Carrot Halwa {Gajar ka Halwa}

The last few days I have been looking at shopping for my grocery on-line.  The process is something like this – going to the website of the shop, browsing through all the items which are categorized according to different types, putting them into my virtual basket, selecting the day and place where I would collect and checking out.  So on the appointed day, I just need to drive past the super market and pay and pick up my grocery.  Like everything, there are two sides to a coin.  The pros of this being I do not buy on impulse but rather need, I am able to compare prices between the different brands – for example the large selection of types of potatoes or onions or cheeses and lastly I can plan my menu efficiently based on the shopping I do on-line.  The cons to this way being it takes as much time to shop on-line as it would like visiting the super market and of course I cannot touch my products – I want to smell the melon I buy, I want to be able to select the red apples and taste the samples available in the market.  I have given this method a try and will see how it goes for a few times.  I am sure along the way I will come across more pros and cons to this method of shopping and there would come a time where I might quit either one method of shopping – but let’s give it some time for now.

The dish below is a sweet that can be served hot or cold made with carrots and milk.  Like all halwas, it is best if cooked in ghee.  I reduced the amount of ghee from ½ cup in the recipe to 1 tablespoon. I was out of walnuts, so instead used raisins which were previously cooked in oil. 

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

10 medium sized carrots

1 litre Milk

½ cup Ghee

¼ teaspoon green cardamom powder

2 cups Sugar

6 Almonds

1 tablespoon cashew nuts, broken to bits

1 tablespoon walnut kernels, broken

Method:

1. Peel, wash and grate the carrots.  
2. Soak almonds in hot water for 5 minutes and remove the skin.  Cut them into thin slivers.  
3. Now heat ghee in a thick bottomed vessel and add the grated carrots and sauté for 5 minutes.  
4. Add milk, green cardamom powder and cook on medium heat stirring continuously for 6 minutes or till the milk evaporates and the carrots are cooked.  
5. Add sugar and continue to cook till the halwa thickens.  
6. Garnish with almonds, cashew nuts and walnut kernels.