Carrot Halwa

Heat heat..................................... I am trying to postpone a lot of things just because of the heat. I know it is ridiculous but sometimes makes you feel less energetic. I am back from vacation with lots of goodies.......made some........ate lots.......yet to do editing to post here.................

Finally, trying to stop my laziness and giving you all here is the flavorful carrot halwa made with carrots from Ooty. The carrots were so sweet. So imagine how sweet the halwa is going to be. Carrot halwa is a very traditional Indian dessert and it is apt for any occasion. It is easy to make and it has good nutrition. So everyone can indulge in the divine taste. Generally, it is made by cooking the carrots in milk, adding sugar till it is all cooked and then you add cashews and raisins fried in ghee or clarified butter. Some people also skip adding milk and pan fry and cook the carrots slowly in a couple of extra spoons of ghee. Trust me, it is just great that way too. I prefer to add milk, just to lower the amount of ghee used. 

I add cashews at the end many times. But I love carrots, walnuts, and raisins - it is THE ULTIMATE COMBINATION! Nothing can beat the flavor of this trio. So feel free to use chopped walnuts in the place of cashews or any other nuts of your choice.

Ingredients:

Carrots - 1 kg, peeled and shredded (I got 7 cups of shredded carrots)

Sugar - 1 cup

Milk - 250 ml

Walnuts - 1/4 cup, chopped

Sultanas - 1/4 cup

Ghee - 3 tsp

Cardamom - 4

Method:

In a heavy-bottomed pan or nonstick pan add a tsp of ghee, carrots, and milk. Keep on a low flame and cook till the carrots and cooked and reduced to say about 1/3rd of the total quantity. It may roughly take 30 min or so. Add the sugar and cardamom. Continue cooking until the whole halwa comes without sticking. In another pan heat 2 tsp ghee. When it is hot add the chopped walnuts and sultanas fry for a couple of minutes and add it to the carrot halwa. Mix and enjoy warm Carrot halwa in a bowl or straight from the pan with or without vanilla ice cream. I love it both ways!

Tips:

You can add more sugar depending on the sweetness of your carrots.