“Cooking is like Love; It should be entered in to with abandon, or not at all” 

Cooking has always been a wonderful way for me to express my ramblings, except otherwise when I do it on paper! Many days when I feel upset or a little down, cooking has always been therapy. It`s also the thought that there are people I love, who enjoy eating what I cook! Festivals always always make me extremely chirpy and happy as I love succumbing in to the rituals of a tradition hundreds of years old, including  my kids in to explaining the reasons behind such time tested traditions, dressing up in traditional attires and jewellery, and of course the food…The Food!!! Every religious celebration has very different offerings, with its own significances.  Chakkara Pongal and Venn Pongal for Pongal, Nombu Adai for Karadaiyar Nombu, Kozhukattais for Lord Ganesha, Cheedai and Murukku for Lord Krishna on the celebration of his birthday, different Sundal Varieties for Navarathri and so on and so forth. Nei Appam is one such traditional preparation that we make for Karthigai Deepam, Deepavali, Avani Avittam, Aadi Perukku etc. This is a quick fix version when you dont have the time to soak raw rice and grind. I still prefer the traditional method, but this was something that my MIL taught me to do whenever I have not planned it in advance.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 Cup Rice Flour.

1/2 Cup Wheat Flour.

1/4 Cup Rava

1 Cup Grated Jaggery/ 11/2 Brown Sugar.

1/4 Cup Finely chopped coconut slivers. (Optional)

1 1/2 Tsp Powdered Cardamom.

2-3 Pinches Baking Soda. ( 1 Ripe Banana Mashed)

1 1/4 – 11/2 Cups water

PREPARATION:

• Quickly measure out the dry ingredients  – Rice Flour, Wheat Flour, rava, Jaggery/ Brown Sugar, Cardamom, Baking Soda keep ready.
• In a bowl add all the powders and mix all the ingredients with a whisk.
• Melt the jaggery in water enough to cover and place on stove in low heat. When jaggery is all melted, remove from flame.
• Mash half a banana with a fork and add to the melted jaggery.
• Now add the jaggery+ banana mix to the bowl of rice flour, wheat flour and rava and mix slowky with a whisk.
• Keep mixing slowly and add water as needed little by little. The consistency of the batter should resemble a thick idli batter. Not too runny. Add a pinch of baking soda and mix again.
• Allow it to sit on your counter for about 30 minutes.
• Take the tradional Appam Pan with the hemispherical indeentations or use the Ebelskiver pan available in the specialty kitchen stores like Williams Sonoma, Sur La Table and even Amazon.
• Fill up the depressions with oil/ ghee and set on the stove on medium heat.
• Once then oil/ghee is hot enough, pour out the batter with a ladle slowly to fill about 75% of the depression.
• This should take about 2-3 minutes to cook on one side. Cover and cook on low flame.
• Using a knife, or a skewer, tip it over to get the other side cooked.
• When the oil stops bubbling, carefully drain the appams on to a clean dry container lined with a napkin to drain out the excess oil.
• Continue until all the batter is complete.
• Easy Nei Appam is ready with just about ten mins of prep work!