Yesterday was Deepavali, so I thought of preparing this incredible rice cake called as Cucumber cake or Mandas (konkani) which my mom used to prepare occasionally at home. The steaming process gives a lovely aroma due to the common ingredients such as jaggery and coconut that I usually add to most of my mangalorean snacks (please check the Mangalorean Recipe categories for more on this).
Preparation time: 15 minutes + soaking time
Cooking time : 30 to 60 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6
Ingredients
Cucumber – 370 g / 1 large, peeled with seeds removed and chopped
Ghee / Oil – 3 tbsp
Idli rice / White small grain – 1 cup, soaked for 3 to 4 hours (*see here)
Fresh or frozen grated Coconut – 95 g
Jaggery – 70 g, powdered (more info on jaggery read here)
Directions
1. Soak the rice for nearly 3 to 4 hrs with water 2 inches above the level of rice. Prepare the rest of the ingredients.
2. First blend the cucumber to liquefy, otherwise the blender might heat up while adding the hard ingredients at the bottom.
Then, add the rest of ingredients such as rice, coconut and jaggery. Do not add any water and blend to make a smooth batter of running consistency.
3. Grease the container with 1 tsp Ghee. Pour the batter into a container and drizzle 2 tbsp ghee. Run a knife through the batter to evenly spread the ghee.
Cover with aluminium foil.
4. In a large pot or work with enough water, place it on a stand of water bath. Close the lid. Cook for 30 – 60 minutes until a toothpick or skewer inserted comes clean without any wet batter.
Cooking time varies so check after 30 minutes. You can remove the foil carefully with a pair of tongs and place it back. Steam can be very hot hence must take care not to cause steam burns.
They say:”The key to everything is patience”. That defines my recipe today. I prepared it last weekend. Sweet Rice Dumplings are a typical Mangalorean sweet dish. Sweet Rice Dumplings with turmeric leaves have another name. They are commonly known as Haldikolyache Patholi in Konkani language (mother-tongue in South-West coast of India). Its made with rice filled with Jaggery-coconut mixture, wrapped in turmeric leaves which makes it a special dish.
Patholi, as we call it, was traditionally made at home. It was especially common when turmeric leaves were in abundance in my grandmother’s backyard during the monsoon season. While in Singapore, I discovered turmeric leaves at the supermarket and felt a strong craving for them. These leaves are used because of their unique flavor and delightful aroma. So, if you happen to have turmeric leaves in the local supermarket, I can assure you. This recipe won’t disappoint you.
Let me tell you a little about this popular “superfood sweetener” commonly used in India. Our elders always prepared sweet dishes with a sweetener called ‘Jaggery‘, Gur in hindi, Bella in Kannada. Jaggery varies in colors. It ranges from golden brown to brown and dark brown. Jaggery is known to have the ability to cleanse your body. Jaggery and sugar both are obtained from the same source of sugarcane juice. However, jaggery is unrefined sugar. The sugarcane juice undergoes a boiling process. The syrup is boiled continuously until it forms a thick paste. This paste is then poured into molds to form solid blocks.
Why is jaggery a “healthy” replacement for sugar? Unlike sugar, which is absorbed by the body quickly with a sudden burst of energy, jaggery is absorbed slowly. It releases energy over an extended period of time. Now, this is just one form of jaggery. The others are jaggery from palm sugar and so on..which I haven’t used in my recipes yet.
Soaking time: 2.5 hrs
Preparation time: 30- 45 minutes
Cooking time: 12 minutes
Ingredients
Raw rice / Boiled Rice / Surai or Ponni rice – 3/4 cup or 180 g (preferably boiled rice ) (*EDIT)
White small grain / Idli rice – 3/4 cup or 180 g (‘mutambo’ rice in Konkani)
Salt
Medium size turmeric leaves / Haldi leaves – 15 to 17, stemmed, rinsed and wiped dry (*see notes)
For the filling:
Pounded jaggery – 150 g or 3/4 cup (as per sweetness)
Grated fresh coconut – 120 g (*see notes)
Cardamom – 4 pods, seeds powdered
Directions
To save time, prepare the first two steps of the rice dumplings batter a day in advance.
1. First step soaking the rice : Mix and wash the boiled/ponni rice with water in a bowl. Do the same with the white small grain rice. Wash each type of rice once.
2. Next is making a smooth batter: Using a blender, add the rice and 1/2 tsp of salt. With very less amount of water as possible make a thick smooth paste. I divided the rice into 2 batches. This made it easier to grind. It resulted in a nice smooth paste and less grainy texture for the rice dumplings.
