Sakkarai pongal (sweet pongal)

This is a yumm comfort food, one which takes me down memory lane to Amma's food. It was a happy moment when my sonny said its one of his favourites and asked to make it sometime.
This recipe is from my mother. Very simple. No frills.

Ingredients

Raw rice 1 cup

Crushed jaggery 1 and half cup

Ghee half cup

Cashews and raisins, cardamom powder

Milk 2 cups

payatham paruppu (moong dal) 1.4 cup

Method

• Roast rice and payatham parupu withour oil in a kadai till it turns slightly brown.

• Cool, wash well and drain water well.

• Add 5 cups of water to milk in a thick bottemed vessel. Add the rice and cook.

• Mix 1 cup of water in jaggery and heat till it dissolves.

• When it is almost cooked add the jaggery after straining for mud.

• Add the ghee and seasoning and cook till it becomes thick.

Note
water can taken less increasing the milk

Rava kesari

Its Krishna Jayanti today and I took up courage to make some sweet, any sweet to mark it. And came upon the simplest of them all Rava Kesari. :-)

So here goes.....

Ingredients

Rava 1 cup
Sugar 1 cup
Ghee three quarters of a cup
Milk 2 cups
Cardamom, cashews, kismis, blanched and sliced almonds for garnishing

Method

1. Roast rava in the ghee till good smell comes. Do not let it burn. Keep stirring.
2. Add milk and let it cook well, stirring well. Take care to stir the rava when adding milk, else lumps will be formed.
3. Let it cook and get semi solid.
4. Add sugar and again stir till ghee begins to separate from the kesari.
5. Fry the garnishing in ghee and addand mix well.

You can increase the sugar based on your taste.

Yummmmm..........