Jack Fruit - Rava Halubai/ Pudding

Haalubai/pudding is one of the traditional dish of South Canara./Karnataka. It is a sweet dish prepared using raw rice, jaggery and coconut normally. Here I have tried this Halubai using jackfruits and rava instead of raw rice. Jack Fruit - Rava Halubai is soft and delicious and is one of the healthy traditional dish normally done during Nagara Panchami festival.

Nagara Panchami is one of the festival which falls in the month of Shravana.  On this day Snakes are worshiped by Hindus through out India and other parts of the world where Hindus live. People pray for snakes to get their blessings and welfare of the family. According to Garuda Purana offering prayers to snake on this day is auspicious and will usher good health and wealth in one's life. This day there is a custom that girls pray for their brother's health.
In Dakshina Kannada/Udupi/Mangalore /Malenadu region there is a traditional saying that one should not season the food, or prepare dosa or even keep oil for frying. Doing these frying, preparing dosa on hot tava and keeping a pan on the fire and seasoning will hurt the snake body and people who does might get a curse from the snake. There may be a reason to do these customs but it is said in this way.
Let us see the recipe now :

Things Needed :

Jack Fruits : 10 to 15
Rava/Semolina : 2 Cups ( Small cup)
Jaggery /Bella : 1 Cup
Coconut : 1 Cup
Cardamom : 6 to 8 pods
Ghee 3 to 4 Tablespoons
Salt : A pinch
1 Cup Rava : 1 and 1/2 Cup Water. 

Method :

1. Grate coconut and remove the pods from jack fruits. Remove the pods from cardamom.

2. Grind it nicely till it turns like paste. Use required water to grind. Add jaggery and give a churn.
3. Shift the mixture to a bowl. Add a pinch of salt to it.

4. Dry roast medium size rava for 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Add ground jack fruit -coconut mixture to rava and mix all the ingredients nicely.

6. Stir till the batter turns thick. Add ghee little by little and stir.

7. The batter starts to get thick and leaves the pan.

8. Stir for another 5 more minutes and shift the ready jackfruit halubai to a ghee spread plate.

9. Spread it nicely and equally around the plate.

10. Leave it for cooling and then cut it according to your desired shape.

Note .

Dry roast rava/semolina. You can use chiroti rava instead of medium size rava. The water should be
 1 1/2 times more than rava. 1 Cup rava; 1 1/2 cup of water.  Adding more jaggery is optional. Adding more ghee is optional. We do eat this halubai with a spoon of ghee on the top. Adding cashews or any other nuts is purely optional.

Time : 30 Minutes.
Serves : According  to your wish.
Purely South Canara Dish.                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Apple Haalubai (Apple Rice Cake).

Apple Halubai / Apple Rice Cake 

Haalubai is a sweet dish, Haalu bai is prepared using coconut, raw rice, jaggery, cardamom and ghee. It is one of the traditional dish done during Nagara Panchami festival. Rice is soaked and ground along with coconut and added jaggery and cardamom. This ground dough is stirred on the low flame till it is cooked. Adding ghee at the end and normally spread the cooked dough on the banana leaf. The spread Haalubai is cut when it is cooled according to their wish either diamond or square. Served with the ghee on the top of halubai is very tasty to eat.
Lets see Some benefits of eating Jaggery and  Apples in our daily diet.
Eating jaggery, include the ability to cleanse our body, act as a digestive agent, sweeten our food in a healthy manner and provide good amount of minerals.
Apples deserve to be called " nutritional power houses".  They contain Vitamin C which are natural antioxidants. They help the body's resistance against infectious agents. Apples contain  B- complex vitaminsand these vitamins help us in maintaining red blood cells and the nervous system in good health. It contain dietary fiber.. Eating apples help to reduce the risk of diabetes. Lower the levels of bad cholesterol.
Here in this recipe. I have added, grated Apple and tried it. Adding apple taste good. This Apple Haalubai is one of the recipe appeared in Vijaya Next. I am sure each and every one will love this dish "Apple Haalubai".

Things needed :

Raw Rice : 1 Cup
Coconut : 1/2 Cup
Jaggery : 1/2 Cup
Apple : 1 (Red )
Cardamom : 4 to 5 pods
Ghee : 2 to 3 Table spoons.
Water : required
Salt : a little

Method :

1. Wash and soak Raw rice for 2 to 3 hours.

2. Grate coconut and remove the cardamom seeds from the pods.

3. Grind coconut, cardamom and soaked rice nicely till fine texture.

4. Remove the ground dough from the mixi (liquidizer ) to a big bowl or pan.
5. Add a pinch of salt and jaggery to the dough. Add required water. ( The dough consistency should be like dosa dough or little more watery).
 6. Wash and grate apple and add it to the batter. Mix it nicely.

7. Keep the rice mixture on the fire. (low flame). Stir continuously till it is cooked. Add ghee in between.

8. When dough thickens and starts to leave the pan remove the dough and spread it on a banana leaf or ghee spread plates. Allow it to cool.

 9. Cut Halubai according to your desired shape.

10. Put a spoon of ghee on the top just before serving.

Note : 

You must stir until it is cooked properly. Adding more ghee will give a better taste. Adding more or less jaggery is also optional.
You can also add ripe banana instead of apples.
Time : 15 to 20 minutes. (Soaking time extra).
Serves : 5 to 6.