3.Preparing the filling: In a small bowl add powdered jaggery, coconut and cardamom powder. Stir thoroughly until the mixture is smooth and free of lumps.
4.Prepare the turmeric leaves (*see notes). Place a tablespoon of batter or just scoop it with your fingers. Spread the batter evenly over the shiny part of the turmeric leaf. Make sure it is not too thick or too thin. Leave a 1-inch gap along the edges.
5. Using a teaspoon, add the jaggery-coconut mixture along the center-line of the leaf.
Fold the leaf in half starting from one end, gently pressing the edges along its length. Repeat the process of step 4 with the remaining leaves and place them on a plate.
6. Using a steamer or a wok. Pour 1 1/2 cup of water. Place a small plate over the steamer plate with holes. Make sure it is at least an inch or two above the water level. Bring the water to a boil.
Arrange the leaves on the steamer plate at different angles, layering them as needed. Cover with the lid and cook on high (induction 8) for 12 minutes.
7. The rice dumplings are ready when a toothpick inserted into it comes clean. Remove the leaves from the steamer using tongs and place it on a plate.
Peel the leaves from one end and discard. It tastes best when its piping hot. Hope you like it. Happy cooking.
Note:
*If your using fresh coconut that has been in the freezer. Place it out on the kitchen counter an hour in advance to thaw and soften.
*If the turmeric leaves are too long you can cut them into half first and then place the batter.
* Since I made this recipe for 2 servings, I used just half the batter and made 8 leaves one day and the rest I used it another day. The coconut-jaggery filling can be stored in the fridge for a day or two to reuse later. Do not keep the filling stored too long as it will go bad.
EDITs:
In case you’re wondering how to pound jaggery, put the jaggery cubes in a ziplock bag. Use any object to pound them. Do the same with cardamom if you do not use a mortar and pestle.
For any updates on this page or website please follow my Facebook page>>Delicious Sweet Aroma<< . If you have trouble viewing certain pages, comment here. You can also drop a message on Facebook.
Cassava cake is one of my favorite snack with a light, delicious, aromatic flavor. It is one of the traditional tea time snack that looked inviting to me at the local bakeries in Singapore. It might look simple but once you taste it the texture of the cake is supremely addictive. Tapioca cake in Malay is called as Kuih Bingka Ubi.
Tapioca is extracted from Cassava root. The flesh can be chalk-white or yellowish. Hence, the color.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cook : 1 hr 30 minutes
Ingredients
Round baking pan 25 cm
Parchment paper
Grated tapioca – 1 kg, at room temperature (1.4 kg when I bought it before peeling.You can use a store bought grated tapioca or manually grate it if not available).
Eggs – 2
Granulated Sugar – 1 cup
Salt – 1/4 tsp
Undiluted coconut milk – 375 ml
Water – 1/4 cup
Directions
For Grating the tapioca
If you have grated tapioca that’s bought from the market skip these steps.
+ Peel the cassava root.
+ Grate the tapioca with a grater as shown below.
+ Once the grating is done, use a 15 inch long cotton towel. Place the grated tapioca at the center of the towel and get the ends of the towel together in your palm and squeeze the juices (or tapioca starch) from the grated tapioca until dry. (I did this part by part so it gets easier to squeeze excess liquid from them).
+ Place the liquid-starch aside. In about 15 mins – 30 mins you will notice a white powder settling at the bottom.
1. Preheat oven to 175 degree Celsius (350 degree F) for 10 mins, grease the pan with parchment paper.
2. Carefully pour in the liquid ( liquid-starch ) into the grated tapioca leaving behind the white starch at the bottom.
3. In a separate bowl combine eggs, sugar and salt. Mix until the sugar is partially dissolved. Pour this to the above mixture.
4. Add coconut milk and water. Mix well.
5.Gradually, pour the mixture into the baking tray. Tap the edges to settle any unfilled gaps.
6. Bake for 1 hour at 180 degree Celsius. Insert a skewer into the center and make sure it comes out clean. (I baked it for 1 hr 30 minutes to get a nice color at the top).
7. Remove it from the oven and let it cool completely.
As a hobby I blog on recipes that fascinates me to learn the art of cooking inspired from people to places I've been. In my recipes you will find step-by-step pictures with instructions for easy cooking. Hope to hear your views, share pics and have fun.
Happy cooking!
