Thiruvathira Puzhukku

A very special delicacy on thiruvathira day. Its a great pleasure to write down something that had a great past. The variety of this dish is that its prepared only on the thiruvathira day and its main ingredients are tubers. Most of the tubers are easily availabale from the yard. Now the markets flood with these tubers and today during this preparation my mother in law was talking about the freshness of the tubers they gathered from their own land.

Ingredients

Raw plantain(Ethakka)-1/4 cup

Chinese Potato(Koorkka)-1/4 cup

Elephant yam(Chena)-1/4 cup

Cassava(Kappa)-1/4 cup

Kachil-1/4 cup

Chembu-1/4 cup

Nanakizhangu-1/4 cup

Madhurakizhangu-1/4 cup

Cow peas beans(Vanpayar)-1/2 cup

Chilli powder-2 tb sp

Turmeric powder-1 tb sp

Salt- as needed

Coconut oil-2 tbsp

Curry leaves- as needed

For grinding

Grated coconut-11/2 cup

Cumin seeds-1/4 tsp

Garlic-10 pods

Method

It will take more than 1 hour to finish this because it takes a long time to prepare these tubers. First we have to pressure cook the red cow beans with salt. All these ingredients must be square cut. We have to cook Cassava separately. When we cook it add some salt to it. After cooking drain the water and keep it aside. Then cook all the other tubers (after thorough washing) in pressure cooker. Add the chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt to it. One or two whistles may be enough. Then we have to drain out the excess amount of water. After grinding the coconut with the other ingredients mix this with tubers, cassava and cooked cow beans. Let it boil for sometime for blending the tastes. Add the coconut oil and curry leaves. The delicious puzhukku is ready and its a pretty and mouth watering side dish to rice or kanji. But on thiruvathira day most of ladies are taking this with Gothambu kanji as part of Vratha.

Vendakka kichadi

Kichadi and pachadi always confused me. Pachadi will be sweet. Pineapple pachadi and pazhutha manga pachadi are some of them. Kichadi is fried vegetable in curd. We can have it with coconut paste. Its very easy to prepare.

Method

Ladies finger(Vendakka)- 1 cup

Green chilly(pachamulaku)-4

For grinding

Coconut-1 cup

cumin seeds-1 tsp

Curd -1 cup

For seasoning

Oil-2 tbsp

Mustard seeds-1tsp

red chilli(vattal mulaku)-3

Curry leaves-3

Cut the vendakka in round shape. Pieces must be uniform and thin. Cut the green chilli like vendakka. Add 2 tbsp full of coconut oil to a kadai and add the chopped ladies finger and green chilly. Fry them until they reach the brown colour. Grind the coconut with cumin seeds and add it to the fried mixture. After boiling add the curd to the mixture. Its not necessary to beat the curd. After 10 minutes switch off the stove. Don't allow to boil. For seasoning add mustard seeds and red chillies to the oil. Then add curry leaves and pour this to the kichdi. Its considered as one of the 'Thodukaris' in sadya items.

We can make kichadi with pavakka(bitter gourd) and Beet root.

Tips: For this curry we have to fry the vendakka thoroughly otherwise the curry will be slimy. The frying section must be done with more care and we have to chop it uniformly. According to curd it must be sour. We have to grind the coconut thoroughly like a paste.

Erissery with Omakka and Vanpayar

A popular sadya item in Kerala. It can be made with Chena, mathanga and vazhakka. But this one had made with papaya and vanpayar. A nice combination with rice. Erissery is a dish with thick spicy gravy.

Papaya square cut: 1 cup

Red beans(Vanpayar):1 cup

Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp

Chilli powder-1 tsp

Salt -as needed

coconut-1cup

cumin seeds-1/2 tbsp

Garlic -4

Pepper -4

Mustard seeds-1 tsp

Red chillies-3

Curry leaves

Oil-2 tsp

Grated coconut-2 tbsp(for seasoning)

Method

Cook the red beans and papaya in cooker with salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder. Grind coconut with cumin seeds, garlic and pepper. Add it to the papaya. Allow it to boil. Check salt and other tastes. For this recipe apart from the regular garnishing we have to add some fried coconut to it. There will be a nice aroma after this seasoning. For this we have add some oil to a kadai. Add some mustard, red chillies and some curry leaves. After spluttering we have to add 2 tsp of grated coconut to the mixture and fry it. Pour this to the cooker. Delicious Erissery is ready. We can have it with rice.

