Healthy Navratri Fasting Recipe – Mawa Milk | Creamy Dry Fruit Milk

High protein, fulfilling, and tasty energy drink for the Navratri fasting season. This dry fruit milk is loaded with different kinds of nuts and flavored with rose water and cardamom. It is boiled until it thickens and then chilled for the ultimate pleasure.

P.S. Make a big batch of this milk because no one can drink just one glass of it. Literally!

Check out another fasting recipe: Quinoa Pulao.

Story Time

This recipe is my childhood favorite. My mom used to make it, especially during the summer vacations and we all used to drink it together after our post-lunch nap. We used to look forward to waking up after our nap because we knew mom would give us this chilled flavored milk. It always felt refreshing and delightful. Even though my sister hated milk, she used to love this one milk recipe. We always asked for more. We always craved more. It is one of my most delicious childhood memories.

After my marriage, one day I randomly decided to make this recipe. When I served it to Jatin, he was amazed by it. He also loved it so much that he asked for another glass. I did not know that he never had this kind of milk. I used to think it was a regular milk recipe with some dry fruits. But it is different. That is why I decided to share my mom’s recipe with everyone. Why should we have all the fun? 😀

Do try it this Navratri season or whenever you feel like it. I am sure you and your family will also love it and create beautiful stories together.

Watch The YouTube Video

What is Mawa Milk?

As the name suggests, it is milk with a lot of dry fruits in it. It tastes so good and filling which makes it just perfect for fasting or any other day for that matter. In this recipe, milk is boiled on the lowest flame till it thickens a little. This process makes it rich and creamy. Once the milk is done, different kinds of nuts are added to it with some sweetener. It tastes very good and flavorful. You can serve it hot but our preferred way is to drink it chilled. After chilling, it becomes more creamy, thick (yet drinkable), and much more delicious.

What is the Navratri Festival?

Navratri (also known as Navaratri or Navrate), is a joyous Hindu festival. It is celebrated over 9 to 10 days. “Navratri” is a word from the Sanskrit language – Nav means nine and Ratri means night. This festival is celebrated two times a year, once in the spring (Chaitra Navratri) and once in the autumn (Sharad Navratri). Sharad Navratri falls during September or October and is widely celebrated all across India.

One of the main aspects of Navratri is fasting (known as Vrat or Upvas). During fasting, devotees avoid eating some foods, like grains, pulses, onions, garlic, alcohol, and non-vegetarian items. But they eat fasting food items like fruits, nuts, dairy products, etc.

What food items are allowed in Navratri?

Food items that are allowed during the Navratri season are as follows:

1. Vegetables like potato, tomato, arbi, cucumber, carrot, bottle gourd, eggplant, pumpkin, etc.
2. Fruits
3. Dairy Products
4. Coconut
5. Nuts and Seeds
6. Quinoa, Buckwheat, Little Millet (Samai or Samak), Water Chestnut Flour (Singhade Ka Aata).
7. Spices like cumin seeds, red chili powder, turmeric powder, cardamom, carom seeds (ajwain), cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, etc.
8. Rock Salt

What food items are not allowed in Navratri?

Food items that are not allowed during the Navratri season are as follows:

1. Onion and Garlic: They are Tamsik in nature and hence not consumed.
2. Lentils and Pulses like moong dal, chana dal, kidney beans, chickpeas, etc.
3. Grains and their flours like wheat flour, gram flour (besan), etc.
4. Eggs, Non-Vegetarian Food Items like chicken.
5. Alcohol (some people avoid smoking too).
6. Salt
7. Canned Food Items

Everybody has their own beliefs and follows their own rules during the fasting period. That is why, I suggest you adjust the recipes based on how you follow your fasting and celebrate Navratri.

Easy Swaps

1. Jaggery Powder: You can even use sugar or dates.
2. Dry Fruits: Use any nuts or seeds available at home. You can even add some seeds of your choice like flax seeds, chia seeds, etc.

Is this recipe vegan-friendly?

I am afraid not.

This recipe is made with cow milk which is not vegan or plant-based. You can substitute cow milk with any other plant-based milk like coconut milk, almond milk, cashew milk, or a mix of these. Although, I never tried it with any of the vegan milk.

How to serve dry fruit milk?

You can serve it hot or chilled.

Can we store dry fruit milk?

You can refrigerate it for 1 to 2 days.

Ingredients List – for quick reference

More Navratri Fasting Recipes

1. Roasted Makhana
2. Makhana Kheer
3. Amaranth and Dates Energy Bars
4. Quinoa Cutlets
5. Kuttu Ka Cheela (Savory Buckwheat Pancakes)
6. Sabudana Khichdi

Now grab all the ingredients because you are ready to make this delicious flavorful milk at home. It is simple, easy, and very tasty. It is filling which is just perfect for fasting days.

If you try this recipe, please share your reviews in the comment section below. Do share a photo on Instagram and tag us @thefearlesscooking because We love seeing your recreation of our recipes.

Happy Cooking. 🙂

Love from us.

Richa