Creating a blog was out of the question for a long time for me, as measuring everything in the kitchen was like biting into an eggshell. I enjoy cooking and don’t want to waste even a slightest bit of enjoyment in that small world of mine. But little did I know that everything will change, when my husband came home with the Oscar nominated film ‘Julie and Julia’( a real life story) where Julie Powell (part played by Amy Adams) challenged herself to make all the 524 recipes from Julia Child's cook book ‘Mastering the Art of French Cooking’ and blogging all her experiences (The Julie/Julia Project). It was an inspiring movie. A few days later when we were discussing this casually with a friend of ours over tea…everything changed dramatically…..” How about you making at least half of it in one year? Not French but your own. 262 recipes that will inspire others and present it as a blog?” For a minute my mind traveled faster than light… With an experience as a helper in my mother in laws kitchen for 6 years followed by a three year everyday struggle to satisfy the palate of my foodie husband, if I cannot do it then why should I cook? But on the other side with an experience in English literature extending no more than expanding outline stories in English grammar class when I was 18 and two small kids that come in handy at times, will a commitment for the next one year work? Anyway my ‘cook's ego’ didn’t allow me to say no...

So my friends …here I am opening my recipe book, trying to perfect and present 262 recipes in the coming 365 days….A Challenge that will of course tastes good. Come.. Have a walk with me along my journey.. Cheering and inspiring….Forgiving and tolerating…Testing and tasting….for ‘A Tasty Challenge’

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Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Palappam (Kerala Laced rice Pancakes)

Recipe No: 34
Personally, this is my favorite breakfast item. In many parts of Kerala, Christians used to make this for breakfast on Christmas and Easter. This is an easy version of that same breakfast dish.
Ingredients
  • White Long Grain Rice (Pachari)……………2 Cups
  • Whole Fenugreek seeds……………………….1/4 Teaspoon (Optional)
  • Boiled white Rice………………………………...1/4 cup
  • Active instant dry Yeast……………………….3/4 Teaspoon (I use the brand ‘Red Star’)
  • Thick coconut milk………………………………1 ¼ cup
  • Sugar…………………………………………………..5-6 Teaspoons
  • Salt to taste
  • A deep pan with a curved bottom and a lid is desirable to make this kind of Appam.
Method of Preparation
  1. Wash and soak the Rice and Fenugreek seeds together for at least 6 hours. Soaking in warm water will make the process faster.
  2. Grind together soaked Rice and boiled White rice, adding just enough water needed to grind comfortably in your blender to an almost smooth consistency.
  3. In a large bowl add the yeast and two teaspoons of sugar. On top of this, add the ground Rice mixture.
  4. Mix well, cover the bowl airtight and keep in a warm place till the batter doubles in size. If you are using good yeast and the temperature is enough this will rise within 21/2 to 3 hours.
  5. Once risen, add Coconut milk, Salt and the rest of the Sugar and let it rise one more time. This second rising is essential to make the Appam soft.
  6. Heat the pan on medium heat, rub the pan with some oil and add a ladle full of batter. 2 oz or a quarter cup of batter will make a good sized Appam. Give it a swirl to get the characteristic lace. Close the lid and let it cook till the lace becomes light brown and the middle portion is cooked through. Serve hot.
Notes: 
  • Fenugreek seeds give a nice brown color to the Appam. There is no other purpose for this addition. It is strictly optional.
  • The way I use Yeast here is much different from the way yeast are used often. This way is used only for instant variety Yeast which comes as slender, slightly long granules. If you are using the regular round Yeast, mix it with 3-4 Tablespoons of warm water and keep aside, covered for 5 minutes. By this time you can see bubbles on top, showing Yeast activity. Mix this with the Rice batter.
  • If you are grinding this in the evening and it is already raised before night, mix in the coconut milk, salt and sugar and keep this in the refrigerator. It will rise slowly in the refrigerator and when you are ready to use allow it to rise at room temperature for at least 1 hour.
  • Don’t add salt during the first rising time as it will retard the growth of the Yeast. Once the Yeast is in its full activity, add the salt, that is, before the second rise.
  • You can decide on the sweetness of the Appam by adding more  or less sugar.
  • My mother in law uses regular Cow’s milk instead of coconut milk, and that works well too. This is an easy substitute if you don’t have access to coconut milk easily. 







Make it, enjoy the deliciousness and
serve it to your family with love....

9 comments:

Unknown said...

Any idea how to prepare the same with Nirapara Appam powder?

Asha said...

Hema give me a few days....

Anonymous said...

Hey, I found your website recently and just love your recipes.. very nice
Can you pls say me the time needed for second rising in this recipe!!

Asha said...

Hai, The second rising time depends on the temperature and it can range from 1-3 hours. So please check after 1 hour and see if it is rising and adjust the time accordingly.

sonali koshy said...

Hi Asha,
The boiled white rice that we use, what rice is it? And I have the rounded yeast granules; is the quantity the same, 3/4 tsp?

Asha said...

Sonali... Any sort of cooked rice will do, Basmati, matta.. anything that you regularly make at home... and you can use the same amount of yeast...but do follow the instructions given in the 'notes' section

sonali koshy said...

Hi Asha,
My apologies for not acknowledging your reply. Just want you to know that this is the best appam recipe that has worked for me and they look just like the appams in the pic above...:)
Thank you so much!

Unknown said...

What brand long grain rice did you use?

Zara Blogs said...

There are many posts that mean anything which is meaningless, but your post is very different, it is very amazing and is very unmatchable, I enjoyed reading it very much.

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