When calls the sweet treat!

Yes, it was that kind of Saturday. Getting out of the comforter needed a reason as strong and formidable as trying to contain the force of tides on a full moon night! Well, I am simultaneously preparing my lesson on overstatements. So, just play along!

And that reason came in the guise of ‘nethi boorelu’ (nethi meaning ghee, boorelu, meaning boorelu! You’re Welcome!)

Jaggery and split chick peas fell in love and got married in an ancient pressure cooker. The resulting concoction is then made into balls, which are then dipped in a rice+lentil batter and deep fried. Deliciousness began its journey.

Here comes the fun part – drilling! With right index finger as the sole tool, a ‘well’ is dug into the deep fried goodness. I make mine extra wide – you will know why. The ‘well’ is then filled with warm, liquid goodness aka as ‘ghee’ (clarified butter.) Deliciousness almost there!

Eating the ‘boorelu’ is an art in itself. While I like to bite in and then play the game of ’tilting and balancing’ so as to prevent the ‘ghee’ from spilling out, my respect goes to those who can devour the entire spherical sensation in one go! Deliciousness’ destination reached!

While making ‘boorelu’ is in itself a mountainous task on a Saturday morning, serving them alone, without the classic accompaniment of tamarind rice evoked serious feelings of guilt. Since tamarind rice seemed to be a task tedious given the time, we settled with a simpler, yet equally delicious counterpart, ‘lemon rice.’ Sometimes, compromise ( the dreaded, ‘c’) is the name of the game.