Chakkarappayar / Black eyed beans Dessert- A childhood delicacy

                               

           Yesterday while we were talking over tea, Mr.K B poured out some of his child hood memories or should I say, mischiefs? Every man has a share of it. Yet, hearing it being narrated with a tinge of laughter and a sparkle in the eye is never boring. You can hear it a million times, yet laugh your heart out every time you hear it. The naughtiness with which every childhood is spend accounts to something of ultimate involvement and of course incomparable satisfaction.

            The hilarious moments of those very mischievous days were something you would never forget and find pleasure to narrate even after you are hundred years old. My father in law is a very jovial person and his grand children swarm around him like flies over a fruit. He has reserved some of his childhood mischiefs to disperse amidst his ever admiring group of naughty grand children. While watching him display his tricks before them, no matter how grown up you are, a smile blooms on your face without you even knowing it. The many times when I have watched him twist his ear with hands and his tongue sticks out the very moment, and the children applaud in pure delight, I had found myself laughing with them. And when he would push his denture out and mimics a very funny face, the children roll on the ground with laughter.

                       He is one of them who love to narrate his childhood with much ardour and immense joy. Going to the cinema at night, rolling his blanket to the shape of a man lying down so that the elders never knew he was out is only one of them. Then there is the story of him and his sister(aunt R) climbing the jack fruit tree and sitting there hiding all day, eating berries and fruits to skip the boring school. He used to throw small pellets at the aluminium tiffin boxes kept at rows in the classroom which made distractable noise enough to drive his short tempered teacher crazy. And then there was the ever handy act of tying an arecanut shaft around the bottom, under his pants as protection against the unwelcome batterings with cane(from his teacher of course) which came his way.

Mr.KB: "And those days, when you read 'Balarama(a comic book)' keeping it between your text book acting as if you were studying... Mom used to think I was very ardent at studying..."

Me: "Well, me too used to do that. But we didn't have 'Balarama', it was 'Malarvadi' (another comic) for us."

Mr.KB: '' And what about those teaspoon fulls of 'Horlicks' which you sneaked away from kitchen to lick in secret?"

Me: "Well, them and the milk powder too" (I still get a craving to lick Horlicks in spoon sometime... But I never told him ;) )

That left us discussing about the childhood dishes which really rocked. And there came memories of 'Neyyappam', 'Kalthappam' and 'Chakkarappayar'. Chakkarappayar was Mr. KB's childhood favourite. My mother in law's recipe was so delicious that he still gets a craving for it very often. I called her a few days back to ask the recipe and jolted it down quickly..  Made it and thought of blogging it to save the recipe so that I can save myself from the embarrassment of having to ask her again :)

Chakkara Payar ( Black eyed beans dessert) Recipe:

Things you need:

Van payar (black eyed beans), soaked overnight   -   1 cup

Jaggery /Vellam / Sarkara                                     - 200g or to taste

Grated coconut                                                     - 1 cup

Ragi flour (finger millet flour) or rice flour               - 2 tbsp

Jeera powder (fennel seed pdr)                              -  1 tsp

Salt                                                                       -  1/4 tsp

Water                                                                   - 1 cup

Method:

Cook the soaked and drained beans(van payar) in a pressure cooker or sauce pan with adequate water and salt, until well cooked and mushy. Add the grated coconut to it.Boil jaggery with a little water in a sauce pan and strain through a tea strainer into the vessel of cooked beans,when fully dissolved. Add the flour to 4 tablespoons of water and stir well to remove any lumps.  Add this to the beans jaggery mixture and stir well while heating on medium to low flame.When the mixture starts thickening, remove from heat and add the jeera powder and serve hot or cooled.