Sunday, August 30, 2009

Carrot Halwa

Carrot halwa2

I had a huge bag of carrots that had been sitting in the refrigerator for a good 2 weeks before I decided that something needed to be done with it. I decided to make one of my favorite Indian sweets- Gajar Ka Halwa.

This dessert is a bit time-consuming and takes a little over an hour to prepare, but it is a delicious treat that is well worth the time spent making it.

I followed the basic steps in Manjula's
recipe video while making the halwa.

Ingredients:

4 cups grated carrots
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups milk (I used 2 %)
3 Tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
½ cup sugar
¼ tsp powdered cardamom
A handful of raisins
A pinch of saffron

Method:
Heat the ghee in a large saucepan. Toss in the raisins and fry them. They will absorb the ghee and plump up. Remove and set aside. Next, add the grated carrots. Cook for about 5 minutes till the carrots are coated well with the ghee.


Pour the heavy cream and milk into the saucepan, add the saffron strands and cook till the milk-cream mixture comes to a boil, about 3-5 minutes. Turn down the heat, add the raisins back and continue to cook, stirring constantly, till the carrots absorb all the liquid, about 45-50 minutes.

Add the powdered cardamom and sugar. Mix well, stir continuously and continue cooking till all the sugar melts and the carrot mixture is almost dry, 5-7 minutes.

Serve hot or cold. I like to have this warm with a good scoop of vanilla ice cream.



Carrot halwa1

19 Burps:

Divya Kudua said...

Carrot halwa reminds me of Diwali since that was the time we made this sinful halwa.:)Looks mouthwatering:)

Indian Khana said...

Oh my that is soo tempting...wow...nice click

Raks said...

I have started mouthwatering,already!!

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Looks lovely. We just had some yesterday too. I had made some 6 months back and frozen it!

Parita said...

Looks fantastic!

TBC said...



Divya- yeah, I don't make it very often either. But it is alright to indulge every now and then.:)


Priti & Raks- thank you for your comments.:)


Aparna- I made a large batch fully intending to freeze some, but we finished every single bit of it in 2 days!! :-D


Parita- thank you.:)


Anonymous said...

This looks absolutely gorgeous! Totally droolworthy!

TBC said...

Thanks, homecooked. :D

Unknown said...

The halwa looks so delectable...wish I could taste it...lovely color

Bhavani said...

So going to make this one day soon :) looks amazing.

TBC said...

Supriya- go ahead and make it then- it's pretty simple, really! :D

Bhavani- thank you. I hope you like it as much as I did.:)

Desisoccermom said...

I too like carrot halwa with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. But I have to admit, I haven't made it in years because T doesn't have a sweet tooth. It seems too much trouble to make it just for me. I just eat it when I go to India or take delight in recipes like yours.
You raised a very good point in your comment on my blog and I totally agree. I do not mind the language as much if the passion for cooking or what is written about comes through. But I do object when words are used for the sake of using them or basic words like your and you're are mixed up.

Velva said...

This looks absolutely delicious! I would never have thought to use carrots to make a halva. Thank you! I learned something today.

s said...

great presentation

TBC said...



Jaya- I recently discovered your blog and I stop by every now and then. :)

Velva- thank you for visitng.
Actually, this happens to be a very popular dessert in certain parts of India. :)


S- thank you. :)


Bhargavi said...

burp !!! first time here ... lovely pics and yum recipies..will b back for more !!

Srivalli said...

Thats a lovely halwa!..looks like you are not in action??

Anonymous said...

How many servings does this, and the pineapple halwa yield?

TBC said...

Anon- I'm going to say 3-4 small servings, but I haven't made this recently so I can't be sure.

Post a Comment

I'm glad you're here! Thanks for stopping by.