Patishapta Pitha
Thin crêpes rolled around a sweet coconut-and-jaggery or thickened-milk filling.
- prep
- 30 min
- cook
- 25 min
- total
- 55 min
- serves
- 6
- level
- medium
Patishapta pitha is Bengal's answer to the stuffed crêpe, a thin rice-and-flour batter rolled around a filling of coconut and jaggery, or sometimes a rich thickened-milk filling instead.
It's a winter celebration sweet, closely tied to the same date-palm jaggery season as bhapa pitha.
Part of our 20 best Bangladeshi recipes list.
method
Whisk the rice flour, plain flour, semolina, sugar and milk together into a smooth, thin, pourable batter, similar to a crêpe batter. Rest for 20 minutes.
For the filling, cook the grated coconut with jaggery over low heat, stirring often, until it thickens into a sticky mixture, about 8 minutes. Stir in khoya and cardamom if using, and let cool.
Heat a nonstick pan over medium-low heat, and brush lightly with ghee.
Pour a thin layer of batter into the pan, swirling to spread it into a thin, even round, similar to a crêpe.
Cook until the edges lift and the underside is set, about 1 to 2 minutes; patishapta is traditionally not flipped.
Place a line of the coconut-jaggery filling along one edge, and roll the crêpe up around it while still in the pan.
Slide out onto a plate, and repeat with the remaining batter and filling. Serve warm or at room temperature.
chef's tips
- The batter should be thin enough to spread on its own in the pan, closer to a crêpe than a pancake; thicken it only slightly if it tears when you try to roll it.
- Patishapta is traditionally cooked on one side only, which keeps the inside soft and the filling from drying out.