Pepper 'n Spice

Typically South Indian, aval is pressed or flattened rice flakes. Made out of rice which is husked, cleaned, soaked in hot water and then pressed under rollers and dried, the paper thin flakes are very light and bland in taste. In this dish, I use jaggery which is concentrated sugar syrup from cane juice; again very Indian. Considered a pure, wholesome sugar, jaggery is made by boiling the juice of sugarcane while several people help stir the steadily thickening syrup. Also a rich source of iron, it is used in Indian Ayurvedic medicine. You will mostly be able to find white pressed rice and jaggery in Indian or Iranian stores. So what do you need to make the sweet? 2 cups aval 1/2 cup grated coconut 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup grated jaggery 1/4 teaspoon powdered cardamom Into a bowl of aval, add grated coconut. Now stir in the milk and allow about an hour or more so that the rice flakes soak in the milk and soften. When you are about to serve, merge in the grate...

This is a fantastic dessert. It takes only about 15 minutes from start to finish. The coconut soaks in the milk making the sweet so moist and juicy. You have got to give it a go - its a nice treat! For this sweet, you will need.. 2 cups grated coconut 1 cup sugar 2 ounces unsalted butter 1/2 cup milk 3/4 cup water 1 small handful of almond chips and chopped cahewnuts 1 teaspoon powdered cardamom Place the sugar and water in a pan over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Next add coconut, butter, milk and stir around, and cook on a low flame. Once the whole lot thickens, sprinkle the cardamom and some of the nuts. Mix together well and after about 3 minutes, pour into a buttered dish. Scatter the remaining nuts on the top. To serve, spoon out the sweet at the table and top it off with a dollop of vanilla ice cream. I like to cool the sweet in the fridge first, but you can have it warm too. Recipe from Somakochamma