Figs and Date Burfi (Sugar free and Vegan)

This Diwali, besides Peanut Burfi,   I also made Figs and dates Burfi which does not have added sugar. I wanted to make this burfi at home since long and Diwali gave me a perfect reason to do so. Home made sweets, traditional puja, hand painted diyas, no crackers, simple dinner with family and Apricot Pudding made by my dad as dessert made a perfect Diwali this year.

Making sweets at home on festivals is a pleasurable experience.
Festivals are for feasting.  Making healthy sweets is absolutely in our hands. 
Figs and Date Burfi is absolutely sugarfree.
The crunch of nuts adds so much taste and nutrition.
 

We prepare Figs and Date Burfi every Diwali. We add nuts in varying proportions and combination.
This is a no-fail recipe.

The last batch that we made, had toasted almonds and cashews. We added a  lot of Pistachios for colour and all the goodness pistachios have to offer.

Figs and Date Burfi (Sugar-free)

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups Dried Figs 
• 1 ½   cup Dates 
• 1/3 cup Almonds
• 1/3 cup Cashews
• 1/2 cup slivered Almonds
• 3 tablespoons Pure Ghee (clarified butter)  /  coconut oil (vegan version)

Instructions

1. Line one 7x7 inch square cake pan with a parchment paper. Or, grease one a steel plate and keep aside.
2. Wash figs and soak them in hot water for about five minutes.
3. Discard water and put them in a grinder and puree them. 
4. Wash dates and remove the seeds. Chop them fine. 
5. Toast almonds in a heavy bottom wok till golden and fragrant.
6.  Or, take almonds in a baking tray. Set oven temperature to 150 degrees C and set the timer to 10 minutes. 
7. Chop the nuts. Heat ghee in a heavy bottomed pan and add pureed figs and chopped dates. Cook for about fifteen minutes. Stir continuously while cooking and cook till the mixture thickens. Add chopped nuts and cook till the mixtures become  heavy to stir and leaves the sides of the pan and starts gathering as a ball
8. Empty the mixture into the prepared pan or plate and spread evenly by pressing down with the back of a greased ladle. 
9. Leave it to cool. Keep in the refrigerator or two hours. 
10. Cut square slices with a sharp knife and store in an airtight container.

My notes: Cook the mixture till it becomes really heavy to stir. if the mixture is not cooked well, the slices will be soft and sticky. A non-stick pan works well while cooking the mixture.