Vennai Puttu – Rice flour jaggery pudding for JFI – Rice

The moment I saw the annoucement for JFI for August is Rice(JFI- Rice is hosted by dear Sharmi of Neivedyam this month, a brainchild of Indira of Mahanandi!), This dish came to my mind. But work front kept me busy and somehow I could manage it to prepare it in the last moment. I don’t know why it got this name, might be because of its silky texture but it neither contains vennai (butter) nor it resembeles the Kerala puttu
This is a sweet dish. The simplest of the ingredients add grace to it. This is a common dessert prepared in northern-coastal Tamilnadu. I did not add any other rich contents like cashew / badam for decorating as I thought any such addition would spoil it’s simplicity. And here comes the recipe.

Ingredients:
1 cup par boiled rice – soaked over night and ground to a smooth paste with little water. (It should be in the consistent  of idli batter)
1/2 cup powdered Jaggery
1 pod of cardomom powdered
a pinch of salt
2 table spoons boiled chana dal
2 tables spoons shredded fresh coconut
Ghee for greasing

How to make it?
Boil the jaggery with 1 cup of water till it starts foaming. Stop at this stage and strain the liquid. (If ou want the dish sweeter add more jaggery at this point). Boil 2 and 1/2 cups of water with the pinch of salt in a heavy bottomed pan. Once it starts boiling add the rice batter slowly by constantly stirring to make sure no lumps are formed. Throughout the process this stirring should not be stopped so better get one more hand for helping you Once the rice paste gets almost cooked add the jaggery liquid and keep stirring. Add the chana dal after 3 minutes. Keep stirring! Add the cardomom powder. Keep stirring! Now the entire mass will come together leaving the pan. Switch of the stove and add the shredded coconut and do a final stir. Grease a tray with ghee and pour this mixture.

 Let it cool and cut into to slices. Serve them with a dash of ghee!

This is my entry for JFI- Rice