Karthigai Appam (also Nei Appam, Unni Appam, or Sweet Paniyaram)

1. Soak rice in water (cover the rice with about 1-2 inches or water) for at least 3 hours to soften it.
2. Mix jaggery with water (just enough to melt it) and heat for a few minutes till the jaggery melts. Strain the syrup and set aside.
3. Drain the water from the rice and grind it with the jaggery syrup until you have a fine paste, adding a little water if needed.
4. Add the banana to the rice and jaggery paste and pulse once or twice until the banana is mixed well with the paste. Pour the mixture in a bowl. Check the consistency: it should be slightly thicker than pancake batter. If it is too watery, just add 1 tablespoon rice flour to it to get the correct consistency (see note below).
5. Add cardamom powder and grated coconut to the batter and mix well.
6. Set the batter aside for at least 2 hours to allow it to ferment (see note below).
7. Add the baking soda to the batter and mix well.
8. Heat a paniyaram pan (see note below), add 1 teaspoon ghee (or oil) in each hole. Pour a spoonful of the batter in each hole.
9. When cooked on one side, carefully flip to other side, add ghee or oil if needed.
10. Cook until both sides are dark brown. You also deep fry them fully by adding ghee or oil to fill 3/4 of each hole.

Enjoy!

Notes:
1. If you do not have a paniyaram pan, you can also deep fry the appams by pouring a spoonful of the batter in heated oil until golden brown.
2. If the batter is too runny, it will absorb more oil, so adjust the batter by adding rice flour accordingly.
3. Make sure to ferment the batter for at least 2 hours. Never skip this step!
4. You can use half oil and half ghee to fry the appams.
5. You can increase the amount of jaggery to suit your taste.
6. Adding banana results in soft and spongy appams. So never skip it!