Besan halwa

I've always loved besan halwa, and when this one came with the additional tag of being good for a cold, I had to try it. Not sure of the effectiveness, but definitely high on taste.

For each serving:

3 tbsp besan

4 tsp ghee

2 tsp sugar

1/2 cup water

Almonds for garnish 

Method:

Heat the ghee, add besan and on a low flame, roast till lightly browned. 

Heat the water and make a syrup with the sugar. 

Add sugar syrup to the roasted besan and mix well. Turn off the flame 

Serve, garnished with chopped almonds

Soya rose halwa

Many moons back, I had made a protein rich vegan dessert which we all loved. Today, I made the soya-rose halwa again, and liked it just as much.

Fhjj

Papaya halwa

I had a huge papaya, which I cut up for the kids. But the fruit was so big, I had a lot left over even after we ate, so decided to make a halwa out of it. Just a couple of minutes effort, and great taste.

1 cup papaya grated*
1 tbsp ghee
1 tbsp raisins
1 tbsp cashew nuts
1 tbsp sugar

Method:
Heat the ghee, and saute the raisins and cashewnuts till they are well browned.
Add grated papaya, and saute till it all comes together in about 5 minutes. Add sugar, and mix well. Take off the flame.
Allow it to cool down before serving.


* some parts may remain ungrated- let it be so- it will get mashed in

Matar ka halwa

While I love gajar ka halwa, and try to make it at least once a year, grating carrots is not exactly my idea of fun. Which is why I have been wanting to try matar ka halwa ever since I saw a recipe nearly a year back. I finally made it today, and liked it a lot. Given my family, though, I am going to reduce the sugar a bit more next time I make it.

2 cups green peas, shelled
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp ghee
Cardamon powder, optional
Sliced nuts for garnish

Method:
Blanche the peas in boiling water for 5 minutes (or till the colour turns a more vivid green). Remove into cold water, drain and keep aside.
Grind the peas coarsely in a blender.
Heat the ghee, add ground peas, and saute till the raw smell goes.
Add sugar and milk, stir well, and cook on a low flame till most of the milk evaporates.
Stir in cardamon powder.
Garnish with nuts and serve chilled.

Mango halwa

As a family, we seem to have gone off mangoes, so when I saw a recipe for mango halwa, I thought it was a good way to use up the stray fruits that were lurking around in the fridge. Using the original as a base, I tweaked the recipe to my taste, and was quite satisfied with the results.

1 cup sooji
2 1/2 tbsp ghee
1/2 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 mango
1/2 tsp cardamon powder

Method:
Dry roast the sooji till the raw smell goes. Add ghee, and fry on a low flame till golden brown.
Meanwhile peel and slice the mango, and make puree.
When the sooji is golden, add milk and water, and cook till most of the liquid is absorbed.
Add sugar, stir well, and cook till it all comes together.
Add mango puree, stir well, cover and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add cardamon powder before serving (if you are using it). You can also garnish with dry fruits.

Gajar ka halwa- Xmas is here

The first gajar ka halwa of the season. Photograph banta hai!!!!

I bought the carrots intending to make halwa, but it languished in the fridge for two days, because I was too lazy to actually make it. I had a really long run today (one kilometer short of 25 miles), and decided we were having Mc Donalds because I was too tired to cook. And then, at 7 pm, I started grating the carrots, and gave my arm muscles a great workout. After dinner, in a fit of madness, I started on the gajar halwa, and it was done by about 11:30.  After all that, don't you think it deserves a picture at least?

Recipe here

Sweet potato halwa

I am a huge fan of halwas made out of vegetables. Not only does it satisfy the sweet tooth, with the milk and the veggies, it is much healthier than many other sweets. So when I had 250 gms of boiled sweetotatoes in the fridge, this was the first thing I thought of making. And I am glad I did.

Most of it is by 'andaz', bit worked beautifully well.

250 gms sweet potatoes boiled and mashed (I pressure cooked for about 20 mins on sim after the first whistle)
1/2 cup milk (andaaz)
1 tbsp ghee (can be less)
3-4 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp raisins
cardamon powder

Heat ghee in a non-stick, and once it has melted, add the sweet potatoes, and cook with constant stirring for about 2-3 minutes.
Add the milk (you need to add enough to cover the sweet potatoes, the sugar and the raisins, and cook on a low flame till the milk completely disappears.
Take off the fire, and stir in the powdered cardamon.
Serve chilled

Beetroot halwa

Though often eclipsed by it's more famous cousin, gajar ka halwa, in my house, beetroot halwa was always (if not more) as popular. My mother had a maid to do the chopping and grating, so there was rarely a single day in winter that we didn't have one of the two desserts to feast on.
Personally, I don't like making beetroot halwa, because the vegetable leaves a nasty stain on the hands, but since carrots haven't come to the market yet, I had no choice but to make this today, and I am glad I did.

250 gms beetroot- peeled and grated
equal measure milk
2 tbsp sugar (you can add more, but the beetroot is sweet in itself)
cashewnuts
cardamon

Method
Wash, peel and grate the beetroots and keep aside
Bring the milk to boil in a thick bottomed pot, reduce the flame, add the grated beetroot and sugar, and keep stirring till the milk thickens completely.
Towards the end, throw in the cashewnuts, so it cooks a bit, but not too much.
Garnish with powdered cardamon and serve chilled

Ashtami spread- Suji halwa

I have very vivid childhood memories of going from house to house for Ashtami Puja. Though a very a fussy eater, I would cheerfully eat the puri, halwa and kala channa, because tucked away somewhere on the plate would be a couple of shiny 1 rupee coins!
Though my mother in law used to do the Puja too, I never picked up the tradition, but this year, I decided to give it a try.
Suji halwa is easy to make, as is sukha channa, but it was the first time I was attempting puris, and was I scared!
When the puris puffed up, I puffed up with pride, and felt quite a Domestic Diva as I fed my family "garam garam puris".
Unfortunately, however, when I put the first spoonful of suji halwa in my mouth, I got a whiff of hing, and before long I was able to trace it to the fact that I had used the same wooden spoon with which I had earlier made hing-walla aloo. Nobody else saw it, so not cribbing too much!

1 Cup – Sooji (Semolina)

2 Tbsp- Ghee (Clarified Butter)
1 Cup- Sugar
4 Cups – Water
1/2 Cup- Almonds, Raisins and Cashewnuts

Method 
Heat the Ghee in a Kadhai and once it is heated add the Sooji to it. 
Now keep stirring continously till the sooji gets golden brown in colour. Take care not to burn the sooji. 
Now add the water to the kadhai and soon after add the sugar. 
Again keep stirring the mixture to avoid any lumps. 
Now add the dry fruits to the mixture and after 3-4 minutes, take it off.