Kozhakatta or Rice balls with jaggery and coconut filling

The memories of this snack goes back to my childhood days as this used to be one among those dishes which mom used to prepare for me and my bro when we used to return from school at 4 in the evening. The one thing which I enjoyed the most about it was the way I used to eat it. My first lessons of using fork and knife were practised on the hot, steaming kozhakattas.
I also remember our maid who was a christian used to make kozhakattas for their festival and used to bring for us. Her kozhakattas had a distinct flavor of fire and smoke as they used to use the verag aduppu(mud stove which is lit using wood)
Ingredients:

• 1 cup - Rice Flour
• Water
• Salt to taste
• 200 gms - Jaggery
• 200 gms - Grated Coconut
• 1 - Cardamom or Ellachi

Method:

• Boil some water in a bowl.
• In a separate bowl put the flour and salt and mix well. Now pour some boiled water and bind the flour by gently kneading it(Dont try kneading with your hands. You pour hot water. So you can first stir with a spoon and when cooled down use your hands). Knead till the dough doesnot stick to the bowl.
• In a kadhai, pour 1 cup of water and add the jaggery. Let it melt and boil. When it starts thickening, add the grated coconut and ellachi powder and mix well and stir till the water is gone from the mixture.
• Make small balls and press to flatten it into small circle and fill the jaggery-coconut mixture and close it. Perfect the ball again.
• Cook these rice flour balls on a steamer for around 10-15 minutes on medium heat.
• Serve either hot for cold.

Note: If you wish to make rice flour at home, please follow this. Wash and soak rice and spread it on clean cloth to dry. Once 90% water is dried up, grind the rice without adding water. It should not be coarse nor like maida, somehere in between. Heat a kadhai and saute this rice powder for 2 minutes on low heat. Keep stirring. This rice powder can be used for making most of the kerala delicacies like Appam, Idiyappam, Ada, Pathiri etc.