A sweet dish from Papaya

Kozhukkatta

Kozhukkatta, have a lot of images in me. It can be prepared in umpteen ways. But this is from my dearest friend, filled with lot of love and care. She had sent me this recipe and the image from Bangalore. Simple things can trigger a stream of memories. Dedicating this sweet post to my friend and praying for her family.

Recipe of kozhukkatta(Steamed rice dumplings filled with sweet)

Rice flour-2 cups

jaggery-1/2 cup

shredded coconut-1/2 cup

Salt-as needed

Ghee-2 tsp(optional)

Cardamom-2 powdered (optional)

Method

For the filling

Mix shredded coconut with ghee, grated jaggery and cardamom powder.

Mix the rice flour with small amount of salt. Make it a dough using warm water. Make small balls from the dough. Make a big depression inside the ball and fill the sweet filling then close it. We can make it a perfect ball by shaping it. Steam these balls for 20 minutes.

The perfect kozhukkatta I had eaten is from my neighbour. Its their custom to make these sweet balls on the day of 'Kuruthola perunnal'(Palm sunday). This perunnal had a local name as 'Kozhukkatta perunnal'. She always made a perfect ball.

In her recipe she will always make 'Sharkara pani' for the filling, all the other things are same.

For making sharkara pani we have to melt jaggery with 1/4 cup of water , then strain it. Then we can add the coconut.

The other images are of the 'Nadan kozhukkatta' made by my mother. I had not tried to make it. Its with Kuthari. We have to soak the rice for 6 hours. Then grind the rice with salt, one spoon full of cumin seeds and half cup of shredded coconut. It must half grind, and the water content must not be too much. Make small round balls with the half grind rice mixture. Cooking method is also different, this kozhukkatta is not steamed instead of that we put these balls in boiling water and close it for almost half an hour. After that we can take it from the water and the water which is called 'Kozhukkatta vellam' is also very tasty. We can have this with little sugar.

These sweet snack can be made with different types of filling. We can make it with coconut filling only for adults. We can fill it with coconut scrapes with sugar. I like this taste more than jaggery, its also easier than the other type. Another variety is with aval(poha) filling. Aval with jaggery and coconut is a common combination. We always make it with 'Chakkavaratti' its the jam made with jack fruits. This filling is very tasty. My in law's make this kozhukkatta with green gram, jaggery and coconut mixture. If you are too health concious you can make the filling with sprouts also. In this filling we can add nuts and raisins for extra taste. It is considered as sweet snack with coffee(nalu mani palaharam), it can be served as a break fast item. Anyway its an easy and healthy snack for children.

Kanji

Kanji is an inevitable part of our life. Its the heaven of a keralite. Its the easy to cook healthy food. We prepare it with different types of rice. The above shown kanji is 'Kuthari kanji'. Its the double boiled version of rice. We can make 'Podiyari kanji' its the broken rice porridge. Another type of kanji is 'Unakkalari kanji'. 'Pal kanji' is another variety its prepared with rice and milk.

Kanji vellam is a great refreshner. Its a must food during sick days. We can see characters eating kanji with great gratitude in malayalam literature.

In the picture I had placed a natural spoon made with 'Plavila'. It was a usual scene in Kerala . Now we are using steel spoons instead of this.

It can be cooked in a steel vessel or in Pressure cooker. If you want to get the original you have to cook it in kalam. Its a round shaped vessel. We can also use a kalam made of clay. In Ayurveda we can see 'Marunnu kanji' . In karkkidaka we can see advertisement of 'Karkkidaka kanji'. Other kanjis familiar to me are 'Barley kanji', 'Nombu kanji', 'Jeeraka kanji', 'Vishu kanji' , 'Uluva kanji' and 'gothambu kanji'.

If we are using the traditional method we have to add three cup of water to every cup of rice. If we are using pressure cook method add 5 cup of water to every cup of rice.

We have to sprinkle some salt over it before serving. It can be eaten with pickle, pappadam or any side dish. Kanji and payar is popular combination. Kanji and kappa is also a famous combination. Kanji and salt with shredded coconut is a very good one. Kanji and chammanthi is also very nice.

In kerala, people without culture are called as 'Kanji'!!!

Kappalandi Mittayi

Sorry for the low quality image , my camera has some complaints and hoping to buy a new one....

