5 traditional Holi dishes with a nutritious twist to keep you healthy through the festivities

Trying to be healthy and losing weight properly might be one of your resolutions this year, and by the time March arrives, you’re probably feeling a lot fitter too. But then comes Holi, with its unending array of delicacies from across the country. You can’t avoid every  gujiya  or plate of scrumptious  chaat  without crushing the spirit of the festival. But if you do indulge you’ll probably be met with more than just weight gain. Indigestion, bloating, acidity and blood sugar spikes are also likely effects of bingeing on Holi. It might seem like quite the dilemma, but there is something you can actually do this Holi to avoid all of this. A study published in  Health Psychology  in 1998 revealed that consistent self-monitoring during holidays and festivities can be a highly effective coping mechanism that can keep unnecessary health issues, including weight gain, at bay. So, yes, you do need to monitor what you’re eating. [caption id=“attachment_8124471” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Image by Saahib from Pixabay.[/caption] But instead of depriving yourself and monitoring just what you’re putting into your mouth, why not monitor what’s being put into your food? Stay away from store-bought sweets and treats, go for homemade delicacies, and replace the unhealthiest ingredients with more nutritious ones so you can indulge without any health issues. Here are a few traditional dishes you can easily give a healthy twist to.

1. Gujiya

This crispy sweet dish is usually prepared by stuffing a wheat flour shell with sweetened milk solids and dry fruits. The individual  gujiyas  are then deep-fried, dipped in sugar syrup and served. Now what you can do is make the shell with a blend of whole wheat flour, buckwheat flour and semolina, prepare the stuffing with dates, dry fruits and grated coconut, and bake the  gujiyas. Instead of soaking the  gujiyas  in sugar syrup, serve honey on the side so anybody who needs it can just dip in occasionally.

2. Malpua

These sweet Indian pancakes are a Holi staple and are quite easy to make. All you need to do to make a healthier version of  malpua  is to replace the refined flour or maida with whole wheat flour, oats flour or ragi/millet flour. Use jaggery instead of sugar to sweeten the  malpuas. Instead of soaking the  malpuas  in sugar syrup, pour some honey or maple syrup on top.

3. Thandai

Full fat milk and sugar do not make a healthy drink when combined, even though the nuts and seeds that go into the traditional  thandai  recipe have their own benefits. Use toned milk or soy milk to make your batch of  thandai  this year, and sweeten it with jaggery or honey. But don’t skimp on the saffron, almonds, peppercorns, poppy seeds, fennel seeds and cardamom powder.

4. Kachori

There’s not much wrong with a  kachori, except that it’s deep-fried, high on carbs and is bound to cause acidity and indigestion. Make  kachoris  more fibre- and protein-rich by making them with ragi flour, buckwheat flour, whole wheat flour or oats flour. Prepare the stuffing with mildly-spiced lentils, and then bake the  kachoris  instead of deep-frying them.  

5. Dahi bhalla

When it comes to this scrumptious chaat, you know that the yoghurt added to the dish isn’t the problem. The deep-fried lentil fritters or  bhallas  are the only ones you need to twist to make  dahi bhallas  super healthy. You could bake the  bhallas, but that might not make them fluffy enough. So, steam them if you prefer because this is the healthiest cooking method of all. For more information, read our article on   Healthy Recipes_._ Health articles in Firstpost are written by myUpchar.com, India’s first and biggest resource for verified medical information. At myUpchar, researchers and journalists work with doctors to bring you information on all things health.