Vinayaka Chavithi - Special Recipes

Every Hindu festival is celebrated with special preparations specific to that festival. On Vinayaka Chavithi the specials made are ‘Pasham’ and ‘Kudumulu’.
Pasham is prepared differently in different areas. I prepare it this way.

Talikala Pasham:

Ingredients:
250 grams wheat flour
25 grams poppy seeds
25 grams rice flour
250 grams powdered jaggery
One tablespoon of Ghee
Five cardamoms.

Method:
Add one litre of water to jaggery and allow it to dissolve. Add adequate a quantity of this water to wheat flour and make a soft dough as for ‘chapatis’ and keep it aside. Roast the poppy seeds and grind them into fine powder. Take the dough in small balls and stretch them into thin strands (talikalu) by rolling it on chapati platter. To avoid sticking of the strands sprinkle rice flour as strands are being made or when put in a plate. Boil the jaggery syrup. As it is boiling add the wheat talikalu and allow them to get cooked. Add some ghee and stir. Add little water to poppy powder to make thick liquid. Add the remaining rice flour to this. Add this liquid to the cooking talikalu. As it is getting cooked, stir frequently to avoid any lumping. Also add powdered cardamom. After it is cooked remove it and transfer into another vessel smeared with ghee. Hot or cold pasham is sweet and delicious.

Kudumulu:
Ingredients:
Rice flour as per requirement
Ghee 1-2 teaspoons

Method:
Add ghee and water to rice flour and knead it into soft dough. Take a little portion of the dough and make small flattened balls – similar to idli. You can also use your artistic skills and make different shapes of kudumulu. Keep these in a vessel and cover it with a lid and cook in a pressure cooker till you get 2-3 whistles. Alternately cook under steam for about 15 minutes. These can be eaten bland as such or with chutney or any sauce. These are bland (chappidi undrallu)
Some stuff these kudumulu with grated coconut with jaggery to make them sweet (modak)