15th Blogging Anniversary ~ Gajar Ka Halwa / Carrot Halwa Without Grating

Time sure flies by. The idea of an online recipe journal gave birth to this blog, 15 years ago. I would never have believed then that I would either be actively blogging after over a decade or I would still retain my enthusiasm and energy towards it. This virtual kitchen has helped me along the way in nurturing my love for cooking, exploring new cuisines and developing new friendships. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my readers who invest their time in going through my blog and drop an encouraging line.  

Here is some yummy halwa to celebrate the occasion. Carrot halwa which is called gajar ka halwa in Hindi and gajrela in Punjab is a popular sweet dish from the Indian sub continent, with it's origins in northern parts of India. This popular dessert is prepared especially during winter months as the red carrots which are the most preferred variety to prepare this halwa are available during the time. 

Carrot halwa tastes super delicious, even though it is made with only basic ingredients like carrots, milk, sugar, ghee and flavored with cardamom. Red carrots are preferable for the preparation if available but halwa is prepared with orange ones mostly as red carrots are not available everywhere. Forget about calories and use full fat milk for this halwa preparation. The grated carrots are simmered in milk until the milk is completely reduced, which takes time and patience if preparing in large quantities. There are versions made with khoya (milk solids), condensed milk etc. which are richer. Here are some versions I posted previously.

Carrot - Almond Halwa
Carrot - Raisin - Dates Halwa

Carrot Halwa

Low Cal, Microwave Carrot Halwa

I have come across versions which involved no grating carrots and decided to try a small portion this time. The carrots are cut into chunks instead of grating and sautéed in ghee and then pressure cooked and slightly mashed in this method. I did not miss the taste but surely missed the texture of the grated carrots which I am more used to but this method definitely saves the time and work.

Ingredients: 2 - 3 servings
1 pound carrots / 2 cups, peeled carrots cut into chunks

1 cup full fat milk

2 to 3 tbsp. ghee

1/2 cup sugar (I used about 2 tbsp. less sugar)

1/8 tsp. ground cardamom 

Directions:

* Heat ghee in a pan, preferably a non-stick one. Add carrot chunks to it and sauté for a couple of minutes.

* Add the sautéed carrot chunks and milk to a steel vessel and pressure cook for 3 whistles.

* When the valve pressure is gone, remove the carrots and mash them with a masher or back of a wooden spoon.

* Add the mashed carrots along with the milk back to the pan and cook, stirring now and then. Mash if any big chunks of carrots are seen. 

* The mixture begins to thicken as the milk  starts to reduce in quantity.

* Add sugar and cardamom when carrot-milk mixture begins one big mass or only a lit bit of milk is left in the pan.

* Keep cooking as the mixture again becomes loose because of the addition of sugar. Cook until the mixture slightly thickens and turn off the stove. 

* Garnish with nuts. Halwa can be served either chilled or warm. 

This is going to be my contribution to this week's Blogging marathon, with the theme 'Winter Produce'. Check the page link to see what other marathoners are cooking.

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Navaratri Naivedyam ~ Milk Rava Kesari

Semolina halwa is a delicious sweet dish prepared across India. It is popular enough to be a festive treat or a part of religious offerings and quick enough to whip up as a treat to satiate one's sweet tooth or to serve as a part of the breakfast meal. In fact, rava kesari is one of the naivedyams offered to Goddess on the sixth day of Dasara / Navratri. 

It is one of the easiest dishes to try if venturing into Indian sweet making. It is called sooji ka halwa / sheera in the north while the south Indian twist to this dish is the addition of orange food color where it is called rava kesari or kesari bhath, kesari referring to the orange color. 

Semolina is toasted in a generous amount of ghee and then cooked in water and sugar usually. My version today is made with milk which makes it richer. For a vegan version, milk can be replaced by water and the raisins and cashews can be toasted in a little oil or can be directly added to the boiling water, without toasting. The orange food color is optional as well. I have made a small portion here but the recipe can be easily doubled or mulitiplied. 

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. ghee (Add more if preferred)
1 tsp. each, raisins and cashews
1/4 cup semolina
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp. milk
1/8 tsp. ground cardamom
Few drops of orange food color
1/4 cup sugar (Add 1 tbsp. more if sweeter version preferred.)

Directions:

* Pour milk into a pan and bring it to a boil on low flame, stirring occasionally. Add cardamom and food color if using to the hot milk and stir.

* Meanwhile, heat ghee in a pan and add cashews and raisins. Toast until cashews turn golden brown and raisins are plump. Remove the raisins and cashews with a slotted spoon onto a plate and keep them aside.

* Add semolina to the same ghee pan. Toast on medium flame continuously stirring until it starts to change color slightly and the aroma starts coming, about 3 - 4 minutes. 

*  Lower the heat setting to minimum and add the toasted semolina to the milk pan, continuously stirring the mixture while doing so to avoid any lumps from forming. Cover and cook until semolina is done.

