84) WHOLE WHEAT UNNIYAPPAM

WHOLE WHEAT UNNIYAPPAM

A SWEET, FRAGRANT WHEAT SNACK

Ingredients:

1)    Alsa Wheat (polished skinned thick whole wheat) – 500 gm.

2)    Jaggery (unrefined cane sugar) – 300 gm.

3)    Sugar – 1½ tablespoons

4)    Coconut – 1 No.

5)    Cardamom – 5 pods

6)    Ghee (clarified butter) – 100 ml.

To Cook:

Soak the wheat for 5 to 6 hours. Grate the coconut. Put a pan on the stove. Pour in 50 ml. of water and tip in the jaggery and the sugar. Stir till the jaggery is melted. Sieve and set aside. Shell the cardamom pods. Crush the seeds and set aside.

Wash and drain the wheat. Put it in a food processor. Pour in the melted jaggery. Tip in the grated coconut and the crushed cardamom seeds. Pour in a glass of water and grind for a minute or two to get a grainy paste. If your food processor is small as it usually is in India, grind in 2 or 3 batches.

Set a cast iron or non–stick kuzhiyappachatty (pan with 7 or 9 or more hemispherical pits) on the stove. Pour around 3 to 5 ml. of ghee into each pit (the non–stick pan needs less greasing). Pour in the batter neatly up to the brim of the pits. Turn down the heat to minimum and cover with lid.

Lift up the lid after 8 to 10 minutes checking once or twice in between to see if the unniyappams are cooked. If you can see no whitish raw batter at the top, sprinkle a few drops of ghee. Use a sharp spoon or a thin knife with rounded edge to gently prise up the unniyappams and flip them over. Cover with lid for a couple of minutes. The underside will be slightly caramelized. Lift out and serve hot or cold.

Note:

The outer skin should be slightly crisp when warm. The inside is soft and the grains are chewy. This delicious snack is a hit with children and adults alike. It tastes even better the second day, if indeed; you have any left for the morrow!!!