KOCHI: The rice power cake layered with coconut gratings steaming inside a cylindrical puttukutti is the dream breakfast of every Malayali. With summer around the corners, food lovers in the state have given this breakfast a much-needed twist — the ice-cream puttu. Over the past two months, the special dessert has become a trending cold snack for foodies. The variety which is touted to take birth in north Kerala was passed down to other districts too.
The puttu ice cream is prepared by inserting multi-flavoured ice-cream scoops into puttukutti or putt maker along with dry fruits. Many cafes and restaurants across the state have been experimenting with various flavours, preparing their putt ice-creams for the past few months.
Executive chef Arun Vijayakumar of Zam Zam Bun Cafe, Thiruvananthapuram, one of the first brands to introduce the ice-cream variety in the capital city, says the special ice-cream dish is selling like hotcakes since December. “We get around 150 inquires for ice cream puttu daily. As it is summertime, many families come with children to savour it. We offer three flavours of puttu ice cream here — peanut, strawberry and pista decorated with chocolate ganache and dry fruits,” says Arun.
The Palooda dessert shop with centres in Kannur, Kochi and Kozhikode has also jumped on the puttu ice cream bandwagon. Rather than fixed scoop flavours, the dessert shop allows the customer to choose their favourite four flavours to prepare customised puttu ice cream. Praveen, Palooda’s store manager in Kochi, says it’s a pocket-friendly summer snack that has many takers.
“Children love the dish because it is presented colourfully. In puttu ice cream, the coconut gratings are replaced with dry fruits and cut fruits, which are placed in between the ice-cream scoops inside the puttukutti. One plate of puttu ice cream is filling for two to three people,” concludes Praveen.