Sweet Coconut Fried Pies

Sweet Coconut Fried Pies has crunchy outside and sweetened coconut inside making it very delicious snack . This is a famous dish in India and is prepared especially for Diwali (Festival of lights). These pies are called as Sweet Somas/ Karchikai/ Kajjikayalu/ Karanji in different parts of India. These are made with different variation in the filling mostly sweet. These fried pies can be stored for more than a week in air tight containers and consumed.

In this Instructables, I would like to show you how to make this easy Sweet Coconut Fried Pies.

Step 1: Ingredients

Dough

1) All Purpose Flour - 3/4 Cup

2) Whole Wheat Flour - 1/4 Cup

3) Salt as per taste

4) Semolina / Sooji - 1 Tbsp

5) Oil - 1 Tsp

6) Water for making the dough

Coconut Filling

1) Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 Cup

2) Semolina / Sooji - 1 Cup

3) Granulated Sugar - 1 Cup

4) Ground Cardamon - 1/2 Tsp

5) Cashew - 2 Tbsp

6) Raisin - 2 Tbsp

7) Clarified butter / Butter - 1 Tbsp

Step 2: Making the Dough

1) In a bowl add the all purpose flour , whole wheat flour, salt, water and make it into a soft dough.

2) Then add 2 Tsp oil, knead and cover it .

3) Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

Step 3: Making the Coconut Filling

1) Place a pan on medium heat, add butter, cashew, raisin and fry till they turn golden brown.

2) Then add semolina/sooji and fry for few minutes and then add the grated coconut along with ground cardamom.

3) Fry it for few more minutes till the moisture is completely removed.

4) Finally add sugar and mix well. (as soon as the sugar is added switch off the stove and remove the pan off the heat surface to avoid the sugar from melting).

5) Allow it to cool completely before stuffing/filling the pies.

Step 4: Making the Pie

To make Pi Shaped Pie:

1) Using wax paper, draw and cut a Pi (Symbol) as a stencil.

2) Sprinkle some flour on the counter top, take a small portion of the dough and roll it as thin as possible.

3) Place the Pi stencil on the top of the rolled dough and cut the dough in pi shape.

4) Spoon the filling in the cut pi shaped dough and cover it with another pi shape cut dough.

5) By applying water to the edges, seal it tight and make a design using the fork on the edges.

For Semicircle shaped Pie:

1) Roll medium shaped thin circles in the dough and spoon the filling in the middle of the circle.

2) Then apply water around the circle and fold it to make a semicircle. Seal it tight and make design using fork.

Frying the Pie:

1) Place a pan with oil on medium to high heat for frying the pies.

2) Fry them till they are golden brown. (Adjust the heat so that you don't burn them)

Sweet Coconut Fried Pies are ready to eat. You can also store it in a container and eat it later.