More about Ground nut nutrition
Kappalandi/ Kadala is the most common nut in Kerala. Eventhough its the place of Kashuvandi(cashew nut) Kappalandi is the common man's snack. Cashew nut is costlier than this one.
The crispiness and the sweetness of Kappalandi mittayi will never fade from the mind. Everyone has some sweet memories associated with these candies. 'Mittayi' may be the first sweet name taught by the children in Kerala. Its the malayalam of 'toffee' or 'Candy'. Every child needs 'Mittayi' . My children also wants 'Mittayi' and I found the 'Kadala mittayi' as a safe replacement. Its made of Jaggery and the nutritious Kappalandi. Its an all time favourite in my home. I had not prepared this at my home but its also a regular visitor of our snack box.

Chidren always need sweets and even adults need them. A sweet candy means more to a child. Whenever I think of these common snacks the small story of Kabuliwallah will came into my mind. Its a haunting story of the great Rabindranatha Tagore, opening up a vast world in front of us. Its also a story of 5 year old with lot of questions and querries.

To read the full story of Kabuliwallah

When we travel through Kerala we can see Inji mittayi(ginger toffee), bombay mittayi and Jeeraka mittayi. Its very nice to think about it bombay mittayi will melt into your mouth and its like 'Appooppan thadi'. We can see mobile vendors with heavy jar of Bombay muttayi. Jeeraka mittayi is a nice option other than chocolate toffees. Another one is 'Naranga Mittayi'. My ammoomma still loves it and we always buy it for her.

Some tastes take us to our past, if it is a sweet taste the memories will be sweet. Please share your nice memories about sweets.

Cheera Thoran/Spinach fry

Recipe of Cheera Thoran

Cheera-Few stalks

Coconut scraped-1/2 cup

Jeerakom-Pinch

Garlic-3

Mustard seeds-1 tsp

Oil-2 tsp

Chilli powder-1tsp

Turmeric powder-1 tsp

salt-As per the taste

Method

Finely chop the spinach after thorough washing. Add oil into a kadai, add mustard seeds and curry leaves. After spluttering add the cheera, add turmeric powder, salt and chilli powder to it. Grind coconut with jeerakom and garlic. Add this to the cheera. Cook for 10 minutes. Serve with rice.
I had done some posts about Spinach in my nature blog. Please have a look.

Malayalam: Cheera

English:Spinach

Sanskrit:Palakya

Spinach is a healthy food. It has lot of medicinal qualities also. Do not hesitate to include it into our daily diet. It will take more time to prepare spinach for cooking. Convince children about its medicinal effects.

PS: A very small story related to Cheera/ Spinach

Story is from Mahabharatha. Draupadi had a vessel named Akshaya pathra, which gave all the food to their crew. Whenever she finished her eating it will stop its food. Once Durvasa came to pandavas, at that time draupadi finished her meals. She was frightened and prayed krishna for a peaceful solution. Krishna adviced her to offer him anything that remained in the vessel. She found a leave of Cheera in one of sides and offered it to Lord Krishna with prayerful heart. At that time Durvasa and his followers hunger disappeared and they left. Is it a nice story??

Last month we had participated in famous Vallasadya of Aranmula temple, Kerala. During the sadya all the dishes are asked through 'Vanchipattu' the lines for Cheera thoran was like this , 'Panchaliyude pathrathile cheerathoran kondu vayo'. Its always interesting to know more about the dishes in that time.

Nellikka Uppilittathu

Nellikka-8

Green chilly-5

Salt -3 spoons

Wash the goose berries. Put it in the air tight container with salt, water and chopped green chillies. If kanthari is availabe it is the best for this preparation. It will be a nice combination with Kanji. Water must be cooled enough after boiling and the container must be air tight.

It can be taken after two weeks.

This can be easily prepared. If we have some fresh gooseberries and we have not enough time to make a pickle this can be made. I had used 'Kalluppu' for this. It is the crystallised form of salt. In most of the Ayurvedic medicines they are using 'Kalluppu' . Nellikka is of not 'Nadan' variety. Nadan variety will be small and there will be a reddish shade in the skin.

A common saying in Malayalam is 'Kshamyude nelli palaka kandu'. That means the last word of apology. May be in a dispute one who keep silent and do not utter a word . There was a system of using a log of gooseberry wood(Nelli palaka) in the basement part of Wells. This wood will not erode in water and it has excellant medicinal qualities. This may be the truth behind the saying

'Kshamayude nellippalaka'.

