What do you do when you have Bananas sitting on your counter top like a "Vegetable Dalmatian", you know all decorated with different types of black spots , starring at you and begging you,"Please don't throw me, USE ME." ??
Well, I literally "Go Banana" . As my family,right from my mother to my hubby are strict against wasting food/food related stuffs and using it properly as soon as possible (especially the perishable ones),I've to be extremely careful to do so or come up with any ideas to use them before they become trash worthy .Such is the case with Bananas when they are covered with dark patches all over . Man,do they challenge my creativity ....
Moreover , did you know that,as the bananas gets fully ripened with patches,they in fact create "TNF" (Tumor Necrosis Factor),meaning in lay man's terms it has more anti-cancer qualities that can combat abnormal cells in the human body and so,it enhances the immunity overall.(Source :
onegreenplanet.org)...Having said that,it has a drawback as well,the sugar content spikes accordingly so it won't be good for Diabetic people...
Anyways,lets concentrate on the bright side here,and I must say I am quite impressed after learning about the anti-cancer properties it possess,so,I definitely had to come up with developing a recipe with the ripened "Banana with patches" and I DID !
Desserts like Payasam are quite forgiving and can be transformed into many different varieties as per your creativity . So, I tried making a Prathaman using regular (Cavendish) Banana with little Jaggery,little coconut milk,ghee,nuts = DELISH !! It tasted like the
naivaidyam I used to get in a temple in Kerala - you know ,the taste of milk with Banana kind of
naivaidyam/prasadam...just like that..So,I believe you can use the bananas without patches and make this payasam and even offer it as a prasad to almighty as well....This is how I make a Banana Prathaman...Kerala style ofcourse ...
Banana Pradhaman
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Ingredients
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- Ripe Cavendish Bananas - 2-3 nos.
- Jaggery - 1 cube
- Water - 1 cup
- Dry Ginger powder - 1/4 teaspoon
- Cardamon powder - 1 teaspoon
- Thin coconut milk -1 and 1/2 cups
- Thick coconut milk - 3/4 cup
- Dry coconut pieces,broken - 1 tablespoon
- Cashew nuts - 10 approx
- Raisins - 5-10 approx
- Cloves - 2 nos. (optional)
- Ghee - 2-3 tablespoons
- A pinch of salt (Optional)
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Method
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- Peel and slice the Banana,mash them and keep it aside.
- Boil the jaggery in water until it melts completely and strain to remove any impurities.Keep it aside.
- Heat a pan or kadai with 2 tablespoons of ghee.
- Add cloves.
- Now add the mashed Banana .Give a stir.Keep it in a low flame.
- Add the liquid jaggery to it and let it boil.Once it reaches the
boiling point,reduce the flame,let it simmer until it thickens a bit.
- Now add the thin coconut milk to it.Sprinkle the ginger powder and
cardamom powder and mix.Stir everything and cook on medium flame until
it thickens.Keep stirring in between.
- Add the thick coconut milk to it.Let it simmer for a few minutes on low flame until it thickens.Never allow it to boil.
- Heat rest of the ghee in a pan and fry dry coconut pieces,cashews
and raisins on medium-low flame until the coconut pieces turn light
brown. Add them to the above payasam.
- Stir well everything.
- Sprinkle a dash of salt (to balance the sweetness).
- Serve immediately or chilled later as you wish.
Tips :
- For making homestyle coconut
milk , grate a coconut, mix it in a glass of warm water,keep it aside
for a few minutes and then squeeze the milk using hand or mixer and
strain it,which will be the thick coconut milk/Onnam paal in malayalam.Take the squeezed grated coconut used before repeat the method again and extract which will produce the thin coconut milk/Randaam paal.Strain it.There are also ready made coconut milk available in the market.That can be substituted as well.For thick version use just as it is and for thinner version, dilute little water to it.Follow the instruction on the can or pack. or watch my video that shows how to extract coconut milk at home ?
- This is a VERY SWEET payasam.So you can adjust the sweetness,by reducing the jaggery or adding a pinch of salt and I added the cloves for the same reason.
- This dessert tends to thicken if not served immediately.So,add little coconut milk not the milk (milk may curdle) to get the desired consistency later,if needed.
Have a yummy day and LIFE ;),
.Ennoda kalee/Humse hai muqabla
