Munch on Finger-millet Bites

Finger-millet bites (Ragi ladoo) are delicious, healthy and nutritious made with finger-millet (ragi) flour, jaggery, nuts and seeds. These bites make an amazing snack for toddlers, kids and adults.

In India, finger-millets have different names as ragi or nachni. Finger-millet is known as one of the healthy and nutritious foods in most of south India. I make these snack bites frequently and we eat them all day long. This is my husband’s all time hunger craver favorite snack and we can not resist to stop eating them.

Simple things are often the best, and these finger-millet snack bites are simple, tasty and filled with the powerhouse nutrients.

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Finger-millet Bites

Finger-millet bites are a delicious, flavourful and highly nutritious snack or dessert. You can make this delicious sweet with just a few ingredients. It is a healthy snack for kids after school or when you need to make a sweet quickly. This recipe of finger-millet snack bites.

Servings: 14 to 15 snack bites (ladoos)

Prep Time: 25min

Course: Sweet, Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups finger millet flour (ragi flour)

• 3/4 cup organic powdered Jaggery

• 1/3 cup coconut oil or olive oil (or Clarified Unsalted Butter/ ghee for non-vegan)

• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder

Instructions:

How to Roast the finger-millet flour Prepare:

• Preparation:

1. Take 1.5 cups Finger-millet flour in a thick bottomed broad pan.

2. Keep the pan on a low flame or sim and begin to roast the Finger-millet flour. Keep stirring the flour while roasting so that there is even roasting.

3. Roast till the color changes and you get a nice aroma from the Finger-millet flour. About 15 minutes on a low flame. The roasting time of the flour will vary depending on the type of the pan material, size and thickness.(While roasting the flour, you have to go by the aroma and taste of the cooked flour. While the flour is getting roasted it will release a nutty aroma and when you taste it should be crunchy/crispy. Keep an eye while roasting as the flour gets burnt very easily.)

How to make Finger-millet bites Mixture:

1. Add 1/3 cup organic coconut oil in the flour. The organic cold compressed coconut oil will melt. - (You may not like the flavor based on the coconut oil or olive oil on acquired taste.)

2. Now mix the coconut oil with the flour.

3. Constantly stir the roasting mixture for 8 to 10 minute more or less. Here also the time will vary with the pan size, material, and thickness.

4. Taste the Finger-millet flour and it will have a crunchy taste. Roast it till the rawness in the flour is turned into good aroma and tasty.

5. When there is no rawness, then switch off the stove. Put the pan aside.

6. Add 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder and add 3/4 cup jaggery powder. You can use any sweetener of your choice instead of jaggery, but as per your taste.

7. After adding, mix it well. There should not be any tiny lumps in the mixture.

How to make roll the finger-millet bites into shape:

1. When the mixture becomes warm from hot, then mix everything again very well with your hands and break small lumps if any with your hands.

2. With your hands take a portion of the mixture and roll it into small balls.

3. If you are unable to form small balls, then add a few tablespoons of coconut oil, like a cream to your palms and begin to roll the mixture into round snack bites.

4. Roll all of the mixture into small balls.

5. Once cooled and dried, store it in an airtight jar or container. Serve them as a snack or dessert.

* [The other option for better taste instead of coconut oil or olive oil is to use almonds and dates.

Here is how you make it. Soak 12-15 dates in water for an hour or so and grind to a fine paste. Set aside. Dry roast 1/2 cup almonds and grind into a paste. As you grind it will start secreting oils. Now add the roasted finger-millet flour to this, add the dates paste and mix well. Add more or less finger-millet flour based on the need. Now roll the mixture into small balls.]

How to make non-vegan finger-millet bites?

To make non-vegan finger-millet snack bites you can use the ghee instead of the coconut oil or the olive oil. Ghee helps like the binding agent for these snack bites.

NOTES:

• If you are using jaggery you can reduce oil/ghee by 2 tablespoons as jaggery will help in binding.

• You can double or halve the recipe

• Finger-millet can be good for around a week to 10 days at room temperature.

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Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions! If you have tried the Finger-millet bites recipe and liked it then, please leave me a comment and I would love to hear your feedback. You can tag and follow on: https://www.instagram.com/snapsbyshalini/