Sesame seeds are small white and oily seeds. They help to keep your body warm. This is the reason why you are required to include sesame seeds in your diet in the winter season. If you are looking for new and cool recipes to gobble down on sesame seeds, then you are at the right page.We are making sesame seed snaps (sounds like a tongue twister!) In India, almost every culture celebrates winter by distributing sweets made out of sesame seeds, be it gajak, revdi, til patti or till gud. What the real significance of all these sweets is that, you should keep your body protected from the harsh winter weather. Most of the times, sesame seed sweets prepared and paired up with jaggery, another warm product. Thus, the combination of these two is the best and tastiest way to beat the cool winter. However, the recipe we are making today, uses honey, because we are looking out for healthy options. Read on to find out how sesame seed snaps are made.

Ingredients

2 cups white sesame seeds (washed and dried, shelled out)

1/2 cup almond meal

1/2 cup honey

1/4th cup  ghee or sesame seed oil

Recipe

Preheat the oven at 180-degree centigrade for 10 minutes.

Line the baking tray with a parchment paper or Silpat.

Dry roast the sesame seeds in a pan. Though this step is completely optional, it is advisable to dry roast the sesame seeds, because of which the sesame seeds will secrete some oil and become more fragrant and flavorful. Adding a new dimension to your recipe.

Gently break the sesame seeds using a rolling pin or a stone. Remember you don’t have to grind it, just break the seeds a little.

Add almond meal to the broken sesame seeds and mix them well.

Now add honey and ghee or sesame seed oil to the above mixture and mix it thoroughly, taking care that sesame seeds and almond meals do not form large chunks.

Gently pour the mixture on lined baking tray and spread it evenly.

Tap to remove the air bubbles, if any.

Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Allow it to cool completely.

When warm, gently mark a line on the tray using a flat spatula or knife, or even a cookie cutter.

Breakdown using the marked lines as guidance. Or cut them into your desired shape.

Enjoy.

Health Benefits/Nutritional Value

Sesame seeds: Rich in dietary fiber, Protein, Folate, and minerals like calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Warm in nature, helps to keep the body warm within and prevent from the cool weather. To know more, click here.

Almonds: Rich source of monounsaturated fatty acids, protein, Folate (Vitamin B9) Choline, Vitamin E, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorous and Potassium. Boosts memory, provides instant energy. To find out more reasons to include almonds in your daily diet, click here.

Ghee: Also useful for lactose intolerants because when ghee is made out of butter, it loses all the impurities and milk solids. Regular consumption of ghee keep the joints smooth and friction free. Being rich in butyric acid, it helps to aid digestion and boosts weight loss. Carries medicinal properties which enhance the flavour and nutrients of herbs and spices, when used together. It also reduces blood cholesterol. To know more benefits of ghee, click here.

Organic Honey: Healthy alternative to regular white sugar (contains 38.2% of fructose, 31.3% of glucose) To know more benefits of organic honey, click here.

Notes

You can replace almond meal with peanut meal or any other nutty meal of your choice.

You can use any vegetable oil instead of ghee or sesame seed oil.

You can follow the same recipe and use a microwave oven instead of a regular oven. Follow the same instructions and use convection option to bake the sesame seed snaps. A microwave oven might need longer time to get preheated.

I hope you enjoyed reading the recipe and would equally enjoy making and eating this recipe. Stay warm!