuts, and cardamom powder.
- Wrapper
You can make a dough yourself using some maida and oil for the baked Gujiya recipe. Otherwise, use the store-bought pie dough as well.
- Sugar syrup
This is my favorite part of the recipe. You can toss the baked Gujiyas in some sugar syrup to give that extra shine and a light-sweet coating but this step is optional.
Follow me on @Instagram for more interesting recipes. Let’s start with the recipe but before that, you might be interested in other interesting Festival Recipes from the blog:
Baked Gujiya
Ingredients
- DOUGH INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil - for making the dough.
- 1 cup Water - 2-3 tsp more
- GUJIYA STUFFING INGREDIENTS :
- 1 Khoya
- 5 tsps Ghee
- 3/4 cup Cup Fine Sugar
- 5 tsps Raw Almonds
- 5 tsps Coconut Powder
- 2 tsps Green Cardamom
- 1 tsps Flour
- 4 tsps Water
- 2 cups Oil - for frying Gujiya
Instructions
- Microwave the Khoya for 2-3 minutes. That will make it easy to crumble it later. You can crumble the Khoya in a non-stick fry pan.
- Use a spatula or a wooden spoon. Press the Khoya down and break it into smaller pieces. You need to keep pressing it until the Khoya becomes soft. Remember one thing! It should have the consistency of a soft dough.
- Then turn off the heat. You can do this entire process in the microwave itself. It’s just that you must continue stirring the Khoya at equal intervals.
- Add the coconut powder, cardamom powder, and chopped nuts. Mix it well and then cool off for 4-5 minutes. Next, you need to add sugar and mix it well again. So, your Gujiya stuffing is ready!
- Take All-purpose Flour in a bowl and add desi ghee. The quantity of ghee should be enough so that once you mix it should hold it's shape when pressed in fist.
- or Place the pie crust or the rolled-out maida evenly. Then use a 2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out the circles.
- Roughly fill 2 teaspoons of the filling, and then seal the wrapper by pressing the edges together.
- Place them on the baking sheet or parchment paper. Then bake them for 11-12 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 400F. Cool them for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat a saucepan on medium heat and add sugar and water to it. Bring them to a boil and simmer until the mixture thickens.
- Cool it down and then dip the baked Gujiyas into the same.
- Sprinkle some powdered sugar or crushed pistachios over them and you are done!