In funny talks also there will be a presence of this tree as 'Nellikka thalam' (a treatment for mental disorders) as a remedy to awkward solutions. Trees will become part of our language too. We may not even think of the tree when we say 'Nellikka thalam' or 'Nelli palaka'. These thoughts are dedicated to our mother nature who cares us through all these green shades....

Guava-Milk shake

Recipe of Guava Milk shake

Ripe Guava-2
Milk-one cup(cooled)
water -one cup
sugar-1/4 cup
Vanilla Essence-4 drops(optional)
Method
After thourough washing peel off the Guava. Make a puree of it with a small amount of water and sugar using a mixie. Strain it. Add the milk and serve . We can add 3-4 drops of vanilla essence into it for better taste. A nutritious and colourful drink with lot of Vitamin C.

Malar (Popped Rice)

Malar or Popped rice is an inevitable part in our poojas. Its very good for our stomach too.
English:Popped rice

Malayalam:Malar

Sanskrit:Laja

Water boiled with malar is given as a refreshing drink in ayurvedic medications. Malar kanji is also a great rejuvanator.

'Malar nanachathu' is an easy snack. Even if we are calling this snack as 'malar nanachathu' we don't have to add any water to it.

Malar-3 cups

Scraped coconut-1 cup

sugar-1/4 cup

Mix all these ingredients and squeeze them to soak the malr. It can be made within 5 minutes. It may be the most nutritious homemade snack within a short preparation time.

PS: You may heard about these words' Oru malar podikkarante swapnam'

Its a small folk story about our fascinations. Now I am attaching this story with this recipe because the main item in this story is 'Malar podi'

This story is about a man who is selling 'Malar podi' for his living. One day he had made a pot full of 'Malar podi' for the sale of next day. Then he thought that after selling this full pot malar podi he can buy a hen. After some calculations about the eggs, he thought he can buy a goat by selling that eggs. The thoughts continued and the last he reached at a point where he had a herd of cows from this pot full of malar podi. At this time in his dream he picked a stick and swayed it to redirect his cows. But in real life also he picked a stick near to his bed and swayed like in the dream but on the top of the bed he had that pot filled with malar podi. He had beaten that pot with the stick and the whole dream finished. His body and face filled with malar podi. This story is from my lovely ammoomma. There may be slight variations from the original. Its a famous saying in malayalam'Malar podikkarante swapnam pole' about an event that can not be happen or the possibility will be less and someone dreaming so impractical.

In those days people will place food in pots and they will hang from the rope with the help of ropes. This way is used to protect the food from ants and insects. These type of storing method is called 'Uri' in malayalam. In this story he had stored the popped rice powder in 'uri' . My ammoomma always tell about these small things in detail and duirng his story telling process always move her fingers over my hair. Every story has some nostalgic memories.

Ragi Puttu

Puttu is a main break fast dish of Kerala. It can be made with rice flour, rava , wheat and with raggi. It is healthy dish because it is coocked in steam. Steam coocked food has so many advantages than other methods. Loss of nutrients will be less and texture and colour of the food remain as such. For this dish I had used a Puttu maker we can use a chiratta puttu maker or puttu maker made with bamboo.
In this puttu I preferred to Ragi because of its nutrition. It can be eaten as such or with banana (Njalipoovan pazham).
Malayalam-Ragi/Panjappullu/Koovaraku /Muthari
English-Finger Millet
Hindi-Ragi
It contains high amount of Calcium. It is recommended for children, pregnant women and elder people who need more Calcium in their daily diet. It is suitable for diabetic patients also. Its fibres prevent constipation. In Kerala its a must food for small children as 'Kurukku' . Its a protein rich food.
Raggi puttu is a health concious version of our normal puttu
Recipe of Ragi puttu
Ragi flour:1 cup
Coconut grated: 1/2 cup
Salt :as per your taste
Method
Mix the ragi flour with salt and water. Water must be sprinkled to the flour and make the mixture slowly. When we press the mixture inside our hand if the dough keep in shape, the amount of water is correct. After thorough mixing remove the lumps. Then fill the puttumaker with half amount of raggi flour and then grated coconut. Repeat the other half in the same method. Put it in the steam. It will be ready after 10 minutes. Its an easy nutritious breakfast item most suited for children.

