Not your average Gulab Jamun

Tip: Adding a flavorful twist to Gulab Jamun

Every place has a way to localize food items.. I have heard - in Surat - if the menu says "special" it almost always involves adding dry fruits to the dish. In Konkan, Poha is served with fresh grated coconut and coriander, whereas in Indore, you'd put shev/farsan on poha. For that matter an Indori would put shev/farsan on almost anything :-).

Speaking of Indore.. this place takes "localization" to another level. Regular Jalebi - no good.. make it mawa jalebi - each Jalebi should weigh at least 1/2 pound. Same thing with Gulab Jamun.. let's make it twice or three times in size and let's add a mixture of dry fruits, saffron and cardamom in the center.. to make it Mawa Baati.

I used this idea with a ready-to-make Gulab Jamun mix. I made a mixture of ground cashew nuts and almonds. Added cardamom powder and saffron strands to the mixture. While making Gulab Jamun, I added about - half a centimeter wide ball of this mixture in the center. Rest of the Gulab Jamun recipe remained the same. Addition of this mixture did not interfere with the sponginess of the Gulab Jamun.

Ok.. now, what I made is not even close to the real Mawa Baati (D'oh! there is no mawa).
But the aromatic, flavorful surprise is just wonderful when you bite into the Gulab Jamun.