Quality Living Styles

Dessert Recipes for Special Occasions

Kolcata

A Plate of Kolcata, a delicous dessert that has is pressed by hand to leave an imprint of the fingers clasping

A Plate of Kolcata

I had last eaten Kolcata several years ago at a neighbors home. When a reader asked me for the recipe, I had to consult friends and recipe books.

I came across a few versions and some were laborious, beginning with boiling rice, then cooling, then grinding. A few friends suggested just using Rice Flour.

The method of making this dish also varied, with most people steaming the dough, others microwaving and some baking. Then, some steamed the dough & then made the shapes and others did it vice versa. There were also instructions to lightly cook the rice flour, which is what I did. At the end, mine was an off white color.

My friend, Dhanum Pillay, who went to great lengths to get me a recipe said that there should be no need to braise the flour, as the steaming would cook the rice flour. She felt sure that, that method would get the Kolcatas to be white in color.

So that is how I will do it the next time

Having taken the basic information, I created these Kolcatas, that Dhanum declared to be, tasty. So here is the recipe.

Ingredients

  1. 1 cup rice flour
  2. ½ cup dessicated coconut
  3. ½ cup condensed milk
  4. 1/3 cup milk
  5. 1/3 roughly crushed sesame seeds
  6. 1/3 cup ground almonds
  7. 1/3 cup sugar, (add ½ cup instead, if you like it sweeter)
  8. A pinch of salt
  9. 1 ½tsps.ground elachi/cardamom
  10. ½tsps.ground nutmeg
  11. 2 tblsps. soft butter or ghee

Method

  1. Mix all ingredients. Add condensed milk in small amounts as you don't want it to get too mushy
  2. When well mixed, put contents into a container that will withstand the heat of steam
  3. Arrange steamer. To know how I steam, check, How to Steam
  4. Steam for 20 minutes
  5. When cool enough to handle take small amounts and press in palm of hand making sure the the finger shaped wedges are formed
  6. Roll in crushed sesame seeds or fine coconut flakes
  7. Enjoy
Kolcata Dough just after steaming. Ready to be shaped

Just steamed Kolcata dough








Kolcata dough about to be steamed

Kolcata about to be steamed

Conclusion

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