Panjiri, also spelled panjeri or panjeeri, is a warm, ghee-roasted South Asian sweet that Dinalynn Rosenbush mentions in her Fourth Trimester Podcast conversation with Sarah Trott. In the episode, she remembers a Pakistani mother bringing up panjiri as part of the kind of postpartum care that is shared through food, family, and cultural tradition. After our conversation, Dinalynn shared the family-style Panjeri recipe she learned from her friend, a lovely Pakistani woman of 56 years, and we are grateful to credit that generous source here.
This Fourth Trimester Kitchen version keeps that shared recipe at the center: ghee-roasted edible gum, phool makhana, nuts, seeds, coconut powder, and semolina or a flour such as rajgira/amaranth or singoda/cassava. It is not a medical or lactation promise. Think of it as a rich, spoonable, make-ahead postpartum meal rooted in a food tradition of caring for the recovering parent.
The original notes use “1 scoop ghee” in several places. For a practical home kitchen measurement, we are treating one scoop as about 1/4 cup, or 4 tablespoons, based on common panjiri-style recipes that use several tablespoons of ghee to roast the ingredients. Use the amount that coats the pan and helps the ingredients toast without scorching.
If you are making this for a new parent, label the wheat/gluten, dairy/ghee, nuts, seeds, and any specialty ingredients clearly. If you are newly postpartum, managing blood sugar, avoiding certain herbs or spices, or recovering from a complicated birth, check with your medical provider about what is best for you.
Panjeri (Panjiri) Recipe - A Warming Postpartum Sweet
Ingredients
- 1 scoop ghee about 1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons, for edible gum
- 2 packages edible gum also called gond
- 1 scoop ghee about 1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons, for fox nuts
- 4 cups fox nuts phool makhana
- 1 cup raw cashews or to taste
- 5 to 6 green cardamom pods seeds removed
- 2 cups raw blanched almonds
- 2 cups walnuts
- 1 cup pistachios
- 200 grams melon seeds
- 100 grams sesame seeds
- 200 grams coconut powder
- 400 grams semolina, amaranth flour, or cassava flour rajgira/amaranth or singoda/cassava are options
- 1 scoop ghee about 1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons, for the flour mixture
- powdered sugar, jaggery powder, chopped dates, or raisins optional, to taste
Instructions
- Set out separate bowls or trays before starting. Panjeri is roasted in batches, and each ingredient should be stirred continuously while it cooks.
- Warm 1 scoop ghee over medium-high heat. Add the edible gum and stir continuously until the pieces turn white, puff up, and fill with air. Transfer to a bowl and crush lightly once cool.
- Add another scoop of ghee to the pan. Add the fox nuts and cook over medium-high heat, stirring continuously, until crisp. Transfer out of the pan.
- Lower the heat. Toast the raw cashews and cardamom seeds gently until fragrant, then transfer out of the pan.
- Toast the almonds over medium-low heat until they barely begin to change color. Transfer out, then toast the walnuts until crisp and the pistachios until hot and fragrant.
- Toast the melon seeds over low heat until crisp and lightly brown, then toast the sesame seeds on low. Keep each batch moving and transfer it out as soon as it is done.
- Toast the coconut powder briefly on low, stirring constantly so it does not scorch.
- Toast the semolina, amaranth flour, or cassava flour over medium-low heat until hot and slightly darker in color. Add 1 scoop ghee and mash or stir it through until evenly coated and fragrant.
- Combine the roasted flour mixture, crushed edible gum, fox nuts, nuts, seeds, coconut, and cardamom in a very large bowl.
- If using powdered sugar, jaggery powder, chopped dates, or raisins, let the mixture cool until warm rather than hot, then mix in the sweetener to taste.
- Cool completely and store in an airtight container. Serve in small spoonfuls.
Notes
Why This Recipe Is Part Of The Fourth Trimester Conversation
Dinalynn’s story is not only about a recipe. It is about how postpartum support often arrives through people who know what to bring, what to say, and how to care for a recovering parent. Food traditions like panjiri can carry comfort, memory, and a sense that the new parent is not supposed to do everything alone.
Listen to the episode that inspired this recipe: Your Baby’s Brain Works Differently Than Yours – How Early Communication Supports Future Success.
Browse more postpartum food ideas in the Postpartum Soups and Stews Collection.
Sources And Recipe Context
This Fourth Trimester Kitchen version is adapted from the Panjeri notes Dinalynn shared from her friend. Background references on common panjiri patterns include Panjiri, Tarunima Sinha’s discussion of panjiri as a toasted whole wheat, ghee, nut, seed, and jaggery mixture, Times of India notes on atta, gond, and makhana panjiri variations, and a Times of India panjiri recipe using ghee, makhana, coconut, nuts, melon seeds, cardamom, and powdered sugar.
The content provided in this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical or other professional advice. Please check with your medical provider on what is best for you and your family.