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Happy Diwali! Celebrate the festival of light with these delicious, Indian Diwali sweets including Ladoo, Burfi, Halwa and more from different regions of India. Eat them yourself or give them as gifts! All Dairy-free Eggless Vegan. This post was published Nov 7, 2015
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Diwali is the Indian festival of lights and one of the bigger Hindu festivals celebrated in many parts of India. The festival spiritually signifies the victory of good over evil and celebrates kindness, compassion, prosperity, love and sharing. Before Diwali, people clean, and decorate their homes. People dress up in festive clothes, light up diyas (lamps and candles) inside and outside their home, participate in family pooja (prayers) typically to Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. Followed by fireworks, a family get together, loads of great food ( appetizers, lots of mains and sides), including mithai (sweets).
People also visit family and friends and exchange gifts in the days before the festival, and these Diwali sweets make great gifts, as well!
Indian sweets and desserts often use milk solids – khoya, clarified butter – ghee, fresh cheese- chenna, milk, cream and other forms of dairy, but you don’t need these to make delicious desserts! I have a huge collection of vegan Indian Diwali sweets, including burfis, halwas and ladoos along with fusion desserts like my Ras Malai Tres leches cake, Carrot Halwa cheesecake and pistachio kulfi tiramisu that will please a crowd. Let’s reduce the pain and suffering of moms by choosing dairy-free options for Diwali festival!
If you try any of these sweets and desserts, do let me know how you and your family liked them!
HAPPY DIWALI!!!
If you’re looking for more Diwali recipes, don’t miss my vegan Diwali menu! It uses one base sauce to create a 3-course meal plus rice! And if you don’t do onion or garlic, I have a no onion no garlic Diwali menu, as well. Any of these Diwali sweets would be amazing with these menus!
Ladoo
Toasted Coconut Ladoo
This 6-ingredient toasted coconut ladoo is ready in about 20 minutes. Sweet, fudgy coconut balls are a simple dessert perfect for Diwali or any other holiday celebration! Makes 8 to 10 balls.
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Vegan Malai Ladoo
Vegan malai ladoo – sweet, cardamom-scented, Indian fudge balls – are a festive treat perfect for Diwali, Holi, or any holiday gathering! (gluten-free, soy-free with oil-free option)
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Vegan Whole Wheat Date Ladoos
For a sweet holiday treat that is naturally sweetened, try my Whole Wheat Date Ladoo recipe. A wholesome vegan twist on a traditional Indian sweet made with whole wheat flour, almond flour, nuts, and dates! Soy-free + Gluten-free option.
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Mango Coconut Ladoo
Mango Coconut Ladoo. Fudgy balls made with Mango Puree, Coconut and almond meal. Vegan gluten-free recipe. Easy soy-free dessert. Use sunflower or sesame seeds to make nut-free. Makes 8 balls
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Coconut Ladoo
These fudgy Coconut Ladoo are super simple, have just 5 ingredients and perfect for Indian Festivals like Diwali or Dussehra. Vegan and Gluten-free
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Burfi
Vegan Almond Burfi
Keep this vegan almond burfi recipe at hand for whenever you need an easy yet special treat for the holidays! This 4 ingredient Indian Almond Fudge is totally fool-proof to make within minites and makes for a great gift too. Gluten-free, soy-free.
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Layered Carrot Halwa Coconut Burfi Bars Vegan
Layered Carrot Halwa Coconut Burfi Bars are two of my favorite Indian desserts combined into one delicious moist and chewy bar! They are portable, look sersiously impressive and make for the perfect edible gift for the holidays. Vegan Dairyfree Glutenfree Nutfree option
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Vegan Malai Burfi (Milk Cake)- Indian Fudge Bars
Vegan Malai Burfi (Milk Cake)- Indian Fudge Bars. Dairy free Burfi For Indian Festivals. Creamy Cardamom Fudge. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Recipe. Just 8 ingredients. Make 16 small bars
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Vegan 7 Cup Burfi – Chickpea flour & Coconut Fudge Bars
Vegan 7 Cup Burfi – Diwali Sweet with Chickpea flour and Coconut veganized with almond milk and oil. 6 Ingredients. Easy Traditional Indian Sweet 7 cup cake for Diwali or other festivals. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Recipe. Nut-free option. Makes 12 to 14 small bars
Vegan Kaju Katli – Indian Cashew fudge. Glutenfree
Kaju Katli is Cashew Fudge. It is a favorite Indian dessert. There are several ways to make the fudge, but the key to a great fudge is a good sugar syrup and well ground cashews. This recipe takes just minutes! Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Recipe. Makes a dozen or more pieces depending on the size.
