Rosa puvvulu / Gulabi puvvulu / Fried Flower Cookies or Rosettes - Eggless

Yumm...just melt away in your mouth...yummy!......thats what I remember from my childhood days about this dish. My Granny used to make these during festival and we used enjoy them a lot.
Its been a very long time that we haven't had these after my days in India. I only got the idea after I saw this recipe on Sailu's Kitchen, that I started to crave for them again. And so my hunt for the 'achu'  or mould began. And guess what my mom did...after she couldn't find a good one at the market, she bought me the one which was lying at home and not being used...ya the old old one....almost as old as me!!...great na...and it still works great too...
So the 'achu'  or mould you see in the picture is the old old one :))
The recipe is from Sailu's kitchen...here is the recipe once again. The reason I chose this recipe is because its an eggless recipe, perfect for the festival season.
These aren't difficult to make as long as you have the achu.
There are a few tricks as to how to get good flowers, here is what I noticed:

1. The achu  or mould has to be hot enough when dipped in the batter
2. Dip it fully so as to it coats it completely with only the top not coated.
3. The batter has to be thick, little more thicker than the dosa batter.
4. Use a sharp edged device to remove the flower after its fried in oil. I used a metal fondue fork.
5. Don't remove it immediately after you submerge the achu in oil, but wait for atleast 20 seconds.
6. These do fry and burn quickly, so only fry 2-3 at a time, so that you can remove them quickly enough.
7. The oil should be at low to medium heat or they will burn real fast.
8. Once you make a few, you will get the hang of it!:)

Ingredients:

1 cup Maida
1 3/4 cup rice flour
3/4 cup sugar
water or coconut milk as required (I used water)
1tsp cardamom powder
1 tsp sesame seeds (optional) (I didn't use any)
salt to taste, a pinch is enough
Oil for deep frying

Method:

Mix the ingredients together with water and set aside for about 20 mins.
The batter should be thick, thicker than regular dosa batter.
Heat the achu  or mould in oil before dipping it into batter.
Coat evenly with batter on all sides and immediately dip into oil.
Fry for 20 seconds atleast before removing it with a sharp device.
Fry till golden brown.
Remove onto paper napkin. Let it cool before serving.
Serve it as a festival dish or a tea time snack.
Enjoy!!!

Sending this to CMT-Sweets, Mithai @ Mina's blog Authentic Vegetarian Recipes, an event started by Jagruti of Joy of Cooking.