Food Recipes – Cuisine Culture 
As you start to feel a gradual chill in the air and winter begins to show its first signs of arrival, you know it’s that time of the year when people celebrate Pous Sankranti in this part of the world. And with the festivities, comes the sweets! a must-have for any Bengali festival. Traditionally, Pous Sankranti is celebrated as the harvest festival Pous Parbon. It’s also that time of the year when Khejurer Gur ( literally ‘date palm syrup’) is derived and is used to make a variety of traditional Bengali sweets – mainly homemade – with Chaler Guro (rice flour, which is the main ingredient for Pithas), coconut and milk which marks the ushering of the new season. It is a festival everyone takes part in – and especially, the children who love to gorge on the sweet delicacies – and the Goddess Lakshmi (Goddess of wealth, harvest) is worshipped on the day of Sankranti.
Some of the quintessential sweets and desserts that are prepared in every Bengali house; without which the celebrations of the Poush Sankranti festival is incomplete are Chitui/Chitoi Pitha, Bhapa Pitha (literally, ‘steamed pitha’), Puli Pitha, Dudher Pitha (literally, ‘milk pitha), Chondro Puli, Muger Puli, Dudh Puli, Gokul, Pati Shapta and there are numerous local variants of these.
Pati Shapta!
Pati Shapta is a very classic and one of the most widely and popularly made Bengali sweets, especially during the Poush Sankranti. So here is a recipe for your sweet-tooth. Read on!
Ingredients:
For the filling:
3cups of Grated Coconut
1cup of Jaggery (Gur)
¼ Teaspoon Cardamom
For the crepes:
1cup Wheat flour
½ Semolina
½ Rice flour
1cup Milk
Vegetable Oil for frying
Directions:
For the filling:
Heat the jaggery in a wok and add the grated coconut as it starts melting. Then, put the cardamom powder and stir well until the coconut is nicely mixed with the jaggery along with the cardamom powder. When the mixture becomes sticky, take it out of flame.
For the crepes:
Date palm syrup At first, add the wheat flour, the semolina and the rice flour and mix it well. Make a smooth batter by pouring the milk with constant stirring (add excess milk if required). Then heat a non-stick frying pan and spread 1 tablespoon of oil on it. Now take a small bowl of batter and spread it evenly to make a round shape. (Be careful to take it out before the batter sticks on to the pan. ) Fill the crepes with the mixture you prepared earlier and fold it from both the sides. Let it turn light brown. You can serve them instantly!
I really like Pati Shapta! It seems so easy to prepare . May be because of your step by step guide . I will surely give it a try . Please keep up the good job !
Thanks