MALPUA APPE

 I STRIVE TO MAKE HEALTHIER PITHE PULI, SWEET, SNACK!

If you have been watching my activities minutely, you would agree to my claim! Not that I have healthy eating habits; but too oily or sugary stuffs cause me discomfort these days!A stovetop pita bread last night instead of deep fried "luchi" is a step towards health for sure! 

I had my dinner with less of guilt! The problem is the snacking in-between meals. I do not know why I cannot resist that. Even T was saying what is the point of doing intermittent fasting if I keep having snacks & biscuits between 2 pm & 10 pm! My binge eating increased after the son left home for a better life! There is nothing fruitful to do and I was a born foodie, this turn of life was obvious. I am even more sad looking at the double chin of my brother. What is wrong with us siblings I do not know, but we look like two footballs these days. All my anger goes onto the weight machine and I feel like breaking it! Anyway, a lunch with a plateful of rice on a Sunday is not a crime! There had 'shutkir bharta, palong shaak, borar jhol"! The crime was to have that crisp toast with a generous drizzle of butter and a pinch or two of brown sugar in the evening!

Saturday & Sunday, I had all carbs! Though I may not have rice meals starting tomorrow, until Friday; I am unable to shed a kilogram only because my exercise is either a 45 minutes of swim or an 1 1/2 hours of walk! I see healthy diet & people in social media; do not get motivated these days. It seems to me an upheaval task to eat what I do not wish to! However, I keep sending warning messages to my brother & son. I have asked the son not be fat like mumma, neither to have a skeletal structure like babai!

REEL LIFE, REAL LIFE; ALL OF THEM AFFECT MY LIFE; I FIND ULTIMATE SOLACE IN FOOD!

Like, yesterday evening we were watching "Panchayat" Season 2, at the end I was feeling sad & restless. There is only happiness that engulfs me at the sight of a plateful of food! Planning for what food to cook is another level of a pleasure. The snack I cooked today was on my plan for over a year. I am proud to own an appe pan, I may not use it regular as is done in a Southern Indian home, but it really can get us a variety of snacks using less amount of oil! Today, it caused a disturbance in my fasting routine; I tasted one before 2 pm; after that I had a couple of them before going to swim! Thereafter, I had that lunch with the leftover chicken-rice I cooked last Saturday night in the microwave and rice with "kechki mach er chocchori"! A bowl of sweet oranges was not a concern. Cristine was out at the time, I do not even wish to serve myself well. The man too took chicken rice & mango in his lunch box!

I am too eager to blog about the delicious tasting chicken-rice bowl cooked hassle free! But I felt I need not behave a senile & hyper in public, let me keep it for another day sooner! This recipe would help many a busy people including an international student like our son! What I cooked this morning is equally worth sharing!

WHAT IS THIS MALPUA APPE?

Bengalis pronounce it Malpoa, I think it is the most common & most loved pithe / sweet snack in the family, second comes the patishapta pancake. Malpua, that is deep fried pancake making is not a big issue but it requires a wok full of oil for the round, fluffy shaped & a little less for the flat ones! Unless it is a special prayer meet day or a Poush Mash, I do not fry them. This idea was playing on my mind for long what about making a malpua batter & cooking them in a spoonful of oil on an appe pan! Whats in a name, the taste would remain same! MALPUA APPE is a sweet snack; vegan food done in a specialised pan to minimise the use of oil! The Bengali Malpoa Batter is flavoured with fennel seeds, I used green cardamom powder & rosewater instead today! So, it may not be a sin to spell this vegetarian sweet snack, Malpua instead of Malpoa in the title today!

INGREDIENTS :

REFINED FLOUR : 1 COFFEE MUG

SEMOLINA : 1/2 COFFEE MUG

RICE FLOUR : 2 TBSP

SHREDDED COCONUT : 1 SMALL TEA CUP [I USED DESICCATED COCONUT]

BAKING SODA : A PINCH OR TWO

SUGAR OR JAGGERY : 1 SMALL TEA CUP [I USED BROWN SUGAR]

ROSE WATER : 1 TSP

GREEN CARDAMOM POWDER : 1/2 TSP

WATER : AS REQUIRED

OIL : 1/4 TSP IN EACH

PROCEDURE :

We would take the semolina in a wide mouthed bowl & add some water to it. You can use thickened milk to it instead! In this island, the semolina variety is such the soaking time can be of 1/2 an hour, in Kolkata, it may take 2 hours to soften!

The next step is to add the refined flour and beat well so there is no lump left!

Then, we would add the coconut, sugar, rose water & green cardamom powder, beat well! We need to keep it covered for an hour!

As we get ready to cook them, we would add the baking soda & a tea spoon of oil and mix well the batter!

The appe pan has to be heated well & each hole has to have this amount of oil or a little less!

We would pour the batter, I missed clicking this step! We would cook both sides well at low to minimal heat. Each side may take 3-4 minutes to cook. The turning over can be done with the back of a small spoon!

We would put them onto tissue paper before serving and having! I forgot clicking this step too!