CARROT HALWA

Gajar Ka Halwa brings to mind little ornate steel bowls full of delicious, moist, beautifully textured carrot pudding garnished with slivered nuts. Studded with chopped nuts and flavored with aromatic cardamom. This sweet Indian pudding is made from a blend of ghee, milk, cream, sugar, and grated carrot. It's equally good served either hot or cold. It is also known as gajrela, is a sweet dessert pudding originating from the Indian subcontinent, associated mainly with the North India and Pakistan.

The smell of grated carrot cooking in condensed milk and pure ghee lingers in many North Indian homes and marks the beginning of a chilly winter, and the 'carrot season'. It is a popular dessert all over India and often served at most festivals in India, mainly on the occasion of Diwali, Holi, Eid al-Fitr and Raksha Bandhan. The dish is popular among adults as well as children.

Desserts consist of variations of flavors, textures, and appearances. Desserts can be defined as a usually sweeter course that concludes a meal. This definition includes a range of courses ranging from fruits or dried nuts to multi-ingredient cakes and pies. Many cultures have different variations of dessert. In modern times the variations of desserts have usually been passed down or come from geographical regions. This is one cause for the variation of desserts.

Carrot is a commonly available vegetable that is used as part of many dishes like biryani, fried rice, noodles, soups, kormas, etc. It is usually orange in color. Carrots are crunchy, crispy and have a sweet, subtle and pleasant taste. They come in many different colours - white, yellow, red, and purple. While the red ones seems to be more commonly found in North India, you can find the orange ones in the South of India. Carrots are used in vegetables, dal, salads and desserts. They're cooked with rice to give it a minty aroma and a whole lot of depth. Gorgeous red coloured carrots flood the market and are quickly bagged by those who enjoy seasonal cooking.

Khoa is a milk food, made of either dried whole milk or milk thickened by heating milk in an open iron pan.  There are three types of khoya - batti, chickna, and daan-e-daar. Batti, meaning “rock,” has 50% moisture by weight and is the hardest of the three types; it can be grated like cheese. Khoa prepared in the winter may be saved for use in the summer and may acquire a green tinge and grainier texture from a surface mould. This is called hariyali (green khoya) and is used to make gulab jamun. 

 Khoa is made by simmering milk in an iron karahi for several hours, over a medium fire. Other quick way of making khoa is to continue mixing full fat milk powder to skimmed milk until it becomes khoa. khoa is the name of king. Khoya is used in various types of sweets such as Doodh Peda, Khoya Peda, Gulab jamun, Bottle Gourd Doodhi Halva and many more..

Cooking Tips:

• Microwave carrot before grating, as this makes easier to grate.
• Do not heat up khoya when it is very cold, defrost it in microwave or refrigerator or leave it at room temperature for a while.
• You can use skinned, chopped almonds if looking for alternate garnishing ideas.

Health Tips:

• Carrot doesn't just sharpen your eyesight, but can also restore it. In fact, urban legend states that eating large quantities of carrot will allow one to see in the dark.
• Carrots are a great source of antioxidants, Vitamin A and Vitamin C. They're also rich in alkaline elements which works as a blood purifier.
• Khoa is rich in fat, protein, carbohydrate, vitamin and mineral contents. It is a useful source of proteins for malnourished children and pregnant women.

Serve this delicious gajar ka halwa hot or warm. Enjoy this spoon of Warm, Yummy and ‘Ghee’-ey Carrot Halwa…!!!