Recipes - Ganesh Festival

Ukadiche Modak (Steamed rice-flour modak with coconut and jaggery)

Of all the things carried to Ganesha on Chaturthi morning, the ukadiche modak is the one that matters most. Twenty-one of them go on the plate, each pleated by hand, each one a small test of patience. In Maharashtrian homes the pleating is taught the way handwriting is taught, and everybody's turns out slightly different.