Goans relish various avatars of the Chaturthi staple - Modak

The spirit and excitement of Ganesh Chaturthi is palpable when the revellers are cheering and chanting ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya, Mangal Murti Morya’. It doesn’t end just there; the festive spirit is highly contagious even through the tasty array of food items associated with the festival. Celebrating the beginning of all good things, this festival is surely associated with a lot of good food, including the Chaturthi staple – the modak. Thus, we bring to you some of the traditional, trendy and creative modaks that are making the rounds of Goan markets this year.

When health and celebration is important

Taking the health factor into consideration, Gargi Lotlikar from Margao tried an interesting twist to regular modaks – that with kasai or kadha (the spicy concoction had when one is down with a cold). “I had initially started making ‘kasai’ chocolates during the pandemic; but always innovating, I then focused on immunity boosting chocolates. I made chocolates with almond powder, turmeric, cardamom, jeera and more. And now, I’m implementing this flavour in the shape of modaks, so that people can avail of the health benefits in the form of this prasad,” says Gargi who has been getting several orders for these immunity boosting and kasai modaks.

A western surprise to this Indian sweet

“Blending Indian sweets in a western mix? Well, it’s loved by many,” says Nadia Aslam from Panaji. “I’ve given an Indo-fusion blend to my sweets this year, with a truffle look to the Indian festive flavours.” She was indeed looking forward to make interesting sweets this year, and upon asking people which Indian sweets they preferred, there was a clear winner – Kaju Katli. “I also used Motichoor Laddos in my second set of truffles. You can thus, indulge in the romance of the delectable Indian flavours of the Kaju Katli and Motichoor, blended with the cardamom-infused white chocolate ganache. The truffle is stuffed in pure white couverture chocolate shells, which by themselves are flavoursome. I’ve already sold out and since I make it on order, they are always fresh,” says Nadia Aslam.

A little chocolate never hurt anyone

danice almeida .

There is nothing more exciting than getting chocolate as prasad. Danice Almeida has blended the traditional use of coconut in modaks, with a chocolate covering; these morsels of goodness are available at her stores in Mapusa and Thivim. “We are selling coconut soft-centre filled modaks which come in three sizes, with the biggest being about 4-5 inches tall. It is considered auspicious to have coconut in the prasad, and thus I created this unique modak. The chocolate used as the shell is made with 80% dark chocolate, thus even diabetic patients can have it,” says Danice. She also makes interesting chocolate Ganesha idols too, for which she got a good response last year. “The chocolate idol needs to be immersed in milk, where it dissolves and then can be consumed,” says Danice.

Heard of the 1.5 kilo modak?

Who doesn’t love to gorge on some modaks? Apurva Chafadkar from Ponda has been busy preparing for Ganesh Chathurti! And this year she has got several orders for the one kilo modak. “We all know that Bappas favourite is the modak, so how about treating him with the biggest modak available? We made the Maha Modak for the first time and it is mostly used for Vaje (gifts sent to married daughters). We also use a gold leaf on the modaks that we make. The other interesting one is the Lotus Biscoff filled modak, loved by mostly the younger kids. The modaks are unique and are authentically homemade, fresh and handcrafted,” says Apurva.

Bringing hyper-Indian flavours into modaks

Surprisingly, the flavours of paan and chocolate are very compatible, says Nimisha Kulkarni Khasnis from Ponda. “Paan is eaten by many Indians and has some strong flavours which when combined with chocolate makes it even more interesting. I have been getting many orders from both young and old for the choco-paan modak. The covering of the modak is chocolate with a paan filling. I also make modaks with other flavours like the Gulab Jamun Thandai, where rose petals and dried fruits are used giving a healthy tasty twist,” says Nimisha.