Guava

Guava is a common tree in Kerala. Mostly we use fruits in raw form. It is known as 'poor man's Apple' and 'Apple of the tropics'. Its a delicious tropical fruit. The flesh of the fruit is pink, yellow or white filled with hard seeds. It is used to make Jams and Jellies.
Botanical name: Psidium Guajava
In Malayalam:Perakka
In Hindi:Amrood
In Marathi:Peru
InTamil:Koiyaa
In Sanskrit:Swaduphala
Guava tree from my nature blog
Mainly two types of guava available. The pink type and the white variety. In Kerala we always eat it fresh. In Tamil nadu we can see street vendors with spicy half ripe guavas. I had seen it in Chennai and in Bangalore. Guava can be spicy...... We can make juice or milk shake with this fruit.
Yesterday I had made a juice of Guava. Guava is always the first in my fruits list. It has 10times more Vitamin C than citrus fruits.

Guava juice seasoned with Cherries

Guava, Pink variety
Guava juice is a thirst quencher and a multipurpose healer. Its laxative property prevents constipation. Its Vitamin C content make it a healer for cough and cold.

Guava Juice is a great refreshing drink and its good for your stomach too. Its a highly nutritious drink for our tiny tots , rich with vitamin C . Its always cheaper than other fruits. If it is available in your yard, always consider it as a precious fruit and consume it in raw form, juicy version or a milk shake. One of my friend who is a veteran cook treated me with a guava milk shake and I am also eager to make few glasses of guava milk shake and to see the thrilling faces of my children!!!

Recipe of Guava Juice

Ripe Guava: 2

Sugar: as per your taste

Water :One cup

After thorough washing peel off the guavas and cut it into small pieces. Using a mixer make a puree of the guava with small amount of water and sugar. Strain it. Serve it with ice cubes or as you like... I had seasoned this juice with one or two cherries because my children like it. Actually they are the inspiration behind these.

The beautiful flower of Guava from Idukki District

Leaves of Guava are used extensively in some areas of Kerala. Leaves are boiled in water. This boiled water is considered to be good for diabetic patients. Its a medicine to diarrhea also.

I am always interested to know more about the fruits around us

If you are interested to know more about the details of the vitamins in a Guava fruit and also its calorie this link may be helpful, Health Benefits of Guava

Guava tree has many medicinal qualities. Its leaves and bark are used in medicines. More therapeutic uses of Guava.

Nellikka

Nellikka Achar-Gooseberry pickle

Botanical name-Phyllanthus emblica

English-Indian Gooseberry
Hindi-Amla

Tamil-Nellikkai
Sanskrit-Amalaka
Nellikka, the best rejuvanator of Ayurveda has excellent healing properties. Fresh nellikka has the power to slow down the ageing and has better cooling effect in our body. Its the main ingredient in 'Chywana prasa'. The tree is known as 'Nelli' in Malayalam.
This round glowing green fruits are my favourite in school days. We had an experiment with its fruit to taste the water sweet after eating the fruit. This maybe because of its bitter taste, the water will be more sweeter.
An adage (pazhanjollu) related to nellikka in malayalam is
'Moothavar chollum muthu nellikka adyam kaykum pinne madhurikkum'
Means that the advices given by elders will feel bitter first and then it becomes sweet.
A treatment for psychatric problems in Ayurveda is 'Nellikka thalam' . According to Ayurveda it cools the body. They used it in dried form also.
Children doesn't like its bitter taste. It has 10 times more Vitamin C than an Orange. This is a precious fruit with rich vitamins. I have heard that the Vitamin C content of Nellikka will not diminish after cooking. Its nice news because of its sourness children will not eat it. We can give them nellikka pickles, it may be accepted. My inlaws always make nellikka arishtam/nellikka vine. I am trying to post the recipe of that home made medicine.

Pickles are an inevitable part of our life. We make pickles with whatever we get. Every home two or three glass bottles filled with pickles. I always make nellikka achar/gooseberry pickle. 'Nellikka uppilittathu' is a nice combination for kanji. My inlaw's use the kanthari for this preparation. When we pickle we have to add some more salt because after some days the pickle will become more sour than we expect.

