Bellam Kudumulu

A Kudumu is a rice flour dumpling steamed with either salt(savory) or jaggery(sweet).This recipe is for the sweeter kind with jaggery and rice flour with ghee.A typical recipe made in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, these are also shaped as a fist of the hand or flat disks.I remember eating them as a kid from a neighbor aunt. They also go by the name Sweet Ammini Kozhukattai,Chalimidi Undrallu offered as an offering to Lord Ganesha for Ganesh Chathurthi.

Preparation time	30 minutes
Serves	12 Kudumu
Serving Size	2 Kudumu
Calories Per Serving	Approximately 72 per serving
Difficulty	Easy

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Rice flour
3 tablespoons grated jaggery

pinch of salt

1 tablespoon grated coconut

pinch of cardamom powder
1 tablespoon chopped roasted nuts(almond, cashew, pistachio)

1 tablespoon ghee to smear on hands to shape the kudumu

Procedure:

1.Bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil with a pinch of salt.Add the jaggery and cardamom powder and mix until well dissolved.

2.Add the nuts and coconut to this mixture and then add the rice flour little by little on a low flame stirring continuously.

3.Continue stirring until it comes together in a single lump for about 5 minutes, turn off the flame and let cool.

4.Apply ghee on your hands and shape the kudumu into a ball and then press it into a disk, repeat for all the mixture.For the fist shaped kudumu just smear the ghee in your hand take a round ball of dough and make a fist(close your fist-Guppitu in Telugu) with the dough in center of your palm.

5.Now place the kudumu on greased steamer plate and steam for 10 minutes.

Tips:
These are best served fresh, if storing in the refrigerator steam them for a minute or so before eating so they soften up a little.

The nuts are optional but it gives a nice texture within the dumpling