Vella Kozhukkattai/Mothagam

A sweet speciality for Vinayaka Chathurthi, this steamed rice goodness has a coconut-jaggery filling that is out of this world. Soft white covering giving way to yummy sweet filling. A perfect occasion for the perfect sweet snack.

Ingredients
¾ cup of raw rice powder
1¼ cup of water, more or less
¼ tsp of salt
½ cup of jaggery
½ cup of grated coconut
2 tsp of ghee
¼ tsp of cardamom powder  

Preparation
First we have to make the filling or the pooranam
Heat a pan with 1 tsp ghee. Add the grated coconut and the grated jaggery and mix well until it begins to roast a little and starts to turn a bit drier
It will take about 8-10 minutes for it to reach the stage we require. Keep mixing now and then and add cardamom powder before removing from fire. Set aside and allow to cool
Meanwhile, bring 1 cup water to boil with the ¼ tsp salt also added in. Once it boils, remove from fire and add the ¾ cup rice flour, mixing as you do so.
Make sure no lumps are formed and mix well until you get a soft dough that's similar in consistency to chappati dough (it won't be stretchy though)
Start with 1 cup water and keep adding a few drops as you mix until you get the desired consistency
Depending on the type of rice flour and humidity, you will need different amounts of water. Let this mixture cool down a bit until you can handle it. Don't let it cool completely, or else the rice dough will become dry
This is the toughest part of making vella kozhukkattai or modak. Depending on how this comes out, your modaks can turn hard or soft or crack when they are steamed
Roll the pooranam into small balls and set aside
With wet hands, take a lime-sized portion of the rice dough, form a ball by greasing your hands with the ghee, and flatten on your palm
Make sure the covering is not too thin
Place the filling in the centre and cover the filling as uniformly as you can. It's the same technique used for aloo paratha. Once covered, make a smooth ball (just using the fingertips of one hand and rolling-rotating)
Place on your steamer plate (greased with some ghee if you like) and steam for about 10-15 minutes until the covering glistens. It will still be sticky to touch but don't steam for more than 15 minutes or they will harden
Let cool and enjoy the sweet kozhukkattai


(The author is a food blogger who blogs @http://www.cookingandme.com/)