Morsels of Joy

Hello Lovely People, 

Breakfast to chai-time (evening tea), the thing that vexes me always as city dwelling working individual is having less of packed or processed food options vs the what our Mum's generation made. 

Don't get me wrong, most of those childhood chai-time snacks were not the alleged 'health foods' of today; but the fact that they were homemade and often made fresh is what made them dear in my eyes. 

I still rely on good ol biscuits n stuff, most time. But if time permits I love making home snacks like Sheera, Seviyan sweet or Puranpoli. This time I made the evergreen Shankarppalli. 

Shankarppalli or also called as Shakkar pare are morsels of deep fried sweet dough which is flaky and crispy. One could even say it's similar to cake donuts. 

In Maharashtra, the state or province that i come form Shankarppalli as its called here is more flaky and sometimes melt in your mouth consistency. It takes a bit of patience like a buttery puff pastry but the end taste is worth the effort. 

RECIPE:

Time Taken: 60 to 70 mins

Yield: A tall jar full

Method:

1) Mix 300 gms of maida or all purpose flour, 3/4 cup of sugar, a pinch of nutmeg, and 1/4 tsp baking soda. 

2) Melt 5-6 tbsp of ghee and add 10 gms rava to it. The rava will fluff a bit in the ghee. 

3) Add the ghee mixture to the flour mixture and rub till it forms a crumbly mixture. 

4) Warm 1/2 cup water, and mix to the flour mixture. It will be sticky at first but keep kneading it to a dough, till it is glossy. 

5) Chill dough for 30 mins in the fridge (chiller section) 

6) Heat cooking oil in a deep fry wok. 

7) Divide dough in half and on a floured surface roll out the dough to half cm thickness. 

8) Using a cutter cut into square or diamond shapes.

9) Fry Shankarppalli in batches (my wok allows max 10-12 pieces at a time). Do not crowd the wok and allow uniform cooking; by turning often. Keep the flame low. And also transfer the remaining the cut dough in a plate and chill further.

10) Once golden brown remove, drain on kitchen towel. While removing from oil the Shankarppalli might look and feel soft to touch, rest assured it will harden on cooling. 

Bon Appétit, I hope you will love cooking this popular chai-time snack. 

Cheers!!!