Recipe Name – Gajar ka halwa

Gajar ka halwa (carrot pudding) is the most popular dessert from Indian subcontinent and enjoyed all over during winter season. My mother always cooks gajar ka halwa during New Year ’s Eve and we enjoy this dessert on the 1^st day of the new year. Gajar ka halwa available in the market is mostly overly sweet and with too much fat in it. But my mother’s recipe is just perfect when it comes to taste, sweetness and fat content. All my family members and friends are fan of this gajar ka halwa. So, here I’m sharing this simple yet delicious recipe with all of you today.

What all do we need?

1. 2 kg carrot (red)
2. 1 kg+250 ml full fat milk
3. 400 gm sugar
4. 100 gm Desi Ghee (clarified butter)
5. 250 gm Khoya (Dried condense milk)
6. 50 gm chopped almond
7. 50 gm chopped cashew
8. 50 gm golden raisins
9. 1 teaspoon green cardamom powder

Method –

1. Clean, peel & grate carrots using manual grater or food processor. Squeeze out extra juice from the grated carrots.
2. Take kadhai, mix grated & squeezed carrots with milk and let carrots cook on medium to high flame for about 45 minutes. We need to reduce water content by 90%. Keep on stirring carrots to avoid sticking at the bottom of the pan.
3. After 30 minutes, add chopped almonds & cashew nuts and mix well. You can also dry roast dry fruits before adding in the halwa.
4. Approximately after 50 minutes, water content will be reduced by 90% and now it’s time to add Desi ghee and sugar and mix well.
5. Keep the gas flame on high and let sugar water content also reduce by 90%.
6. After 1 hours, add raisins, khoya & green cardamom powder and mix everything really well. Let halwa cook for another 2-3 minutes on high flame.
7. Do not reduce water content too much as halwa will become little dry after cooling down as well.
8. Switch off the gas and let halwa cool down a little before serving.
9. You can garnish more chopped dry fruits at the time of serving.
10. Gajar ka halwa is best when served hot, so before serving you can microwave it for 30 seconds.
11. Enjoy simple yet delicious gajar ka halwa with family and friends.