This recipe is from my Amma who is a veteran pickle maker. In my college days, she was very busy with making various types of pickles, Chammanthi podi, Avalos podi, aval vilayichathu and snacks. Dedicating this post to my lovely amma

Recipe for Indian Gooseberry pickle/Nellikka Achar

Gooseberry/Nellikka-10-15

Garlic-10

Vattal mulaku-2

Gingelly oil-2 table spoons

Mustard seeds-1/4 tea spoons

Curry leaves- few

Pickle powder -5 table spoons

Salt-As per the taste

First wash the nellikka well in running water. Cook them in a vessel with enough water. After 5-10 minutes take all the nellikka from the vessel, after cooling cut them into small pieces. That water in the vessel can be used in the last stage.

In our home we don't use vinegar in pickles. Instead of that we use Gingelly oil.

In a pan heat the gingelly oil and add mustard seeds . When the mustard seeds begin to splutter add the vattal mulaku and curry leaves. Then add the garlic pieces and fry it till brown then add the pickle powder I used the 'Eastern pickle powder', stir well. After some time there will be a slight colour change to the pickle powder then add the nellikka pieces. Stir continuously and then add the water to it. Switch off the stove when the pickle starts to boil. If you are too concious about the aroma we can add a pinch of Asafoetida poder to it. After thorough cooling pour the pickle into air tight bottles. Refrigerate only after 8 days. It will be a nice accompaniment for rice.

If you are interested to know more about the nutritional benefits of Amla. This link may be helpful to you.

Sprouts and Fruits Salad

I had done a post about this salad in my nature blog. Reposting it, thinking that it may be more acceptable in this food blog.
Recipe of sprouts and fruits salad
Pome granate-1
Apple-1
Mung bean sprouts(cheru payar mulappichathu)-3 table spoon (Moong dal in Hindi)
Cow pea sprouts(van payar mulappichathu) -3 table spoon
Peel off the pome granate and separate the seeds. Peel off the Apple and cut it into small pieces. Mix it with the sprouts. Use it fresh. If the ingredients are cool it will be more nice.
Sprouts are easily digetible and rich with vitamins. During their germination the vitamin level increases. It can be made at home.

Papaya Halwa

Welcoming all of you to my food blog with a sweet dish made of the vitamin rich Papaya. Images right from my kitchen. I had not added any food colour to it. Original colour of papaya.

I am not a kitchen expert but it was a long time wish to start a food blog only to share some of recipes very common to Kerala. I am always eager to know about the health benefits of the food. Beyond all the measurements, this blog may focus on the nutrition of the dishes. Expecting more cooperation from my blog friends.

Papaya is an all time available fruit in Kerala. Because of the ignorance we are not giving much importance to this fruit.

Scientific name of Papaya:Carica Papaya

English name:Papaya

Sanskrit name:Chirbhitha,Eranda Chirbhitha

Hindi:Papitha

Thamil:pappali

Origin: It is believed that it is from Southern Mexico. It is now present in every tropical country. It is also known as Paw Paw and tree lemon in England.

Papaya is a healthy food especially for our skin.

Some nutritional benefits of Papaya from the net

• Rich with VitaminC, folate and Pottasium
• Good source of Vitamin A and Vitamin E
• It contains anti oxidants which give protection against heart diseases
• Digestive Aid
• 13 times more Vitamin C than Apples
• 33 times more Vitamin C than Oranges

Its always to good to eat the fruit as it is but children always deny Papaya because of the special taste. Thus it ended up with a sweet Halwa.

Recipe of Papaya Halwa

Ripe Papaya -2Cups

Rice powder roasted-3 table spoons

Sugar -According to your taste

Ghee-3-4 table spoons

Cashew nuts -5-6

Method

After peeling cut the Papaya into small pieces. Using a mixer make a puree of Papaya. First roast the cashew nuts. Place a thick bottomed a vessel with 1 spoon ful of ghee. After removing the nuts we can add the papaya puree to the vessel and stir occasionally. After 15 minutes we can add sugar and rice powder to it. Then add the rest of the ghee to the vessel. After some time we can see the mixture will come out of the vessel surface. continue stirring till it becomes a ball. Then spread it into a flat vessel which must be coated with ghee. Garnish with Cashew nuts. After thorough cooling we can cut it into pieces.

It will take around 45 minutes to complete the dish. According to my opinion it is not an easy dish. If we have enough time we can do it and children will love the dish.

It can be served as a Dessert or a tea time sweet.

'Halva refers to many types of dense, confections served across the Indian subcontinent' wiki

We, Keralites have lot of names for Papaya, some of them are Omakka, Papparakka, Kappalanga and Kappanga.

If you are interested to know more about papaya tree