Nutritious Pink Uttapam with Beets & Veggies

This thick pancake is made with dosa batter, beets & veggies. It’s a quick, light & delicious pink uttapam that’s served either for breakfast or as a snack.

This recipe is in continuation to my obsession of making colorful food that is not just appetizing to look at but delicious to taste as well. Pink Uttapam is my current favorite and there are many reasons why. First of all, its pink in color, secondly, it’s an uttapam which is my most favorite meal and thirdly because this dish reminds me of my mom. She would make veggie uttapam for us for breakfast on weekends. She would add whatever veggies were available and we would enjoy it. Actually more than the food, I miss those golden days where our weekend morning routines were filled with carefree laughter and contentment. Dad would wake us up with a religious hymn playing of full blast on our music system and when I would argue with him on this, he would coolly retort that I too listen to my favorite songs in this volume so why not he? Groggy eyed, I and my brother would wake up and that is when the aroma of uttapam being made by our mom would reach us. Instantly we would be wide awake and of course hungry!

Then we all would enjoy our hearty breakfast along with Bournvita (for us) while our parents enjoyed their Filter Coffee. We would catch up on the Jungle Book Cartoon which played every Sunday as we ate our breakfast. This memory is so strong that even today, sometimes I play re-runs of Jungle Book on weekends while I enjoy my breakfast. It just helps me stay connected to my childhood days. Those from India would instantly know what a uttapam is but for those to whom this sounds like a new dish, let me enlighten you a bit. Uttapam is a thick pancake made with rice and lentils fermented batter. It’s a South Indian delicacy similar to Dosa but softer in texture. One can get creative with its toppings and sneak in any veggies your family hates and no one will ever know. It will be your little secret. I am sure, my mom did this to us a zillion times and we never even got a whiff of it. 

The recipe to make Vegan Nutritious Pink Uttapam with Beets & Veggies is super easy. First you need dosa batter and you can learn on how to nail that recipe here. Either you can make it at home like I do or nowadays you even get homemade quality batter in the Indian grocery store which you can totally get! Transfer the batter to a mixing bowl. To that add chopped onions, tomatoes, boiled and chopped beets, minced green chillies, chopped curry leaves, chopped spinach and cilantro. Feel free to add in any more veggies that you like – cabbage, carrots, green peas, kale, cucumber, etc. Add salt and roasted cumin powder. Give the batter a good mix. Heat a pancake pan and pour a spoonful of this batter and cook it like a pancake evenly on both sides. Drizzle ghee/oil around it while cooking the uttapam. Make as many as you need and store the remaining batter in the refrigerator. Serve them warm. 

The batter stays good for a week. That is why it’s one of my most preferred breakfast/snack option as I can plan and make it ahead of time and prepare these uttapams as and when I am hungry. Like I mentioned before, this uttapam can be had for breakfast or as an evening snack. Sometimes, I and KR like to have this even for dinner. It’s quick to make and great to taste. The addition of beets and other veggies makes these uttapams very nutritious and palatable. Wondering what to serve them with. I have a couple of great suggestions that you can try – Vegan Spinach & Peanut Chutney, Radish Chutney/Mulangi Thogayal/South Indian Chutney, Green Chutney using Scallions, Tomato Thokku , Amla Thokku/Indian Gooseberry Thokku, Carrots and Peanuts Chutney and of course the evergreen Idli Mulagapudi which is the best combo ever. If these pink uttapams will not lure your loved ones to the dining table, then I wonder what will! Try these out today!

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Semolina/Rawa Uttapam with Cabbage and Butternut Squash Crepes/Pumpkin Uttapam are two different uttapam recipes that you can try. Healthy Oats & Veggie Mini Pancakes, Savory Chickpea Flour & Mushroom Pancakes, Quinoa Paneer Mini Pancakes, Cheesy Corn Rawa Pancakes, Gluten Free Mint Flavored Potato Bajra Pancake, Korean Pancakes/Pajeon, Chinese Scallion Pancake, Broccoli Oats Chilla/Pancakes and Instant Eggless Tomato Omelette  are some of the dishes that you can try for breakfast. Do check them out.