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Gujiya Peda (Indian Almond Fudge With Coconut Pistachio Raisin Swirls)
Gujiya peda — Indian cardamom fudge with a swirl of sweet, saffron-scented coconut pistachio filling — is a fusion dessert that tastes absolutely amazing! Dairy-free vegan gluten-free
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Vegan Mango Burfi. Mango Fudge Bars. Indian Recipe
Mango Burfi. Fudgy Mango Bars with Ripe mango puree, oat flour, coconut flour and Cardamom, saffron or cinnamon. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Recipe
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Besan Burfi with Condensed Milk (Dairy-free) – Chickpea flour fudge
Besan Burfi with Condensed Milk. Indian Chickpea flour fudge with Condensed non dairy milk. Besan Burfi for Diwali. Fudge Sweet Gluten free Vegan Indian Recipe. 5 Main ingredients. Omit the oil ot make oil-free. Makes 12 to 16 pieces.
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Kesar Peda – Saffron Infused Almond Cookie
Kesar Peda is fudge type cookie made with milk solids. This recipe is dairy-free and uses almonds for this Saffron infused Almond cookie. Vegan Gluten-free Recipe. Easily doubled.
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Diwali Sweets in Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen
There are about 17 Indian sweets and dessert recipes in my first cook book too, like malai peda, nankhatai, rasmalai, phirni, bhapa doi, sandesh, atte ka halwa, mysore pak, vegan kalakand burfi and more!
Halwa
Vegan Almond Halwa (Instant Pot Badam Halwa) Oil-free
Vegan Almond Halwa & Almond Ladoo – Instant Pot Badam Halwa with no added refined oil. No ghee or dairy! 5 Mins active time. 6 Ingredients! Gluten-free Grain-free Soy-free Recipe. Makes 4 Indian size servings
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Instant Pot Gajar Halwa – Indian Carrot Halwa Vegan Dairyfree Recipe
Instant Pot Gajar Halwa / Gajrela – Vegan Carrot Halwa Recipe. Carrot Halwa is an Indian dessert, a flourless Carrot Cake Crumble/pudding that is spiced with cardamom and served during festivals. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Dairyfree Recipe.
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Instant Pot Sooji Halwa – Rava Sheera
Instant Pot Sooji Halwa – Rava Kesari / Sheera. Vegan Indian Spoon Fudge. Add pineapple or bananas for Pineapple or Banana Sheera. Can be nutfree, glutenfree
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Mango Semolina Pudding Mango Sheera / Kesari / Halwa
Mango Sheera Recipe. Mango Kesari or Mango Halwa. Semolina Mango Pudding. Easy Vegan Indian Dessert Recipe. 20 minutes 1 pan. How to make Mango Sheera
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Besan Halwa – Chickpea flour fudge
Besan Halwa is a fudgy dessert made with chickpea flour or besan. Chickpea flour Spoon fudge with cardamom and nuts. Besan Ka Halwa Recipe. Use other grain or bean or lentil flours for variation. Vegan Gluten-free Grain-free Dessert Recipe.
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Cakes and Cookies
Vegan Rasmalai Tres Leches Cake
This Vegan Ras Malai Tres Leches Cake is the ultimate make-ahead dessert! A light sponge soaked in cardamom and saffron-scented nut milk. Dairyfree Eggless. It only gets better with time, so perfect for holidays, and Indian festive season!
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No-Bake Carrot Halwa Cheesecake
This carrot halwa cheesecake is grain-free and doesn’t need to be baked! You make the carrot halwa crust with cardamom spiced shredded carrots on the stove and the cheesecake mixture in your blender. Then chill this cake to set it up, then slice and serve. Nut-free option
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Kulfi Tiramisu (Indian Cardamom Pistachio Tiramisu)
Kulfi Tiramisu – this Indian tiramisu fusion combines creamy, cardamom-scented kulfi with coffee infused cake to create a showstopping, layered dessert. It’s absolutely epic!
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Vegan Rasmalai Cake
Vegan Rasmalai Cake is a dairy-free spin on the popular Bengali Dessert Rasa Malai that is typically served for Diwali! Moist almond and cashew flour cake squares immersed in a rich and creamy cashew pistachio "milk" scented with saffron and cardamom. Soyfree Glutenfree
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Carrot Halwa Cake
Carrot halwa cake is a fusion carrot cake recipe that uses a traditional Indian dessert -Gajar Halwa(Indian carrot fudge) as the topping for a flavorful cake. It has such an incredible mixture of flavors and textures! Glutenfree option
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Vegan Cardamom Cookie – Cardamom Snickerdoodles
Easy Vegan Cardamom Cookies. These soft cookies are a cross between cardamom shortbread and Snickerdoodles. Vegan Soyfree Palm Oil free Recipe. Glutenfree option
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Rabri and Puddings
Shahi Tukda (Crisp syrup soaked toasts with Rabri pudding)
Try Shahi Tukda – a royal dessert that’s easy to make! Baked buttered slices of bread soaked in cardamom-scented syrup and topped with custard.
