21 Diwali Sweets Recipes for Kids | Homemade Diwali Sweets Recipes

As the festival of lights, Diwali is approaching, your little ones must be excited to eat a lot of delicious sweets. If your child is above the age of 2 years, then you can happily introduce them to any sweets. Most people prefer homemade sweets rather than buying them. For those here are some tasty homemade sweets recipes that your child will love to eat.

Diwali has its origin from the Sanskrit word Deepavali denoting row of diyas (lighted lamps) and this is the festival of diyas, crackers, and sweets.

As you all know the Sanskrit Epic Ramayana narrates that Lord Rama, his wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana headed back to Ayodhya after their 14 years of vanavasa by defeating Ravana during a pitch black night. The people of Ayodhya celebrated their arrival and welcomed them on that dark night by lighting diyas in rows from the forest to Ayodhya. We follow this tradition of lighting lamps to celebrate the victory of good over evil.

Now coming to our main interest - food!! Every Indian festival is celebrated with lots of homemade traditional sweets. I prepare sweets for every Indian festival without fail. So I thought of making some laddus for you lovely readers as Diwali is just around the corner.

We all descended from a generation where ghee was used as cooking oil for its taste, medicinal values, and nutritional properties. Due to more western influences on Indian culture, we started picking more of vegetable oils from the grocery shops than ghee and coconut oil. I have added ghee in all the Diwali sweets recipes listed here. So before heading into the recipes, let's know about the health benefits of ghee.

Health Benefits of Ghee

Most of you have the misconception that ghee will put on more weight if consumed. I will give you the scientific reason to prove this is a myth. Ghee is composed of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), the type of fatty acid which is very useful for our body. This MCFAs will not get deposited as adipose (fat) tissue in the body as other long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs) and will be burnt as energy. So ghee is regarded as a good energy booster. Ghee is best for those who are lactose intolerant as it's dairy-free.
Omega 3 fatty acids in ghee help in lowering the bad cholesterol from your body.
Ghee is used in ancient times to treat many types of inflammation in the body. Ghee is used to treating gastrointestinal inflammation. Ghee contains butyric acid (short-chain fatty acid) which is useful to decrease leukotriene formation and reduce prostaglandin which is responsible for inflammation.
Ghee has a strong antioxidant property which helps in fighting/ eliminating/neutralizing free radicals and promote new skin cell formation, help in reducing the risk of heart disease, and a few types of cancers.
Ghee is rich in Vitamin A which is good for the eyes.
Ghee helps in boosting up the immune system.
Ghee is a good source of vitamin K2 which helps to remove the calcium from the arteries to deposit (prevent calcification of arteries).
Ghee can be used in combination with some herbs to help in the absorption of the medicinal properties of those herbs.
Ghee can be used for seasoning, sautéing, baking, or frying as it has a high smoke point (can be cooked at high temperatures without burning)
As always, any food when taken excessively is harmful. So always limit the intake.

Here are 19 easy to make variety of Diwali sweets recipes to make this festival of lights sweeter.

#1. Carrot halwa

This carrot halwa recipe replaces sugar with jaggery and hence is a healthier version you can make for kids.

Ingredients:

1 cup of grated carrot
¼ cup of crushed jaggery
¼ cup of milk
2 tablespoons of ghee
a few raisins
5 cashew nuts
1 tablespoon of wheat flour
¼ teaspoon of cardamom powder

Instructions:

Take two medium-sized carrots, peel and wash them properly, then finely grate them using a grater.
Take a pressure cooker and heat 1 tablespoon of ghee in it. Now add the grated carrots and sauté it well.
Now add milk and pressure cook until 2 whistles. Once cooked, add jaggery and continue cooking on low flame.
Add 1 tablespoon of wheat flour to it until the mixture becomes thick.
Now add 1 tablespoon of ghee and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes while stirring.
Take a separate pan and heat ghee in it, then add raisins and cashew to it and fry well.
Add the fried raisins and cashew to the carrot halwa and serve it warm.

#2. Dry fruits laddu

It is a nutritious Diwali sweets recipe for kids that can even be enjoyed by adults who are on diet. This sugar-free recipe is tasty and beneficial for health as well.

