Arisa Pitha (Fried Indian Sweet Rice Pastry)
Arisa pitha is a sweet filled rice pastry from Odisha, India, made for festivals and offerings. The dough is cooked, not simply mixed, with jaggery, cinnamon and ghee, so the sweetness runs through the whole pastry. Inside sits coconut browned in ghee with sesame seeds. Frying gives a crisp shell around a soft center, and the pastries are easy to make ahead.
Instructions
Bring the water to a boil in a wide-mouth pan. Stir in the jaggery or sugar, salt, cinnamon and the tablespoon of ghee until dissolved.
Add the rice flour slowly, stirring all the time so no lumps form. Cover the pan and cook over low heat until the water has been absorbed and the dough feels like chapati dough. Set it aside to cool.
For the filling, melt ghee in a pan over medium heat. Add the shredded coconut and sugar, and stir until the coconut turns golden brown.
Knead the cooled rice dough until it is smooth. Shape it into small balls and roll each one out.
Put some of the fried coconut and a few sesame seeds on each piece, then close the dough around the filling and shape it into a small, flat round.
Deep fry the filled pastries in the oil or ghee, turning them as needed, until they are golden brown all over.
Make it personal.
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