* Next stir in sugar and cook until all the sugar is absorbed by the mixture. Add the toasted cashews and raisins to it and mix well.

* Serve it warm.

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Carrot Semolina Halwa

I am planning to post three sweet dishes from Indian cuisine this week that are made with vegetables. The first one among those is this delicious halwa. Halwa, though associated with Persian cuisine also happens to be a popular sweet dish in India and there are varieties ranging from those made with flours, legumes to fruits and vegetables. Carrot halwa and semolina halwa are two popular ones among the genre and I tried to combine both in today's dish which yielded a yummy fusion. 

Carrots, semolina and sugar are the main ingredients that are needed to make this quick and easy sweet dish. Dairy or non dairy milk can be added or omitted depending upon whether halwa needs to be rich or not. I tried to keep it a less calorie one adding little amount of ghee and milk. It can be made rich adding more ghee and cooking the halwa in milk instead of water.

(Yield 4 servings) Ingredients: 
2 tbsp. ghee
2 tbsp. cashews
1 cup peeled and grated carrot
1/2 cup milk
1 and 1/2 cups water *
2 pinches of ground cardamom
1/2 cup roasted semolina 
3/4 cup to 1 cup sugar

*  Milk can be used instead of water. Or half the quantity of water can be replaced with milk.

Directions:
* Heat ghee in  a pan and add toast cashews until golden brown. Remove them with a slotted spoon onto a plate and add grated carrot to the same ghee. 
* Saute the carrot for a couple of minutes and add milk. Cook on low medium flame until carrot is softened, stirring intermittently. The carrot would have absorbed all the milk, by this time.
* Next add water to the cooked carrot and bring the mixture to a boil. (Half or full quantity of water can be replaced with milk if preferred.) 
* Add ground cardamom to the boiling water and lower the heat. Next add semolina, stirring continuously while doing so and taking care that no lumps are formed. Cover and cook until semolina is done. 
* Next add sugar and cook until the sugar melts. Mix well and cook for a minute more and turn off the stove.
* Add the toasted cashews to the cooked halwa and serve.

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Rajgira Sheera / Amaranth Flour Halwa

Coinciding with the Navratri season, here is one more dish associated with it and the fasting regimen. This halwa / sheera is prepared using amaranth flour / rajgira atta and seems to be a popular dessert fit for the season. Not a tricky one to prepare but patiently roasting the flour in ghee without burning it until it turns light brown is important. 
The halwa can be prepared with either milk or water. It is rich because of the ghee and milk used and therefore eaten in small quantities. I used jaggery instead of sugar and 1/4 cup of it makes it not an overtly sweet dish but one can increase the sweetener by a couple of tbsp. more if one prefers a sweeter halwa. The consistency of this halwa would be smoother compared to the sooji halwa since flour is the base here.

Ingredients
1/4 cup ghee (I used less.)
1/2 cup rajgire ka atta / amaranth flour
1 and 1/4 cup milk
4 - 6 tbsp. sugar (I used jaggery instead.)
2 pinches of ground cardamom
Nuts to garnish

Directions:
* Heat ghee in a pan and add amaranth flour to it. Start toasting until you notice the aroma and the mixture changes to light brown color, about 6 to 8 minutes.
* Meanwhile, heat milk and sugar in a microwave or in a pan and keep aside. No need to boil the milk.
* Add milk and cardamom to the toasted flour gradually in small increments from the sides of the pan, stirring continuously and quickly to avoid forming lumps. Cook on low flame covered until the mixture thickens and the ghee starts to release along the edges.
* Garnish with slivered almonds / any other nuts and serve warm.

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Low Cal, Microwave Version Carrot Halwa

This microwave version of the north Indian classic treat carrot halwa aka gajar ka halwa is a great substitute if one is looking for a quick and low calorie version. I am the one who mostly ends up consuming the sweet stuff prepared in my home and so, I try to cut calories from those dishes whenever and as much as possible and go for quick versions. This version though not as rich as the traditional version, still tastes good. This can be prepared on the stove top too. I have prepared a small portion here but it can be scaled for a larger quantity.

Ingredients:

2 cups grated carrot

1 cup fat-free milk 
Sugar to taste (I used 6 gm. splenda)

1/4 tsp. ground cardamom

Nuts to garnish

Method:

* Add milk and carrot to a microwave safe bowl and cook stirring occasionally in the microwave, until the milk evaporates. (Saute carrot in a tbsp. of ghee before adding milk if preferred.)

* Next add sugar and cardamom to the carrot mixture. Continue to cook until the mixture until the sugar dissolves and incorporates into the mixture.

* Garnish with nuts and serve warm or chilled.

Other versions posted here.
Carrot - Almond halwa
Carrot Halwa (Microwave version)

This goes to Blogging marathon #73, under the theme 'Sweets prepared in less than an hour'. Check here to find out what the other marathoners are cooking as part of the BM.

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