Shedhho Puli

 Oh my gosh! It's been a real long time since I wrote a recipe!! Am I not been cooking? Well, I am. Infact, I have been experimenting. Healthiest possible ways to cook up simple yet good food that hit just the right spot, and don't necessarily show up in the wrong places. I will share those, when I feel that I have the perfect concoction. Like this recipe, which is ancient, but I made it with some twists to cut the calorie values, yet it tasted just right.

In Assam, Makar Sankranti/Bihu is the time when we all grow a couple of sweet tooth, and get ready to empty plate after plate of delicacies, majority of them sweet and savory.  So what if our New Year resolution was to lose those extra pounds, 'tis the season (for us)! I have grown up seeing my Ma and Thamma(Grandma) stay awake till the wee hours of dawn, making Pithas, as these sweet delicacies are called. Not one or two kinds mind you! There have been some years, our plates had as many as TEN different types of Pithas, and we still wanted more!

Tradition calls for waking up as early as possible on Makar Sankranti, while its still dark, and take bath. Oh how I hated it! Who wouldn't? Waking up as early as 4.00 am on a chilly January morning and being rushed to the bathroom to take a bath is definitely not the best thing in the world. But wait, things got interesting when we came out of the bathroom, and went to the backyard, where Dad and Grandpa had lit up the Merameri'r ghar! Its a house-like structure we made the day before with bamboos, straws, branches, old newspapers etc. and was oodles of fun! And even more fun was getting warmed by the crackling fire, and while we sat there, Mom brought us plate full of those delicious Pithas. Oh yes, Sankranti was fun! We forgot all about the bath, and ate the whole day. :)

Ah those were the days! Sugar somehow became bad over the years (I have no clue how!). But the best thing is, we still celebrate this festival in our own ways, we still love those Pithas, and we scratch our heads, and find ways to making them in a healthier way. So here goes, my recipe for Sheddho Puli, which is a Pitha made of powdered rice. And since I have already blabbered a lot, I promise to compensate with as few words as possible :)

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The ingredients here serve 8. Time to cook is approx 45 minutes.

For the filling -

•  Shredded coconut - 2 cups
• Molasses (Gur) - 4-5 pieces
• Cardamom seeds - from 2-3 cardamoms
• Zero fat milk - 1/2 cup
• Mawa (powdered milk) - 1 Tbsp

For the Pitha -

• Coarsely powdered rice - 1 cup
• Ghee - 1 Tsp

For garnish -

• Zero fat milk - 1/2 cup
• Mawa (powdered milk) - 2 Tbsp
• Sugar - 1 Tsp
• Cardamom - 2
• Bay leaf - 1-2

Method -

• In a pan, heat about half cup of milk, add the cardamom seeds.
• After the milk heats up, remove from flame and add the molasses. Stir for a while, it is not necessary that they totally melt.

•  Add the dry shredded coconut and start the flame again.
• Add the mawa.
• Stir until the mix is dry.

• Stir the rice powder in a heated pan for 1-2 minutes.
• Add warm water and stir until the mix is dried. Remove from flame and add the ghee.

• Make small balls with your palms while the mix is still warm, and flatten to make a bowl shape. Add the filling and seal with your palms.

• In a pressure cooker, add a little water. Take a bowl that will go in the pressure cooker and coat it with a little Ghee. Put the Pithas in the bowl and cook until 1-2 whistles.

• Heat the milk and add all the ingredients for garnish. Pour on top of Pithas.

Serve warm or cool and enjoy!

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