Laddoos fit for a royal Mughal court, Parisian confections, floral teas and other Diwali gift ideas

Daraba Laddoos Photograph via Wandering Foodie

If you have a good mind to gather all the goodies that are and get away from all the noise of Diwali, it’s best to get that hamper together now for you and your bunch of friends. Here are some ideas that will get the Diwali spirit going and especially appeal to those with a sweet tooth.

Daraba laddoos

Our school history books would have been richer with descriptions of the Daraba Laddoo, which has its roots in the royal court of Aurangzeb. We can only imagine Aurangzeb, infamous for his tyrannical control of the Mughal Empire in India, chomping on laddoos made of wheat flour, ghee, sugar and cardamom before he ordered the execution of some unfortunate war prisoners. But this Diwali, travel and food tourism company Wandering Foodie’s co-founder Rahul Patil hopes that these Daraba laddoos help spread some cheer too. “These laddoos were served in Aurangazeb’s durbar when ruled over Burhanpur (in Maharashtra). The sweet gets its name from the word “durbar”,” says Patil.

The Khandeshi sweet is available is a limited edition pack of 180 gm for Rs 130 a box on amazon.in

Macarons

Lauded as one of the best patisseries in the country, Mumbai-based Le15 Patisserie makes the best macarons we’ve ever had. They have special flavours for every festival and for Diwali, they’re rolling out Salted Caramel and Roasted Cashew macarons. Eggless variety of the macarons are also available.

Call 9769286544 / 9820487727 to place your order.

Tea Boxes

For tea lovers who need a moment of peace and calm during the festival of noise lights, South Mumbai fine dine restaurant Ellipsis’s bakery has delightful little boxes of teas of all kinds packed in test tubes. There are floral teas such as Rose Tea (with actual dried rose petals),  infusion teas and loose leaf tea from The Cha House. The boxes are a perfect way to sample these teas.

To order, log onto thechahouse.net

Baked treats

If Daraba Laddoo and traditional Indian sweets are not really your thing, get yourself a hamper of baked goodies such as brownies, cheesecakes and cookies from the house of Bastian, a sea food specialty restaurant in North Mumbai, which has an equally big fanbase for its desserts.

Call 022 30151063 to place an order.