Ingredients:

1 cup of Aval or flattened red poha
1 cup of dry fruits including, walnuts, almonds, pistachio, raisins, and more
½ cup of powdered jaggery
a pinch of cardamom powder
4-6 tablespoon of ghee

Instructions:

Take a thick bottomed pan and heat ghee in it, add dry fruits and fry them well for 2-3 minutes.
Now add poha and roast well on a medium flame for 4-5 minutes. Once it becomes crisp, switch off the gas.
Now grind the roasted poha and dry fruits in a mixer to obtain a powder.
Now add cardamom and jaggery powder to the mixture and mix them well.
Heat 2 tablespoons of ghee and add it to the mixture and keep mixing it for a minute.
Now take a small amount of mixture and roll it to make a ball or laddu.

#3.Coconut ladoo

Ingredients:

Instructions:

Take a saucepan and mix water and sugar in it and let it simmer on low flame.
Once the consistency becomes thick, turn off the heat and add powdered cardamom and coconut to it. Stir it well then let it cool.
Make small balls of it and serve it to your children.

#4. Chocolate sago laddu

Ingredients:

½ cup of sago
1/3 cup of grated coconut
½ cup of powdered sugar
½ tablespoon of dry ginger powder
½ tablespoon of cardamom powder
¼ cup of melted ghee

Instructions:

Take a pan and dry roast sago on low flame for 20-25 minutes. Once it becomes light brown add cocoa powder and mixes them well.
Transfer it to a pan and dry roast grated coconut in the same pan.
Now grind the roasted sago, coconut, and sugar to obtain a fine powder.
Add dried ginger and cardamom powder to the mix.
Now heat ghee and pour it over the mixture and mix it well to obtain a smooth dough.
Take a small portion of it and roll to make a ball or laddu.

You can also store this amazing Diwali sweets recipes for kids in an airtight jar for 3-4 days.

#5. Shankarpali using whole wheat flour:

Ingredients:

Instructions:

For step by step instruction with pictures, you can read the article Shankarpali Recipe Using Whole Wheat Flour

#6. Karanji

Ingredients:

Instructions:

Take a pan and dry roast wheat flour in it. Transfer it to a plate then roast coconut and jaggery in until the jaggery melts.
Now add cardamom powder and crushed dry fruits to the pan and mix them well.
Now take a bowl and add roasted flour to it. Knead it using water to get a firm dough. Rest it for 30 minutes.
Take a small ball of the dough and roll it to make a medium-sized poori.
Stuff the mixture on one side of the dough and fold it to get a semicircle shape.
You can use a fork to seal the edges and trim the excess dough
Now take a pan and heat oil in it, take the karanji and fry it well until it becomes golden brown.
Remove excess oil using tissue and serve warm to your kids.

#7. Water chestnut flour halwa

Ingredients

Instructions:

Take a Kadai and heat ghee in it, now add the water chestnut flour and roast it well for 7-8 minutes until it becomes light brown.
Keep stirring to avoid lumps, then add nut mix and continue to cook for a few seconds
Now add water, cardamom powder, and sugar to it and stir it well
Cook for 2-3 minutes, transfer to a bowl and sprinkle nut mix before serving

#8. Sesame laddu

This no-sugar Diwali sweet recipe is one of the excellent healthy snacks for kids.

Ingredients: Instructions:

#9. Thinai halwa

Ingredients:

1 cup of thinai/ foxtail millet
1/2 cup of moong dal
1 cup of ghee
2 cups of jaggery
3 tablespoons of coconut finely chopped
3 tablespoons of cashew
2 pinches of Cardamom powder

Instructions:

#10. Beetroot halwa

Ingredients: Instructions:

Add beetroot and moong dal in a pressure cooker and cook until 5 whistles. Once cooked let it cool and mash it well
Take a pan and heat ghee in it. Add mashed beetroot moong dal mixture, dry fruits powder, and mix it well.
When it starts coming off the edges switch off the heat and serve it.

