Poda Pitha (Baked cake)

Ingredients:

• 300 gm Rice (chaula)
• 150 gm black gram (without outer skin) (chopa-chhada biri)
• 1 cup of grated coconut (nadia kora)
• 10-15 small pieces of thin coconut slices (nadia khandi)
• 200 gm sugar (chini)
• 50gm chopped ginger (kata ada)
• 1 cup of cashew nut (broken into pieces) ( khandi kaju)
• 1 table spoon ghee or refined oil (ghia / refain tela)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (luna)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

Preparation:

1. Soak the rice and black gram in water in separate bowls for 4 hours.
2. Wash them thoroughly, put the black gram with water in the grinder to form a fine batter.
3. Do the same with rice too but keep in mind that the batter should be coarse and not as fine as the batter of black gram.
4. Mix both the batters and add baking powder, coconut slices, grated coconut, chopped ginger, salt, sugar & cashew nuts.
5. Mix all the ingredients properly and keep it covered for 2 hours for self-fermentation.
6. Pre-heat the pressure cooker and form a thin layer of oil on all the inner surface of the cooker.
7. Now pour the mixed batter into the cooker and close the lid (without mounting the whistle-weight).
8. Place the pressure cooker in simmer flame for one hour.
9. When the cooker comes to normal temperature take out the pitha carefully, and cut it into desired shapes and serve.