Ukadiche modak

Step 1: Heat 1 tsp ghee in a heavy pan over a low-medium heat. Add 7 oz fresh coconut and 4 ½ oz jaggery and stir as the jaggery melts. Cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring often, until the mixture is sticky, glossy and comes together, but is still moist. Common mistake: cooking it too long. Over-cooked jaggery sets hard and chewy inside the modak.

Step 2: Stir in 1 tsp white poppy seeds, ½ tsp ground cardamom and 1 pinch grated nutmeg, spread on a plate and let it cool.

Step 3: For the ukad, bring 1 ¼ cups water, 2 tsp ghee and 1 pinch salt to a rolling boil in a pan. Turn the heat to low, tip in 9 oz fine rice flour (ideally ambemohor or modak flour) all at once and stir quickly with the handle of a wooden spoon until there's no dry flour.

Step 4: Cover and leave on the lowest heat for 2 minutes, then take off the heat and keep covered for 5 minutes so the flour steams through.

Step 5: Turn the hot dough onto a plate. Grease your palm with ghee, dip it in cold water and knead the dough for 4–5 minutes, pressing with the heel of your hand, until it is completely smooth, soft and pliable, like play dough. Keep it covered with a damp cloth.

Step 6: Take a lime-sized ball and press it into a cup about 7 cm across, thinner at the edges than at the base. Pinch the rim into 10–12 small pleats with your thumb and forefinger, then spoon 1 tbsp filling into the centre.

Step 7: Gather the pleats together and twist them gently into a point at the top. Pinch off any extra dough. Set each modak on a square of 2 banana or turmeric leaves or a greased steamer plate, and keep them under a damp cloth while you shape the rest.

Step 8: Dip each modak briefly in cold water (it keeps the shell from cracking), then steam over boiling water, covered, on a medium heat for 12–15 minutes. They're done when the shell looks slightly glossy and translucent and isn't sticky to the touch.

Step 9: Serve warm. Poke a small hole in the top of each modak and pour in a little 4 tbsp ghee.