Sweet Potato (Ranga-alu) Pithe

Here comes another delicious PITHE from Makar Sankranti Pithe Puli series. Sweet Potato (Ranga-alu) Pithe stuffed with sweet Coconut & Jaggery.

Ranga Alur puli pithe is a traditional Bengali sweet dish for Makar Sankranti or Poush Sankranti festival. There are many Bengali pithe varieties and this one is one of my favourites. This classic sweet dish is nothing but fried sweet potato dumplings stuffed with coconut filling and soaked in a sweet syrup. This can be serves as a dessert or snack on any occasion.

Ingredients:

(For outer layer)

1. Sweet Potatoes - 2-3 (one cup when boiled and mashed)
2. Maida - 2-3 tbsp
3. Rice flour - 1 tbsp

(For the stuffing)

1. Grated coconut - 1 cup
2. Jaggery (powdered) - 1/2 cup

(For the syrup)

1. Sugar - 3 tbsp
2. Jaggery - 6 tbsp (I have used Date Palm Jaggery)
3. Water - 1 and half cup
4. Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp

Oil / ghee - for deep frying

Process:

1. Combine the coconut and jaggery in a pan and let the jaggery dissolve completely. Cook on medium flame. Stir continuously until you get a thick mixture. When the mixture thickens, remove from the flame and let it cool. Divide into 8-10 equal portions and set aside.

2. Boil the sweet potatoes until soft. Peel and mash them until smooth. Add the rice flour and maida to the mashed sweet potatoes and knead it well to form a smooth dough. The dough should be soft and non sticky. Divide the dough into 8-10 balls and set aside. 

3. Now, flatten the dough ball with your greased palm, place the coconut stuffing in the center. Carefully fold the dough to form a semi circular. Seal the edges. Repeat the same with remaining dough. Until you deep fry the stuffed dough, keep them covered to avoid drying. 

4. For making the syrup, combine the sugar, jaggery and water in a pan and stir until jaggery dissolves completely. Add the cardamom powder and let it boil on a low medium flame for 10 minutes. Turn off the flame and keep the syrup warm. The syrup should not be too hot or cold when you add the fried sweet potato dumplings to it.

5. Heat oil or ghee in a pan for deep frying. Deep fry the stuffed pulis / dumplings over a medium flame until golden brown color. Remove from the oil and immediately drop them into the warm syrup. Let them soak in the warm syrup for 5-6 minutes and you can serve them hot or cold as per your choice.

COCONUT & SOOJI BURFI

Coconut Sooji (Rawa) Burfi is one of my favorite Indian Sweets. Here is a twist. Burfi is a dense, usually milk based sweet. I made a different version with saffron flavor, using some sooji along with coconut and sugar. Its very easy to cook. 

Ingredients:

1. Sooja / Rawa / Semolina - 250 gram
2. Coconut (grated) - 1/2 cup
3. Water - 1/4 cup
4. Cardamom powder - 1tsp
5. Sugar - 500 gram
6. Saffron threads - few
7. Ghee - 1 tsp
8. Milk - 1 tsp

Process:   

  

1. For making this dessert recipe, add ghee in a pan over medium flame. Add the grated coconut and fry lightly. Remove and keep aside.

2. Add a little ghee to the pan and fry the sooji till golden. 

3. Mix sugar with water and bring to a boil. Add one table spoon milk and remove the scum that rises to the top. Add the saffron threads and boil till the mixture reaches a string consistency.

4. Add fried sooji and coconut and stir well adding a little ghee from time to time till thick.

5. Pour into a plate and keep aside to cool. Before it cools fully, slice into desired shapes.

Note : You can also store them in airtight container and serve as and when required.

Nolen Gurer Payesh (Date Palm Jaggery Kheer)

Kheer or payesh is an Emotion to many of us, who have a sweet tooth. Kheer is a Global dish and it unites three different cooking traditions - Southern Asian, Persian and Western. Of course this is known by different names like rice pudding in the West, Payasham in the South and Shir Berenj in the Middle Eastern countries. Here the twist is, in the frame you can see creamy, delicious and thick kheer made with rice and this is a no-sugar kheer. I have added date palm jaggery to keep the sweetness intact. 

