KINNATHAPPAM- A TRADITIONAL KERALA SWEET SNACK

Kinnathappam is a traditional Kerala ‘palaharam’ .Kinnam refers to a shallow copper or steel vessel in malayalam.Kinnathappam can be called as a steam cooked rice cake . Kinnathappam are of two types, one made with jaggery and the other with sugar. Here I have made sugar kinnathappm.Dont be confused with Kinnathappam and vattayappam.Unlike kinnathappm the latter is prepared with fermented rice batter. This is a delicious sweet snack  with smooth and soft texture.

Recipe by Lakshmi Nair

 Ingredients

1.      Raw rice( pachari)-1 cup

2.      Sugar-1cup

3.      Egg-1no

4.      Thick coconut milk-1cup

5.      Thin milk-2 ½ cup

6.      Cardamom powder-1/2tsp

7.      Jeera (cumin seeds)-1/4tsp

8.      Little oil or ghee for greasing the plate

Method of preparation

1.      Soak rice for 3 or 4 hours. Grind this into smooth paste by adding required amount of thin coconut milk. When the rice is fully grinded, add egg, sugar and cardamom. Grind again till sugar dissolves completely.

2.      Add remaining thin coconut milk and thick coconut milk. Mix well .Sieve this mixture through a fine cloth .This sieved batter will look like frothy milk.(see the pics below)

3.      Grease a shallow steel plate. Pour this batter. Fill only ¾ th of the plate. Steam cook this for 45 minutes .When it is half done, open the steamer ,sprinkle few jeera seeds over the top. Keep the lid on and cook again till it is done. Even after the mentioned time, the appam may look like uncooked and sticky on touch. But it will solidify upon cooling. So try not to cut while it is hot.

 Once it has cooled, cut into desired shapes and serve.

Notes: Kinnathappam is a thin cake .So always use a shallow vessel, preferably a steel thali plate. The batter should not be thick. With the above quantity two Kinnathappams can be made.

Sieved batter

 

PARIPPU PAYASAM

Ingredients

1.      Cherupayar parippu( moong dal)-200gm

2.      Jaggery-400gm

3.      Thick coconut milk-1 cup

4.      Thin coconut milk-4 cups

5.      Ghee-4tbsp

6.      Cardamom -4nos

7.      Chukku podi (dry ginger powder)-1/4tsp(optional)

8.      Sugar-1tbsp

9.      Cashew nuts and raisins-a few

10.  Thenga kothu(coconut pieces)-1tbsp

Method of preparation

1.      Fry dal till light brown without adding any oil. Once it has cooled ,wash it and cook in a pressure cooker by adding 1 cup of water till it becomes soft

2.      Mean while, remove the skin of cardamom ,take out the seeds and powder it in a mixie by adding sugar.(addition of sugar helps in  getting fine powder)

3.      Grate jaggery. Melt this in a Uruli or thick bottomed vessel. Add little water while it is melting. Add cooked dal .Mix well. Add 2tbsp of ghee into this. Stir well. When the dal and jaggery combined well, add thin coconut milk. Bring it to boil.  Stir in between. Once the payasam thickens, add thick coconut milk, powdered cardamom and chukku.Heat for a while. Do not let it boil.

4.      Heat remaining ghee in another pan. Add the coconut pieces and cashew .Once it slightly browned add the raisins. Fry till the raisins puffed up, and the cashew –coconut pieces turned brown. Pour this over the prepared payasam…

 Enjoy the delicious parippu payasam…

Notes: If the payasam is too thin, add a tbsp of corn flour or rice flour dissolved in little water .Then boil the payasam for sometime.

S

KAPPALANDI MUTTAYI (PEANUT CHIKKI)

Ingredients

1.      Roasted peanuts-1 cup

2.      Sugar-1/2cup

3.      Butter/oil -1/2 tsp

A flat steel plate and little oil for greasing the plate.

Method of preparation

1.      Grease a steel plate and keep it aside.

2.      Pound the peanuts slightly either by a pestle or mixie.

3.      Heat a pan .Add the sugar in. Allow it to melt and turn slightly brown .It needs to be stirred to prevent it from burning. When it is completely melted and browned add the butter/oil. Stir well .When it bubbles add the peanuts. Mix well.  When the peanuts are completely coated with the sugar syrup, switch off the flame.

4.      Immediately transfer it in to the greased plate. Spread it using a rolling pin. Cut it into desired shapes while it is still hot (check the pic below).

Separate it into each piece once it has cooled completely.

                   Sending this to NIVEDHANAM and SPICE YOUR LIFE

BREAD CARAMEL PUDDING

Ingredients

1.      Bread-5 slices

2.      Milk-1 glass

3.      Sugar-5tbsp

4.      Vanilla essence-1/2 tsp

For caramel syrup

·         Sugar-2tbsp

·         Water-1tbsp

Method of preparation

1.      Tear the bread into pieces. Add milk. Let the bread soak for 5minutes.

2.      Add sugar, vanilla essence and milk to the soaked bread. Mash well either with the help of mixer grinder or simply crushing with a ladle.

3.      For caramel syrup –heat a pan. When the pan is really hot, reduce the flame. Add the sugar. When it completely melts and turned brown, add water. Stir it continuously until the melted sugar combines with the water and turns medium thick brown syrup.

4.      Add this syrup into a dish in which the pudding has to be cooked. Gently rotate the vessel in order to cover the sugar syrup all over the sides .

5.      Transfer bread mixture to it. Cover with a aluminum foil. Make small holes over the foil with the help of a fork to let the steam escapes while cooking. Keep this in a steamer or idli cooker and cook for 25 minutes.

6.      Let it cooled down completely. Transfer it into a refrigerator .When it is cool enough to be served, invert the pudding on to a serving plate and cut into desired shape and serve.