Shora pitha, also known as chitoi pithe, is a rustic rice dumpling that is made in winter, especially around the time of Sankranti, the winter harvest festival. In our family, my thamma Durga made this only once (or twice) a year on the coldest January afternoon. It was one of those rare occasions when the clay oven (unoon) was lit. The shora—which is the round terracotta mould in which this pithe is made—was taken out of storage and cleaned. We sat around in the heat of the clay unoon watching thamma pour ladles of rice batter into the mould, as the mound of rice dumplings grew tall. Finally, we dunked the smoky shora pithe in jhola gur—liquid date-palm jaggery that is only available in winter—and devoured them by the dozens until our stomachs hurt. The ritual and fanfare of making the pithe are at least half the fun of eating them.