Carrot halwa is an all time winter delicacy which is a popular sweet, traditionally made in North India. Red carrots are used generally since they are tender and juicy. This is always made during festivals and celebrations. It is served hot or warm. This is also known as ‘gajar ka halwa’ or ‘gajrela’.
Ingredients
1. Red carrots – 1 kg
2. Milk – 500 ml
3. Sugar – ½ to ¾ cup
4. Ghee – ½ cup
5. Dry fruits (cashew nuts, almonds) chopped – 15 each, roasted in ghee
6. Khoya (Mawa) – ½ cup
7. Saffron – few strings (optional)
8. Cardamom powder – 1½ tsp
Preparation
1. Peel and grate the carrots. Keep aside.
2. Heat 2 Tbsp of ghee in a pan. Reduce the flame to low, add saffron and 1 tsp cardamom powder. Stir well.
3. Add the grated carrots. Stir fry on high flame for 4-5 minutes till the moisture dries up.
4. Add milk and cook covered on high flame till it almost dries up. Stir in between.
5. Add 1Tbsp of ghee. Mix well. Add sugar. Mix and cook till it dries up stirring in between. Add the left over ghee and mix well.
6. Add ½ tsp of cardamom powder and mix well. Add roasted nuts and grated and roasted khoya. (Keep some for garnishing.). Mix well.
7. Transfer to a bowl and garnish with fried cashew nuts and khoya. Serve hot.
Tips
1. Roast the khoya in lowest flame, otherwise it will get burnt.
2. Halwa can be made with only khoya instead of milk or only milk (without khoya) doubling the quantity of milk.
3. Carrots can be shredded in the mixie or food processor.
4. Adjust sugar quantity as per your preference.
5. Halwa can be served along with vanilla ice cream.
6. For a vegan version the halwa can be made with almond milk and cashew milk and vegetable oil.
7. Sugar can be substituted by dates.
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