#Gluten-free #FibreRich #Wholesome #Breakfast #Maharashtrian
Upvaas Thalipeeth is a popular Maharashtrian recipe, usually prepared during religious fasts. It’s made with mixing Rajgira flour (Amaranth), Singada flour (Water Chestnut) mixed with boiled potatoes. And with a minimalistic flavor from Cumin Seeds, green chilies and roasted peanut powder, very similar to Sabudana Khichadi.
The combination was designed in such a way that it keeps you feeling full for a long time – making it a great choice for fasting days. Rajgira flour is quite heavy to digest and Singada contains a lot of starch. But they also contain a lot of healthy nutrients. When mixed with peanuts, this recipe makes for a wholesome breakfast or meal not only for fasts but also on regular, non-fasting days.
I replaced potatoes with purple yam to make this recipe – a little lighter because purple yam has more fibre than potatoes and also imparts this beautiful purplish red color. You can also use sweet potato and add another pinch of green chilies or red chili powder (if not consuming for fasting) to balance the sweetness.
Typically, a thalipeeth is prepared with patting the dough with fingers directly on a taw / griddle and then roasting it from both sides.
But for this modified version, I was able to roll our the dough into roti – using the same method that we use for making rotis. I found this method much more convenient as I could make these in batches instead of making them one-by-one.
This flour mix is called Upwasachi Bhajani in Marathi. I use the ready made Upwasachi Bhajani (flour mix) by K-Pra to make these thalipeeth. These are avaialble in many Indian stores across US and also on Amazon. Or you can also make this at home, I have included the ingredients and method to make it from scratch.
Ingredients for making Upvaasachi Bhajani / Flour mix –
- 1/2 cup Barnyard Millet (Bhagar Flour)
- 1/2 cup Rajgira Flour (Amaranth Flour)
- 1/2 cup Tapioca Flour (Sago)
- 1/2 cup Singoda Flour (Water Chestnut)
How to make Upwas Bhajani –
- First mix all the flours in a mixing bowl.
- In a heavy bottom pan and on low heat, dry roast the flour mixture for 2 to 3 minutes till you get the typical aroma. Stir continuously.
- Cool and use as required.
Ingredients for making Upvaasachi Thalipeeth –
- 1 and 1/2 cup Upwasachi Bhajani
- 1 cup steamed and mashed purple yam & sweet potato (optional)
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera)
- 2 to 3 Green Chillies, finely chopped
- 2 to 3 teaspoons Coriander (Dhania) Leaves
- 2 tablespoons Roasted Peanut powder
- Salt , to taste
- water as needed to make the dough
- Ghee , as required for cooking and greasing
You can use boiled potatoes as well instead of sweet potato or purple yam.
How to make Upvaas Thalipeeth Recipe
Steam purple yam and sweet potato in a steamer
Mash these together to make sure there are no lumps or big pieces.
Add all other ingredients in a mixing bowl
Prepare soft dough by adding water as needed and then prepare 7-8 equal sized balls.
Roll these balls into a thin “roti” like thalipeeth and keep them aside.
Grease a non-stick griddle (pan) with some ghee. Roast this on one side and then flip over – apply ghee and flip over again to continue on the other side. Continue this until you see brown spots appearing.
Grease a non-stick griddle (pan) with some ghee. Roast this on one side and then flip over – apply ghee and flip over again to continue on the other side. Continue this until you see brown spots appearing.
Keep these in a casserole so they remain soft. Serve Upvas Thalipeeth along with Green Chutney (Dhaniya Pudina Chutney) and plain yogurt for a perfect lunch or breakfast.
From Ayurvedic standpoint
Rajgira is cooling in natures so this is a great recipe for summers as it keeps the increasing Pitta in check. But make sure not to add a lot of peanuts because Peanuts increase Pitta Dosha.
Purple Yam – like any other yam is grounding in nature and great for balancing Vata.
Hence, together this is a great combination for balancing Pitta and Vata, ideal during summer but it’s heavy to digest so it’s better to avoid this for dinner.