Note: You can also use jaggery instead of adding sugar for preparing this Diwali sweet recipe

#11. Shahi Tukda

Ingredients: For preparing Rabri: For preparing Sugar Syrup For Serving:

4 slices of whole wheat or brown bread
3 tbsp ghee
some chopped almonds, cashews, pistachios

Instructions

Cut the sides of bread, and cut them into triangles
Fry the bread slices in hot ghee till the bread turns golden brown
Now dip both sides of bread in sugar syrup
Furthermore, on a plate, pour in ½ cup of prepared rabri
and place in fried bread slices
Finally, garnish with few chopped nuts and serve shahi tukda

#12. Puran Poli

Ingredients: Instructions:

To prepare the stuffing, wash chana dal and cook it in a pressure cooker until two whistles. Once cooked, transfer it to a saucepan
Now add jaggery to it and keep stirring on a medium flame until jaggery dissolves
Transfer the mixture to a plate and let it cool. Now add cardamom and nutmeg powder to it and mix it well
Not transfer the mixture into a grinder and make a smooth paste.
To make the outer cover make a soft dough of wheat flour and maida and let it rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
Take the dough and divide it into 6 equal parts to make a ball.
Make the ball flat and fill the stuffing in it and roll it well to make a ball.
Now using a rolling pin, flatten the balls to round chapati like shape
Heat a non-stick Tawa and cook Pural Poli until it becomes golden brown on both sides

Here is a paal poli recipe/milk poli recipe for Diwali desserts.

#13. Pistachio kulfi recipe

Pistachio kulfi is very popular among kids. It will surely satisfy their ice cream craving.

Ingredients: For preparing Kulfi paste, you will need:

¼ cup each of cashews, pistachios, and blanched and peeled almonds
½ teaspoon of cinnamon powder
2 tablespoon of cardamom powder, and poppy seeds
8 to 10 teaspoons of whole black peppercorns.

instructions:

To prepare, grind all the ingredients of kulfi paste in a mixer along with water to achieve a thick consistency.
Now take a heavy bottom saucepan and boil the milk in it. Once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat and let it simmer for 30 minutes to make it half its quantity.
Now add kulfi paste and sugar to it. Mix and whisk it well.
Now turn off the heat and let it cool.
Take some kulfi molds and pour the mixture until ¾th full and refrigerate it for 15 to 20 hours.

#14. Malpua

Ingredients:

For preparing sugar syrup, you will need:

¼ cup of water
½ cup of sugar
1/2 lemon juice
3 strands of saffron.

Instructions:

I made this amazing Diwali sweets recipe last year and my children loved it a lot.

#15. Badam halwa

Ingredients: Instructions:

#16. Milk Peda

Ingredients: Instructions

Mix the condensed milk, milk powder, and ghee together in a non-stick pan.
Add the cardamom powder, the nutmeg powder, and saffron. Mix.
Cook the mixture until it starts to leave the sides of the pan. This will take about 10-15 minutes.
When the mixture cools down a bit, shape into small balls. Make sure to grease your hands with ghee, as the mixture is sticky.

#17. Kaju katli

This is yet another most famous Diwali sweets recipes for kids that is easy to make.

Ingredients: Instructions:

Grind the cashews in a mixer to obtain a fine powder. Now take a thick bottom pan and heat sugar and water in it to make syrup, then add powdered cashew in it and stir well.
Cook it for 10 minutes to make the mixture thick and then add ghee and saffron to it and stir well.
Now take the thickened cashew mixture and flatten it on a greased tray. Let it cook then cut diamond shapes and refrigerate for 4 hours.

#18. Besan Laddoo

Ingredients

Instructions

Take a wok and heat ghee in it then add besan to it and roast for 6-7 minutes till the color changes and a nice aroma comes.
Now add sugar and mix it well. Ensure that the mixture does not stick to the wok.
Add dry fruits and cardamom powder and stir well.
Let it cool then make small balls of the mixture and serve it to your kids.

#19. Badam barf

Ingredients Instructions:

#20. Rava Kesari Halwa

Rava Kesari halwa is a quick dessert recipe that we can make with semolina and a few more ingredients easily available in any Indian kitchen.
Here is the recipe for a quick Rava Kesari halwa.

#21. Chocolate barfi

Kids love to eat chocolates and including it in Diwali sweets recipes for kids would be a great choice.

Ingredients: Instructions:

These were the tasty Diwali sweets recipes for kids that kids will love to eat. Try these and let us know in the comment section if your child liked it. Also, share your signature Diwali sweet recipes in the comments. What are the must include sweets in your Diwali sweet box?

Celebrate this Diwali with homemade healthy sweets, . Fill you Diwali sweet boxes with these homemade Diwali sweets which you prepared using Diwali Sweets recipes and make it more special.

Share with us your masterpiece Diwali sweets recipes.

Have a happy and safe Deepavali.

A Note of caution: Try to cut down the number of fireworks and protect our nature!