Uppu Kozhukattai

Ingredients:
Raw rice (normal cooking rice) - 100 ml cup full
Coconut – 2 or 3 spoons grated
Urad dhal – 5 tbsp
Green chilli - 1
Red chillis – 2
Hing
Salt 1 spoon

Method:
To make dough:
Soak the rice in water for 2 hours. Grind to a smooth paste to dosa batter consistency. Take a non stick pan, and 2-3 tbsp of oil. Add the batter to the pan, add a pinch of salt. Keep stirring in low flame till it gets cooked and the dough turns soft. Switch off gas, and keep the pan closed so that the dough becomes softer. After 5 mins, transfer the dough to another vessel and knead well.

To make poornam (filling):
Soak urad dhal in water for 10 mins. Drain water and grind along with green chilli, red chilli and hing. Steam the ground mixture in a pressure cooker. After 10 minutes, set aside to cool. Take a pan, add 1 spoon oil, and splutter ½ spoon mustard seeds. Add the cooked urad paste and stir well and remove from gas. Add grated coconut. Make oval shaped balls.

Make kozhukkattais in the same method as Vella kozhukkattai

Vella Kozhukattai

Ingredients:
Raw rice (normal cooking rice) - 100 ml cup full.
Coconut – 1/2 moodi
Jaggery – 3/4th of coconut quantity
Elaichi – 2

Method:
To make dough:
Soak the rice in water for 2 hours. Grind to a smooth paste to dosa batter consistency. Take a non stick pan, and 2-3 tbsp of oil. Add the batter to the pan, add a pinch of salt. Keep stirring in low flame till it gets cooked and the dough turns soft. Switch off gas, and keep the pan closed so that the dough becomes softer. After 5 mins, transfer the dough to another vessel and knead well. Kneaded dough should be a smooth ball without any lumps.

To make poornam (sweet filling):
Add grated coconut and jaggery powder in a pan and heat till it becomes poornam. After the poornam cools, add elaichi powder and keep aside.

Make cups of the dough and fill with poornam. Close the edges to shape the kozhakkattais.

Take an idly stand and oil the idly plates. Place kozhakkattais on idly stand. Heat water in pressure cooker, and keep the idly stand inside. Close and steam for 10 minutes (without the cooker weight). Switch off gas after 10 minutes. Let set for 10 more minutes. Serve (Pillaiyar first) hot or cold.

Thiruvaadarai Kali & Kuzhambu

Thiruvaadarai Kali:

Ingredients (Serves 3)
Rice – 1 cup
Jaggery powdered– 2.5 cups
Elaichi powdered – 5
Grated coconut – 1 cup
Ghee – 4 tsp
Cashews

Method:
Dry roast rice on a tava till light brown. Cool and powder to semi-fine rava consistency.
Add twice the quantity of water to the powdered rice, 2 tsp ghee. Cook in pressure cooker for 5 mins. Cool the cooked mixture.
Clean the jaggery if required by allowing it to melt in same quantity of hot water and filtering out the impurities. If jaggery is clean, heat ghee in tava and add cooked mixture, jaggery, coconut gratings and sauté well. The consistency should be semi dry (not soggy). Add fried cashews and elaichi to this and remove from fire. Serve with Thiruvaadarai Kuzhambu.

Thiruvaadarai Kuzhambu:
Ingredients:
It is a custom to use 7 different vegetables. Choose from: White pumpkin (pooshani), Yellow pumpkin (Parangikkai), Flat beans (avaraikkai), Mochai/kaalu, Chowchow, carrot, Beans, cucumber. – Total of 2 cups diced.
Toor dal – 1 cup
Tamarind extract – 1 lemon size
Sambar powder – 1 tsp

To Grind:
Red chilli – 4
Hing
Methi seeds – 1 tsp
Channa dal/Kadalai paruppu – 1 ½ tbsp
Dhaniya – 1 tbsp
Grated coconut – 2 tbsp

Method:
Roast in oil and grind masala ingredients. Cook tur dal in pressure cooker.

Add sambar powder,tamarind extract and vegetables to 3 cups water and let boil for 10 mins. Simmer, and add ground mixture and cooked mashed tur dal. Bring to a boil.
Garnish with mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Sarkarai Pongal

Ingredients:
Mung dal/Payatham paruppu – 2 teaspoon dry roasted
Raw rice (normal cooking rice) – ½ cup
Milk – ½ cup
Jaggery – 1 cup
Pachai karpuram
Elaichi powder - a pinch
Cashews, raisins - handful

Method:
Cook rice, mung dal together along with milk and 3 cups water in a pressure cooker.
Powder the jaggery and add 2 spoons water and heat. After jaggery melts, add the cooked and mashed rice mixture and mix well. Add ghee and roasted cashwes and raisins. Add a pinch of pachai karpuram and elaichi powder.