Ingredients:

1. Rice - 1/2 cup  (Joha or Gobindobhog)
2. Jaggery - 2-3 tsp (as per your taste buds)
3. Milk - 1 cup
4. Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Nuts (any nuts of your choice) - 1 tsp (finely chopped)
6. Raisins - 1 tsp
7. Ghee - 1 tsp

Process:   

  

1. Add rice to a pot and rinse it very well. Soak for half an hours to reduce cooking time.

2. Pour milk in heavy bottom kadhai or pot and add soaked rice and let it cook on low flame, stirring occasionally. Cook until the rice becomes soft and light. Add cardamom powder and remove from flame. Keep aside and let it cool down on room temperature. It will become more thicken upon cooling.

3. In a separate pan, add jaggery powder and half cup of water, and boil it properly. Let is also cool down on room temperate. Once the jaggery syrup is completely cooled down, add this syrup into the kheer. 

4. Fry the nuts and raisins in ghee and pour it over the kheer.

Serve Date Palm Jaggery kheer warm or chilled. 

This is very special during Makar Sankranti in Assam and West Bengal.

PATISHAPTA

Patishapta is typically a winter treat. It falls in the category of Pitha / Pithe. Bengali Pitha / Pithe are special type of sweets that are prepared using seasonal harvest. There is a special day in January, known as Makar Sankranti, dedicated to such delectable treats.

Ingredients: 

(For the crepe)

• Maida - 1/2 cup
• Sooji  - 2 tsp
• Rice flour - 1 cup
• Milk - half cup or as required
• Salt - 1/4 tsp
• Sugar - 2-3 tsp or jaggery powder
• Ghee (for greasing) 

(For the filling)

• Milk - 1 cup
• Jaggery - 1 and half cup (grated) I have used nolen gur (Date Palm Jaggery)
• Coconut - 1 cup (grated)
• Cardamom powder - 1 tsp

Process :

1. In a mixing bowl, add the maida, rice flour, sooji, sugar or Nolen gur (I have used nolen gur), pinch of salt and milk. Mix the ingredients together till they are more or less combined. Do not over mix or your crapes may turn out chewy. Cover the batter and set it aside to rest, for at least 2 hours. This will allow time for the sooji to swell up and the sugar/jaggery to melt. While your batter is resting, prepare the kheer, which will form the filling for our patishapta.

2. For the filling, place the milk in a non-stick skillet at medium low heat along with jaggery. Stir it around to melt solid milk. Once its melted and turns into a thick cream like consistency, add coconut along with the cardamom powder. Mix it around and cook for 5 minutes until the mixture comes together like dough and does not stick to the bottom of the pan anymore. Take it off the hot pan into a different container.

3. To prepare the patishapta, place a flat non stick skillet at medium high heat. Once the pan heats up, brush the pan with a tiny dot of ghee. Pour 1/4 cup measurement of the batter into the pan and with the back of the ladle, swirl it in one direction to form a thin circle.

4. It cooks really fast. So immediately spoon 2 tablespoons of the filling in one line on one edge of the patishapta. Using a spatula, gently fold the edge on top of the filling and keep rolling. Place the hot patishapta in a serving plate and continue making the rest.

CHOCOLATE CUSTARD PUDDING

Desserts are the fairy-tales of the kitchen, A happily-ever-after of supper. Here is a quick dessert recipe for Chocolate Custard Pudding.

Ingredients:

1. Dark chocolate - 200 gram
2. Custard powder - 2 tsp
3. Boiled milk - 500 ml
4. Condensed milk - 100 gram
5. Chocolate chips - for garnishing

Process:   

  

1. Cut the dark chocolate into smaller bits. 

2. Take a cup and add boiled milk, dissolve the custard powder in the milk and keep aside.

3. Pour boiled milk in a heavy bottomed pan, once the milk is warm, add condensed milk and mix well using a wire whisk. Add the chocolate pieces and let it dissolve completely.

4. Then add the custard powder mixture slowly while whisking, continue to whish to avoid lumps until the mixture thickens.

5. Turn off the flame and pour the mixture in serving cups / bowls while it is hot as this will set as it cools. Sprinkle some chocolate chips over the pudding to garnish and keep them in the fridge for 2 hours to set completely.