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Vegan Rabri – Indian Milk Pudding
For an easy yet impressive holiday dessert try my vegan spin on Indian rabri, a thick, creamy milk pudding. My vegan rabri recipe is made with nut milk and flavored with cardamom and saffron. Gluten-free and soy-free.
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Carrot Pudding with Cardamom – Carrot Kheer Recipe
Indian Carrot Pudding with Cardamom – Carrot Kheer Recipe. Shredded Carrots slow cooked with almond milk, roasted nuts and cardamom. Serve as is or top with toasted nuts, seeds and chia. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Nut-free option
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Thandai Phirni – Spiced Rice Flour Pudding
Thandai Phirni – Spiced Rice Flour Pudding for Holi Festival. Vegan Phirni Recipe with Thandai Masala mix. Vegan Indian Dessert Gluten-free Soy-free Refined oil free.
Serves 4 as a dessert helping. 2 otherwise. 
Brown Rice Kheer Recipe. Vegan Rice Pudding
Brown Rice Kheer Recipe. Vegan Rice Pudding. Indian Kheer for Diwali festival. Brown Rice simmered in almond cashew milk with cardamom, roasted nuts and currants or raisins. Vegan Gluten-free Recipe.
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Vermicelli Pudding – Seviyan Kheer
Vegan Vermicelli pudding or Semiyan Kheer is a pudding made with roasted vermicelli noodles. Indian, Vegan , gluten-free option, nut-free option.
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Doughnuts and Jalebi
Indian Vegan Gulab Jamun Donuts Dry Mix
Learn how to make Vegan Gulab Jamun using my simple dry mix. this festive Indian sweet consists of soft cardamom-scented donut balls soaked in rose water syrup. Dairy-free and with gluten-free option! Makes 22 to 26 balls
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Vegan Jalebi
Jalebi is an Indian Sweet which is basically deep fried batter in pretzel kind of shape and dipped in sugar syrup
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Kulfi – Ice creams
Pistachio Almond Cardamom Popsicle – Pista Kulfi – vegan glutenfree
Indian Pista Kulfi Dessert. Creamy Pistachio Almond Cardamom Popsicle. Non Dairy Ice Cream. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Recipe.
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Kesar Kulfi Recipe – Indian Ice Cream with Saffron. Vegan Glutenfree
Kesar Kulfi Recipe – Saffron Cream Popsicles. Vegan Kulfi with saffron, coconut milk, cashews and starch to thicken. Makes 4 to 6 popsicles
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Sweet Drinks
Kesar Pista Masala Milk Mix – Saffron Pistachio Beverage
Kesar Pista Masala milk mix or powder. Grind and keep in a jar. Blend with chilled non dairy milk and serve. Vegan gluten-free Soy-fee Recipe
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Turmeric Lassi – Golden Yogurt Drink
Turmeric Lassi – Golden Yogurt Drink. Lassi is a yogurt based drink served as a beverage in India. This version uses non dairy yogurt, turmeric, black pepper and ginger for a cooling Lassi. Vegan Gluten-free Recipe.
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Vegan Mango Lassi
Vegan mango Lassi – Indian Mango Yogurt smoothie with ripe mango, non dairy yogurt and cardamom or saffron. Dairy-free, gluten-free.
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Thandai (Spiced Almond Milk) and Thandai Lassi (Yogurt Drink). vegan glutenfree
a spiced almond milk served during the festival of Holi. Creamy and refreshing, it is vegan and gluten free.
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Thankyou so much this is an amazing collection
If you make any of the recipes report back!!
WOW. We will definitely be celebrating a cruelty-free Diwali tonight! Thanks, Richa!
Awesome! Happy Diwali!
We made the apple jalebi! There are no words for how awesome it was. 🙂
Thats Awesome!! Happy Diwali!!
Great roundup! I have never made an Indian-style dessert before – gotta get on that, these look beautiful.
I love these sweets! Thank you for informing us on how many pounds of milk it takes to make these sweets =/
Happy Diwali!
Thanks! Happy Diwali!
all of them are Looking amazing! Well done :).. Definately will try at least few od them..
Thanks!!