Introduction

Apart from besan barfi (home made), gaajar (carrot ) halwa remains my favorite Indian dessert. Perhaps because of the way it was prepared in my house. Laboriously, painstakingly, over several hours. The ingredients are simple – the entire preparation takes 2-4 hours depending on the quantity you decide to make.

Ingredients

  • Carrots
  • Whole Milk (an optional recipe calls for dried milk powder- I think that totally ruins the halwa – which is why it never  tasted ‘right’ to me when I had it in restaurants)
  • Ghee
  • Sugar (either white or brown)
  • Elaichi Powder (ground fresh cardamom)
  • Dry fruits and nuts (raisins, almonds, pistachios)

Getting Started

  1. Grate fresh carrots.
  2. Put milk in a large container on a medium flame.
  3. Add grated carrots to milk.
  4. Add a large tablepoon of ghee. Mix it all – and cook on a medium flame.

grated_carrots_to_milk

 

Keep mixing periodically – let the carrots and milk cook for at least 2 hours. If the milk becomes low, add more milk.

grated_carrots_to_milk2

Add sugar. Once most of the milk is gone, add a large tablespoon of sugar. Mix it in – and let it cook on a low flame.

adding_sugar

 

Add elaichi powder (ground cardamom). Mix it in – and let it cook on a low flame.Mix it in – and let it cook on a low flame.

Once all the milk has been absorbed, add a little more ghee and let it cook for another 15-20 minutes on a low flame.

adding_elaichi

Add dry fruits on top at the very end (pistachio, almond and raisins. Cashews optional)

dry_fruits

The Finished Product

finished_halwa

 

Summary

Carrot halwa is a delicious dessert that is extremely simple to cook. Although it takes a few hours to make, it lasts a few days – and tastes good even after it has been sitting in the refrigerator for a few days.

Anuj holds professional certifications in Google Cloud, AWS as well as certifications in Docker and App Performance Tools such as New Relic. He specializes in Cloud Security, Data Encryption and Container Technologies.

Initial Consultation

Anuj Varma – who has written posts on Anuj Varma, Hands-On Technology Architect, Clean Air Activist.