Once upon a morning

Heritage is nothing but nature. And, I have chosen a lifestyle that allows me to stay close to nature. At every opportunity, we have to go back to the nature. My interest in heritage dishes comes as a small attempt to do that.

Every aspect of heritage food items is most healthy. Food, in fact, is medicine. You should take food in the form of medicine, not in the form of poison. All the ill-effects of modernisation can be removed if you return to nature. Heri-tage food is the first step towards that goal. I want to promote it, for it is not just the healthiest form of food but also the tastiest.

The recipes given here are of three heritage dishes, which were served for breakfast in the olden days in Kerala, and which have all but disappeared.

Pumpkin ada Ingredients Ripe pumpkin 1 Grated coconut 1 cup Cardamom tsp Jaggery cup

Method Take the ripe pumpkin and make a small circular cut, removing the top in the shape of a cap. Clean the insides of fibrous strands and seeds. Mix the grated coconut, jaggery and a little cardamom and put it inside the open pumpkin. Close the pumpkin again with the cut-out cap and cover it with clay. Cook it on heated coal. Once properly baked, take the pumpkin out, clean it, experience the beautiful smell and serve the dish hot.

Ragi Carrot Rice Appam Ingredients Ragi powder 1 cup Roasted rice powder 1 cup Grated coconut 1 cup Cardamom 2 or 3 Carrots 2 medium Jaggery cup Salt to taste Ghee 1 tbsp

Method Grate carrots. Grind grated coconut in a mixer. Mix rest of the ingredients into ground coconut, add salt, grated carrots and chopped coriander. Make a thick batter. Apply some ghee on banana leaf and spread the batter over it. Place the appams in a steamer and cook in a medium flame till they are done. Decorate with grated carrots. Serve hot.

Mulayari Puttu (Bamboo Rice Puttu) Ingredients Mulayari or bamboo rice 1 cup Coconut water cup Grated coconut 1 cup Salt to taste Ripe bananas

Method Grind the bamboo rice in a mortar into a coarsely fine powder. Slightly roast the powder. Add the salt and coconut water and wet the powder to get it moist and granular. Put the rice mixture and grated coconut in alternative layers in a bamboo steamer. Cover it and cook till steam comes out of the bamboo steamer. Once it is ready, remove the content from the bamboo steamer and serve it hot with ripe bananas.

(Dr Lalitha Appukuttan is a diet consultant and health cookery specialist. She is on a mission to educate people about healthy cooking habits and the merits of microwave cooking. She has authored the book, 'Keraliya Vibhavangal Microwave Ovennil: your healthy weight and fitness goals’)